Computer Help Required

(Grammer Help also needed debatably)

Okay, I don't know what is up with my internet but I'm getting some really wierd vibes from this.

For the last couple of weeks I've been having trouble with our wireless broadband connection, which has flitted between being randomly fine to saying 'Local Only' or 'Limited Connectivity'. Now, it keeps fixing itself, oddly.

Today, I logged on to find the computer proclaiming that there is no problem with the adaptor or the router, that it is connected to 'Local and Internet', and yet as far as I have been able to tell, MSN Messenger is the only program that can connect to the internet. Not Firefox or IE or iTunes or Steam but just MSN.

A friend and I have been brainstorming for over an hour trying to figure out what is wrong. So far, we have not succeeded.

If anyone with computing experience (*cough* ROB *cough*) knows anything then please give me a hand with this.

(And incidentally, I'm using my phone as a back-up modem, thus allowing me to access the net but with VERY limited usage)

EDIT: Also, IPv4 is showing up as being connected to the internet, but IPv6 is showing up as 'Limited'. Could this be a factor?

 

I'm afraid the gentleman you're asking for is in a meeting at the moment. You can call back later.

 

Thank you, glorified answering machine.

 

I wouldn't worry about that.

Do the same issues occur if you bypass the router? It could be that various programs use different ports, which may or may not be blocked or restricted.

Do you have and anti-virus program or firewall?

Have you tried connecting physically to the router and trying it? Then possibly physically to the modem and trying it as well?

First thing I would do is reset TCP/IP, then restart.
you can do this by opening the command prompt (elevated if you're using vista/7) and typing in "netsh i i r r" (without quotes, of course) and then pressing enter.
This destroys all information in your nic- which will rebuild itself upon rebooting.

 

I do not know what this means.

I have bullguard anti-virus, but it's never interfered before.

It's in another room and I don't have an ethernet cable long enough.

Then, I will try that.

 

Various programs need various ports opened. I wouldn't worry about this yet, since it's inconsistent connectivity and not constantly down.

Does it update automatically? Sometimes this can cause settings to revert to default or change outright. I would try disabling it briefly and seeing if it still behaves the same if it happens again.

For the purpose of testing, you might have to bite the bullet and- *gasp* MOVE THE PC DOWN THERE!!!

Referring to the issue of the connection fixing itself- what are the times when this happens. Does it say this if you leave the PC for a while and come back? Many times some net cards have power management settings that will turn them off after a certain amount of idle time to conserve energy. A simple reboot will correct this, but I usually just shut the power management settings off.

Are there other wireless devices that use the same router and have similar issues?

 

Rob has the spirit in him. He's speaking in tongues.

 

Or "ipconfig /flushdns"

It could be a DNS resolver problem. Also in a command prompt window, type "nslookup google.com"
If it can't come up with with an IP address, you may have a problem with your DNS settings, or the DNS server you are using may be acting up.

Or your DHCP server in your router may not be working properly. If your IPv4 address begins with 169.254, your router's DHCP server is disabled or malfunctioning.

 

Okay, I tried resetting the TCP/IP and I've rebooted but the problem is still there. I've also deactivated my firewall for the moment but still no such luck. I will try moving the computer tomorrow.

Bizarrely, it wasn't so much the leaving the PC alone, if I left it alone and came back later it would show the same thing. Even if I rebooted the whole system nothing would change. However, it always seemed to be that the problem would be fixed when I turned it on in the morning.

 

Yes, definitely flush dns- for some reason I never think to do that until later.

Yes, or the nic is hosed. If your router is working with other devices and you're getting a 169.254 IP, it's definitely a computer issue. I'm not sure what your network routing settings are, but most commonly used NATd IPs begin with 192, or 172.

 

Okay, I didn't realise what an elevated command prompt was, but I know now and I have reset the TCP/IP, ran the flush DNS and rebooted the computer. Now I am just getting 'Limited Connectivity' and no IP Address.

EDIT: Please, stop me if I'm being unhelpful.

 

No IP address at all is listed, or is it 169?

What happens if you type in "ipconfig/release" and then "ipconfig/renew" into the command prompt?

 

Wait, it's got one now.

But... exactly the same as before. It says it's connected, says that it is sending AND recieving data and yet nothing will load.

I don't know, I'm stumped.

 

Well, it's connected to the router, yes- but can it get out past it?

Can you ping out? To do this, try typing "ping www.google.com"

If you can ping out successfully, try browsing by IP rather than the domain name. For instance, in your lines below where you typed "ping" it'll say reply from X.X.X.X. This is google's IP, and you can try typing it manually into the browser window to see if you can browse to it.

 

Browsing by IP seems to work.

 

Also, very strangely, I can still post messages to the forum on the wi-fi, but it refuses to load a new page.

 

Ok, check to make sure your DNS is set to dynamic in your local area connection.

(Right click the LAC, select properties- make sure it's set to obtain automatically)

What you might want to do is log into your router. You can do this by finding out the IP address with "ipconfig/all" and writing down what it says for the Default Gateway. Type this number into your browser address bar and login to your router. Find out what your ISP's DNS servers are and manually put them in.
This should, in theory, correct your browsing problems.

Edit: If your router is set for dynamic (auto-obtaining) DNS as most are, you could also try entering the DNS statically (manually) into your PCs LAC. That should work also.

 

I never realized how complex computers and the Internet were. I take it all for granted and hope for the best most of the time.

 

It's fixed itself again.

One thing, possibly worth mentioning, when it wasn't working there was an item in the properties, DHCP Enabled. Before it said 'No', now it says 'Yes'.

I don't know what this means.

 

DHCP is a type of networking protocol where your nic pulls an IP and DNS automatically from your ISP's server. Often your IP address will change when its lease expires. This could be anywhere from a couple hours to a few days.

Some ISPs hand out static IP addresses that never change.

This issue specifically could mean that the nic drivers are corrupt. One thing you could try is re-downloading and installing the drivers for your wireless nic from whatever your PC manufacturer's website is. (Or your nic's manufacturer if you installed that seperately)

If that doesn't help, it could also mean that the device itself is malfunctioning. Fortunately, you can always replace the nic itself for fairly cheap. I would test your router using other wireless devices to see if they experience the same sort of thing. If you do, the issue is likely with your router.

 

The DHCP server on a router will hand iout a local IP address that is unlikely to change unless you have multiple computers using it. Even so, the lease is unlikely to change unless the computer is not connected for a couple days.

The router gets its own external IP address from the Internet provider, and that is indeed likely to change if the router's Internet connection drops and is reconnected, but that is invisible to a computer connected through the router.

You can tell a lot from the local computer's data if you type "ipconfig /all" in a command window. You only want the info from the Wireless Network Adapter.

The IPv4 should probably begin with 192.168.1 or 192.168.0. The Default Gateway should probably be the same thing, but ending in 1. The Subnet Mask should be 255.255.255.0 (255.255.0.0 is okay too). There should be 1 or more DNS Servers.

Take the first of the DNS numbers - let's say it's 71.72.72.74 - and use it with an nslookup command:
nslookup 71.72.73.74
on the next line, type microsoft.com (or google.com, or some other domain name)
If that DNS server is working, you should getr back an IP address for each domain name you type.
When you are done, type quit