Weird Networking Problem

[godling]

This one is fairly weird: (This is posted on behalf of my friend, who now is using my old computer)
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I use "Realtek RTL8168/8111 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet NIC" onboard card for connecting to the internet. I use the drivers supplied with my motherboard, which worked perfectly until I reinstalled my OS. (Config below).

No bells and whistles. Just enable the LAN, and I could connect to the internet like eating cake.

However, after reinstalling my OS, I'm facing this awkward situation. Here's what happens:

Let's say during a session, before shutting down, I disable the LAN. Now when I boot back in, Internet is naturally not available since I have disabled it. But when I click enable again, it keeps showing "acquiring network address" for a while, and then fails and goes into the limited or no connectivity mode. The only way I can get internet back is by shutting down windows with connectivity enabled. In other words, if I shutdown windows with connectivity enabled (even if it says limited or no connectivity), the next time I boot in, internet will be up and running.

Also, my connection goes into limited or no connectivity mode after say 30 minutes of usage. The only way I can get back into the network is by rebooting again, and when I do reboot, everything is perfect.

Thanks for reading this rather bizarre and long post. Awaiting your suggestions.

PC Config:

MBoard - Asus P5RD2-VM based on Radeon Express 200 Chipset
CPU - Pentium 4 Single Core 3.2GHz
MEM: 1GB Single Stick DDR2 667MHz
HDD1 and 2 - Seagate IDE 5,400 rpm 40GB, 7,200 rpm 80GB
LAN - Realtek RTL8168/8111 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet NIC (Onboard)
OS: Windows XP SP2 English Build 2600

[kenc51]

What's the LAN card connected to? Is it a DSL / Cable modem or router?

This sounds like it's a router and the problem is with the DHCP lease time on the router being too long.
The router is prolly set to give out the IP address for far longer than required. When the PC is shutdown or lan disabled, the router still thinks the PC's IP address is still in use.
When the PC tries to reconnect, it asks for a new IP from the pool, but "ARP" kicks in to request the same IP as last time. The router won't give it as it thinks it's already in use.
Then you get the private IP address (169.x.x.x) --> "Limited or no connectivity"

You should try lowering the "DHCP lease time" on the router. This will make it stop thinking the PC's IP is already in use when it's not.
You'll prolly have to goto http://192.168.1.1 (or what ever your "Gateway" address is, you can check this via "ipconfig" in a DOS prompt)
Try setting it to ~600 seconds and test, lower it by ~30 secs @ a time if still not working.

Another option is that TCP/IP could be slightly corrupt. You can reset it by going to start / run / type "cmd" & press enter.
Then type "netsh dump" & press enter
Then type "netsh" & enter, then "int" & enter, then "ip" & enter, then "reset resetlog.txt" & enter
Then reboot.

Another more extreme option is to spoof your PC's MAC address to fool the router (if you don't have access to it)
http://www.irongeek.com/i.php?page=secu ... ac-spoofer

Thanks for the networking question, just what I need on a Sunday when I have a sore head ;)

[godling]

Another option is that TCP/IP could be slightly corrupt. You can reset it by going to start / run / type "cmd" & press enter.
Then type "netsh dump" & press enter
Then type "netsh" & enter, then "int" & enter, then "ip" & enter, then "reset resetlog.txt" & enter
Then reboot.

Goodness gracious! This worked like a charm Ken! Just being curious: What did this do behind the scenes? Would love to know! And yes, thank you thank you and thank you!

Thanks for the networking question, just what I need on a Sunday when I have a sore head ;)

Aww, I'm sort of like providing some after sales support to my friend as she's using my old PC now as a secondary.....he he, so I really had to make sure the customer support was good and in time. Hooray!

[kenc51]

Another option is that TCP/IP could be slightly corrupt. You can reset it by going to start / run / type "cmd" & press enter.
Then type "netsh dump" & press enter
Then type "netsh" & enter, then "int" & enter, then "ip" & enter, then "reset resetlog.txt" & enter
Then reboot.

Goodness gracious! This worked like a charm Ken! Just being curious: What did this do behind the scenes? Would love to know! And yes, thank you thank you and thank you!

Thanks for the networking question, just what I need on a Sunday when I have a sore head ;)

Aww, I'm sort of like providing some after sales support to my friend as she's using my old PC now as a secondary.....he he, so I really had to make sure the customer support was good and in time. Hooray!

Don't feel bad for asking the question, I just feel bad as I had too much to drink last night

TCP/IP in windows is a static file, saved in a format, kind of like a database. Some of the main parts are built into the kernel, some not.
Windows then saves all preferences to another file, what you did was delete those preferences.
It's actually a good idea by Microsoft as the older OS's were plagued with problems with TCP/IP getting corrupt. Now all they need to do is fix the preference file so users don't have to enter those commands.
Vista tried it, but has a lot more issues with networking

I'm glad it worked for you!