Blocked Website 1

[Fotoman]

I think this is a security issue but I have no idea where to start.

I have one particular website that I manage but cannot access; I also cannot access the FTP server to make changes to the pages on this site.

IE7 reports the usual errors: misstyping the name, website is down, etc. It offers a diagnostic check but reports that it cannot find anything.

I can access the website and the FTP server, no problem on my PC at work.

I did have Norton Firewall installed but have now uninstalled it as it was probably interferring with the Windows Firewall. I tried accessing the website with Windows Firewall disabled but still cannot get on.

All other websites have no problem displaying and I can access other FTP Servers through the same provider.

I have checked out the Security section in Internet Explorer and cannot see any sites listed as being blocked.

Any help will be most gratefully received.

Fotoman

Crime Pays...
...unless you're a motorist!

 

[NoCalAdmin]

try inserting those site names as "Trusted Sites

 

[smah]

Check for an entry in the hosts file. If found, remove that entry.

 

[Fotoman]

Thanks guys. I have no idea what the Hosts File is or where to find it!

However, I have restored the factory settings to my router, then nothing would work! So I re-installed the back-up file and now I am (apparently) all back to normal.

Many thanks for interest, have a prosperous new year!

Fotoman

Crime Pays...
...unless you're a motorist!

 

[Fotoman]

Hi Guys, it's back again!

I think this may be a problem with IE7. I recently upgraded to this version and it would appear there are some major concerns with the program.

When I try to access a website through IE7, the problem sites, and there's only a couple of them, display an error on the task bar:

internetexplorer general res://ieframe.dll/dnserror.htm

This error not only blocks the website but also the Server address where it's stored.
Has anyone come across this error before?
I think my first step is to revert back to IE6. How can I do that?

Thanks in anticipation!

Fotoman


Crime Pays...
...unless you're a motorist!

 

[smah]

DNS errors aren't browser specific. Can you post a link to the web site? IE7 can be uninstalled from Add & Remove programs, but that is very unlikely to be the problem that you describe. The DNS error means that the web site can't be found by name for some reason.

 

[Fotoman]

FYI the site is

http://www.calcotpark.com

(It's a site that I manage) There is no problem with the site, as my colleagues can access it from their PC's and, as we speak, I am now again able to get access to it.

It's a weird situation because when the problem arises, I can still access other sites and receive E-Mails. It is as though something on my system decides to block access to certain sites on a random basis.

And why should it block access to the site's FTP area as well? This is a totally separate site!

Oh well, these things are sent to try us!

Best wishes
Fotoman


Crime Pays...
...unless you're a motorist!

 

[smah]

There are a couple of DNS issues that could be causing difficulties

http://www.dnsstuff.com/tools/dnsreport.ch?domain=www.calcotpark.com

 

[smah]

I meant to add: When you get the browser failure by name, try accessing the site by IP address only. Also when it fails, try a tracert by name to see if anything interesting shows (I suspect that you'll get a name resolution error).

 

[Fotoman]

Thanks for that smah, very interesting; I'll pass this info on the web hosters for comment.

Crime Pays...
...unless you're a motorist!

 

[TAnselm]

Try downloading and installing Firefox. See if the problem remains or goes away. If the problem goes away it's probably IE7, if not, it's probably your router.

Shut up and load the Photon Torpedoes...

 

[ozguy2000]

I have a similar problem with one single website I cannot access with my desktop computer. I can access any other website, anywhere in the world so it doesn't seem to be a problem with the browser!!! Secondly, I have both Firefox 1.5 and IE7 installed on the computer, I cannot access this site with either browser. That makes it even more strange. I have ADSL and no problems with the connection. I can access the site on my laptop thru the same ISP via dialup without any problem so the site is not blocked by the ISP. I have tried turning off the firewall, that didn't work. I am using Windows Firewall and AVG 7.5 Free Anti Virus updated to current day. I can also access the website using such services as "

http://www.instantunbloc.com"

I have looked at security settings, lists of blocked sites etc and can't find anything. I am not a techie so I am now at a loss as to what else to look for. Any suggestions.

 

[smah]

Back to the beginning.. check the hosts file.

 

[ozguy2000]

OK, where do I find the "hosts" file??

Update, for some mysterious reason, it is now working again! Yesterday, I deleted one bookmark I had in Firefox and then did a google search for the site. I picked one entry at random, clicked on the link and it worked! I bookmarked that link, closed Firefox and then reopened it. Clicked on the bookmark and it worked. How bizarre is that?? Today I accessed the site by clicking on my link. So far so good. Exited out and then tried typing the web address into the address bar. Connection Timed Out! Deleted all the previous entries from the address bar drop down box and then it worked?? At the same time, IE is now working ok and I did nothing to that at all as I had no bookmarks or history etc.

Computers do the darnedest things, but maybe someone has a logical explanation for all this nonsense I have been thru!!

 

[feherke]

Hi

OK, where do I find the "hosts" file??

Guessing that you have Windows XP, then [tt]%SystemRoot%\system32\drivers\etc\[/tt].

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hosts_file#Location

Feherke.

http://rootshell.be/~feherke/

 

[ozguy2000]

Thanks for the info on the "hosts" file. Found it and had a look. Nothing in there other than the line that they say must be there. So that doesn't seem to be the answer. I now have another site that I can't get into - again with either Firefox or IE. It is a strange problem. I am using XP Pro.

 

[smah]

Are you running Spybot Search & Destroy?

When you find a site that you 'can't get into' try running a tracert from the command prompt & tell us if there are any errors.

 

[Fotoman]

Well I'm happy to report that I have been trouble free for a week now, but it is comforting to know that someone else is experiencing the same problem (not nastily!)

The only thing I did was to uninstall the software for a Tom-Tom Sat-Nav system that I had as a Christmas Present.

You would think though, that if only one or two websites are being blocked, they would be blocked all of the time. This problem seems to come and go at will.

Anyway, fingers crossed, I still have full access.

Fotoman

Crime Pays...
...unless you're a motorist!

 

[ozguy2000]

I am using Spybot Search and Destroy. Can that make a difference? Don't recall having had problems with it before?

How do I run the tracert?

Since the last update, I can now access the second website I was having problems with. Very weird!

As observed by Fotoman in his posting, this seems to be an intermittent problem - and by definition - the hardest to trace and solve.

John in Oz

 

[smah]

Spybot Search and Destroy has an option to block certain hosts much the same way that the hosts file does. Make sure the host that you're having problems with isn't listed in there. However, if this were the case, it would always be this way for any domain name with this problem; it would not be intermittent.

To use tracert, open a command prompt & type tracert domainname Perhaps this is a DNS related problem.