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Accessing specific websites in XP sp2 difficulties

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CruiseMan

Programmer
Nov 17, 2006
29
US
I purchased a used computer with Windows XP sp2 and connected it to the internet. I have both Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome as browsers. Most websites (like amazon) connect fine, but when I try to connect to websites like Microsoft.com or Norton.com I get a server not found error. Could anyone give me suggestions as to how to correct this problem?
 
First thing, you should be moving away from XP at this point.
Second thing, you should be up to Service Pack 3 at this point IF you're going to run XP
You haven't given us much to go on. Did previous computer work find on all web sites?

Troubleshooting:
Is your computer plugged directly into your modem or is it plugged into a router.
If plugged into a modem directly, shut down the PC, pull the power on the modem, plug it back in, start PC, see what happens
If plugged into router, do above but also restart router AFTER modem and BEFORE PC.

Go to a CMD prompt (Click Start. Click Run. Type cmd press enter.)
Post results of IPCONFIG /ALL
Link

Ping the problem web sites and tell us what the error/result is
Link


"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.
 
Might help to do a tracert for the problem sites. Might show where it goes bad.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.
 
Hi goombawahoo,

Thanks for the reply. I upgraded to XP sp3 now, but I want to resolve the connection issue before upgrading to Win 7 Pro. As per your request I did an ipconfig /all. Here are the results:

Microsoft Windows XP [Version 5.1.2600]
(C) Copyright 1985-2001 Microsoft Corp.

C:\Documents and Settings\directbuy>ipconfig /all

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : D3XZD4F1
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Unknown
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : Belkin

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : Belkin
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) 82562V-2 10/100 Network Con
nection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-1A-A0-9D-30-69
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.5
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.2.1
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Sunday, December 07, 2014 7:59:44 AM

Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Monday, January 18, 2038 10:14:07 PM

Also did a ping to microsoft.com (not sure I did it correctly) but here are the results:

Microsoft Windows XP [Version 5.1.2600]
(C) Copyright 1985-2001 Microsoft Corp.

C:\Documents and Settings\directbuy>ping microsoft.com
Ping request could not find host microsoft.com. Please check the name and try ag
ain.

C:\Documents and Settings\directbuy>ping Ping request could not find host Please check the name and tr
y again.

Thanks for any help you can give!
 
Could need winsock reset, or could be a DNS name resolution issue. Also, there is no upgrade path to windows 7 from XP, you will need to install a fresh version of Windows 7, and any issues with the OS, will not carry over to a Windows 7 environment.

Winsock Reset in Windows XP

Click the Start button in the bottom left-hand corner of the screen.

Click the Search option in the right-hand column.

Type “cmd” in the search box and then hit the Enter key on your keyboard.

Right-click on cmd in the search results for Programs, and select Run as administrator. Depending on your computer settings, you may be asked to provide an administrator password before you can continue.

A black box with a flashing cursor will open; this is the Command Prompt. Type “netsh winsock reset” and then hit the Enter key on your keyboard.

Wait for the Command Prompt to run through the reset. Once it’s complete, you’ll see the message “Winsock reset completed successfully”.

Restart your computer to finish.

As Ed suggested you could try a tracert (trace route)

A nice website that can do the trace for you, and is easy to use and free is pingdom on the tools tab at top, select tracert and type microsoft.com in the window, and select test now, it will give you a hop count and time between hops and any loss, if a destination is unreachable, there is a break in the internet at that node, and nothing on your computer can be done to fix it.
 
Hi rclarke250!

The netsh winsock reset fixed part of the problem. I can now access the microsoft.com website. However, I still get a "server not found" error message when I try to get to norton.com. Strange.... Any thoughts on that?

Thanks for your help!
 
Check for malware. Some viruses might block access to antivirus and microsoft sites.

===
Karlis
ECDL; MCSA
 
Your user name is "directbuy"? Interesting.

Is your PC able to support Windows 7?
The absolute fix to the problem - "there is no upgrade path to windows 7 from XP, you will need to install a fresh version of Windows 7, and any issues with the OS, will not carry over to a Windows 7 environment."



"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.
 
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