IE Problems

[djdyal]

We built a new computer and installed XP home edition. We then connected the computer to the DSL connection and downloaded all of the upgrades to XP so that it is now SP2. After finishing the SP2 install and restarting, the computer has had severe problems with IE.

The usual scenario is that it will connect and display the home page. You can then navigate to one or two sites before it goes into the "DNS error" or "Can't Find Site" mode. Curiously, you can use all the messaging you want without an issue.

We have read through the forums very carefully and seen this problem repeatedly. We have tried the Winsockfix, the "netsh" commands to reboot the TCP/IP, have followed Microsoft's instructions for deleting Winsock and Winsock2 and reinstalling TCP/IP.

We have checked IPConfig and pinged everything we can and it shows good connections. We are at a loss as to what is cuaisng the problem. We suspect that, since when you reboot you can browse temporarily, there most be some stack or temporary memory storage issue.

Thanks for the help.

 

[bcastner]

faq608-4650

 

[bcastner]

Also, do not discount a possible hardware issue with your cable plant, the router port, etc.

 

[djdyal]

Thanks for the reply. I have read the post regarding malware once before. I wasn't sure if this would be applicable to us since we did not access any websites other than Microsoft to do the upgrades prior to the issue presenting itself. It almost seems as if the upgrade to SP2 has caused the problem.

I have the latest version of McAfee. Will this do the job of detecting and eliminating the malware?

 

[bcastner]

No, unfortunately it will not. For a true virus or worm, yes it does a decent job.

I would rebuild the Winsock service stack. Under XP Sp2 see my notes in faq779-4625 using netsh.exe.

 

[bcastner]

And a pass with Ramesh's IEFix would be a good idea:

http://www.mvps.org/sramesh2k/IEFIX.htm

It handles a lot of registration issues with DLLs.

 

[djdyal]

You have the patience of Job. We'll do the searches for malware and see what happens. By the way, we did rebuild the Winsock per the instructions from Microsoft, and it did seem to work for a few minutes. The problem seems to happen when you try navigate back to the home page after you have browsed some sites. For example, we used msn as the home page after reboot. Then, went to dslreports to check the connection speed and to tweak the settings. The connection speed and settings were ok. I then clicked home and got the dreaded can't find the url page. Strangely enough, you can still connect to google, even after the problem arises, but can't search or navigate from there.

 

[bcastner]

Great, just a wonderful way to start the Holiday season. See this thread: thread760-973197

 

[bcastner]

To all,

There is some very nasty crap out there now on the internet.

. Check now your backup plan. You may have to use it.
. Member CableInstaller (Option^Explicit) does several walk throughs of the VX2 issue in my link above. If using IE, disable ActiveX controls. It is really war out there on the Internet.
. Firefox does not have ActiveX, so you might consider this as an alternative to IE for general browsing.

http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/

 

[djdyal]

I have installed McAfee, no viruses. I have checked for addware and spyware and there was nothing. I have rebooted the Winsock and TCP/IP and no help. Since the computer is still new and there is nothing yet on the hard drive, wouldn't it be easier to reinstall Windows and start from scratch? This is my son's computer and he is resisting doing that. I told him that I had spent all the time I'm going to and to fix it himself.

 

[bcastner]

Does your HOSTS file look exactly like this?
(You can use notepad in the folder c:\windows\system32\drivers\etc)

[tt]
# Copyright (c) 1993-1999 Microsoft Corp.
#
# This is a sample HOSTS file used by Microsoft TCP/IP for Windows.
#
# This file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. Each
# entry should be kept on an individual line. The IP address should
# be placed in the first column followed by the corresponding host name.
# The IP address and the host name should be separated by at least one
# space.
#
# Additionally, comments (such as these) may be inserted on individual
# lines or following the machine name denoted by a '#' symbol.
#
# For example:
#
# 102.54.94.97 rhino.acme.com # source server
# 38.25.63.10 x.acme.com # x client host

127.0.0.1 localhost

[/tt]

 

[djdyal]

Ok. We solved the problem by uninstalling SP2, and using winsockfix to reconstruct the winsock. Now everything is working perfectly.