XP Pro can't connect to internet through router on cable modem

[ashallwani]

Hi guys,
This is my first post, and i've searched this site for about 3 hours without a concrete solution, just wondering if you had any thoughts . . . here it goes . . .
I have a 733MHz Dell comp, 256MB ram.
I had Windows ME, and I upgraded to Windows XP Pro today because of memory management issues.
I live with four other guys, and we have a four port router. Since there are not enough ports, one guy and i are connected through a 10Mbps hub which is connected to the router. We have cable internet connection.
Everything before the upgrade was fine, internet connection, file sharing etc. We used my friends win 2000 machine in sept to configure the router initially.
Now i have pretty much nothing.
I cannot see anyone on the network. I no longer have internet access. The LAN connection icon shows that i am connected, but if i try to repair it i get "The following steps of the repair operation failed:
renewing IP address." It seems this is the problem. Any suggestions? my apologies if there are posts that answer this, i haven't found any yet.

 

[CBradshaw]

OK...don't despair....

Firstly...you really should have done a fresh install of XP as opposed to upgrading but not a problem ;o)

Make sure that the Windows XP firewall (turned on by default for upgrades) is turned off....and make sure all the relevant dhcp settings are the same as they should be

All should work now

Happy networking

 

[ashallwani]

CBradshaw, thanks for your help so far, but i think i might need some more . . .
The firewall was already disabled, that was my first suspicion.
One of the guys is running XP Home, and i checked his ip configuration, and our subnet mask and default gateway are the same. The only difference is that my ip address is increasing everytime i release the ip config and restart my computer. It started at xxx.xxx.x.101 and it is now xxx.xxx.x.110. If i try to renew at the command prompt, i get the following message,
"An error occurred while renewing interface Local Area Connection: unable to contact your DHCP server. Request has timed out."
Also, when i type ipconfig /all, his computer says
Node type: Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled: Yes,
My computer shows
Node type: Unknown
IP Routing Enabled: No
Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[shawnfv]

Try to ping the router at xxx.xxx.x.1, from your commputer. If you can't ping it, try using a crossover cable between the router and the hub. I've had the same thing happen to me before, and using the crossover cable between the devices took care of the problem.

Shawn

 

[debonairOne]

The uplink between the hub and the cable modem has to be a crossover cable as "Shawnfv" states, if you use the uplink option. Also, keep in mind that on the hub, the uplink port and the adjacent port are shared on the hub... so if you are using the uplink option, skip a port and connect... I am using this exact same configuration at home and had to play with it to figure out what worked best for me... I've also used one of the regular ports on the router to connect to one of the ports on the hub and had mixed results... this cable was a straight thru... (just another option if a Xover isn't available)

The other concern I have is that your machine should not be incrementing your ip address after every renewal of DHCP.. I would uninstall all networking components, reboot and let XP reidentify them... then see what happens...

In the future, if ever faced with the decision to upgrade or install fresh, always choose fresh install.... will save you pain and heartache in the long run... debonairOne

"I look in the mirror and what do I see..."

 

[vitrader]

If you have not done so yet........try upgrading your DSL router's firware. My Linksys router performed very well under windows XP after I did the upgrade.

al Al Odlum
vicomm2@netscape.net

For Networking..............see me

 

[TheZeDD]

As one user stated check to see if there is a firmware/flashware update for your router! You would be suprised how often there is and , generally speaking, they will be happy to walk you thru it or inform you of additional info.

Just out of curiosity ... have you been able to get your "file sharing" working with your other stations? (if you have any on the same network =)

If you have any other older MS OS platforms running you will need to do a manual install of Netbeui (pulling the drivers off the XP cd or elsewhere) - Atta Boy MScrewtz =0

You may click to add the Netbeui protocol and see it appear but unless you MANUALLY extract/input the files required its a "phantom" protocol if you will =0

If your still having problems with network connectivity and internet communicay try completely removing and reinstalling UPDATED NiC drivers from the manufacturer of your adaptor.

As the other folks stated (besides disabling your firewall which i have yet to see this interfere) check to see you have the same settings as you did before.

If you are running a Static iP Addressing scheme be sure you adjust the first page of settings and not the advanced [in the case you are running a dialup].

If you decide to use a 56k dialup as well you will need to change these settings on this first page of sets ONLY if you choose to use a static scheme. Otherwise, just let it auto all and set it for DHCP. All else should be fine.

Remember one thing though ...Disable Remote Administration. Its a simple click of a button that can be re-enabled just the same IF it should be needed =)

Drop a line back and let us know how it goes or if your still in a bind!

- Cheers!

 

[ashallwani]

Thanks for your help so far . . . but . . .
I can't ping the router. And regarding the crossover cable, my housemate with xp home is connected to the hub with me (hub connected to router with straight thru cable), and he has a working internet connection. Is it possible that xp pro requires the crossover cable between the router and hub yet xp home doesn't?
Also, i can now see every one else on the network (in my workgroup), which is a step up from yesterday. Still no internet access . . .
One last thing, does uninstalling the networking components involve simply unchecking them, rebooting, rechecking them and rebooting? If so, i've tried that, and nothing was resolved.
Thanks again . . .

 

[JeffersonH]

1. you don't need a crossover to the hub, or from the hub to the router...dead end.

2. your router is leasing addresses appropriately based on your description above.

3. what you haven't mentioned is the rest of networking setup...dns, wins, and etc. in particular you may want to manually enter dns addresses, presumably from your isp.

4. turn off ICS

5. make sure the router's filtering is turned off, or not filtering your address(es), shouldn't be possible with a linksys router, can't speak for other brands, when dhcp is enabled.

6. consider a clean install rather than an upgrade, though it would've been cheaper to take the memory to 512MB in the first place. and more ram is better for xp too

7. try a different cable/port combination since breakage is not unheard of, but if you're really seeing and can map to other computers then skip that

8. you don't mention if you have a domain controller on this network, you may need to add the computer to the domain to make all work correctly...a must if using active directory.

 

[TheZeDD]

Firstly, Just unchecking them does not uninstall these properties/protocols but simply disables it.

If you highlight them you will find the buttons located beneath that allow you to remove or install other protocols/etc...

Secondly, look at your hub or router you are trying to plug into. In most if not all cases unless your hub/router/nic/dinosaur is not functioning properly/have the functionability you will have LED's telling you what is going on.

You should be able to verify this by trying your straight-thru/crossover and see the lights work/not work unless you have disabled the nic or something is faulty.

Try this [closing or saving any pertinent tasks =], verify the working box you are speaking about thru the lit leds. Swap the cables to this one box alone. Verify no led?

Now, do the same for your box. Same information LED's lit/did not lit in the same working order as the good box? Yes!?

If the above is true and all was the same then you either have a faulty nic OR you need more help in the TCP-iP department.

- Drop a Line Back

 

[ashallwani]

Greetings,
Thank you all for your help. I had a friend come over and we tried some things . . .
It turns out that Zone Alarm wasn't set up properly after the xp upgrade, so although at startup Zonealarm wasn't 'active' (it wasn't in the bottom corner of my screen), msconfig showed that true vector (by Zone labs) was in fact active.
Starting up Zonealarm and restarting with Zonealarm fixed that. Now i can turn it off, restart and internet still works, all seems well now!
Thanks again.

 

[TheZeDD]

Just out of curiosity what version of ZoneAlarm are/were you running and also if you had your Internal Network not trusted [only avab in Pro] and/or set to HiGH?

I also should have asked if the other boxes on your network are other than XP and if you have MANAULLY installed NetBeui [pulled files off the XP install CD] and configured your Network ID's [name] the same.

Unless you were running your Internal Network settings to high or blocking outgoing port #'s 135-139 TCP [ZA PRO Only] you should not be having any problems.

Just curious if you could load your ZA backup and try this again. I think you had ZA Pro running as I believe that is the only version that allows you to run the 'True Vector' without actually having ZA present in your Systray [icon in the bottom right].

Also, unless I am wrong, unless you password protect your ZA Pro and dont signin before shutting down ZA Pro this is the only way it will keep the 'True Vector' running.

Try resetting your options including the Internal network and set ZA to medium warn settings and start over. I think what may have happened is you either accidentally clicked to not allow a protocol and/or did not fully train ZA into what settings would be needed on your network and then shut it down while attempting to configure your NiC/Network and ZA's 'True Vector' was set to disallow any untrained/unauthorized protocols...

- Cheers!

 

[ashallwani]

TheZeDD,
I don't have ZA Pro, and i have no idea why it was running in the background without showing it in the systray.
I just looked at msconfig again, and it says True Vector Internet Monitor, by Zone Labs is 'stopped' and Zone Alarm is not running on my system right now. Before the problem was fixed, True Vector Internet Monitor was 'running' and i think that was the problem.
I have version 3.1.395 of Zone Alarm, and the same for True Vector Security Engine.
Before i upgraded, i believe i ran ZA and it worked fine. I did not make any changes from then to the time i upgraded to Windows XP.
Thank you very much for you help

 

[TheZeDD]

Ugh... If only there was a way for ZA to pop up and say:

"Are you having Network or TCP/iP connectivity problems? Try uninstalling me first before asking for help [crossing your fingers it does this on its own without any further a-do =o (the latest versions seem to have matured well from early ZA releases)]"

- Cheers =)