Computer stopped connecting to Internet
 

This morning I go to check my email and my computer won't connect to the internet at all. I have DSL run through a DSL modem with a wireless antenna, and I can connect via my wife's laptop (wireless) but not through the desktop (connected directly via ethernet). I have tried rebooting, I've checked my cable connections, etc. Obviously DSL signal is getting through the phone line and to the modem, as the wireless works fine.

How can I fix this? I don't know the right ways to go about troubleshooting this problem. I have Windows ME (I know, I know).,

Thanks for any help.

The first thing I would check would be your NIC. Take your wife's laptop and connect it to the ethernet cable that is currently going to your computer. Look at the Network Connections control panel. If the local connection lights up and connects, your problem is almost certainly your NIC.

They are pretty cheap ($15 or so). Go pick yourself up a new one and slap that puppy in there.

thanks. Additionally, some of the icons in my system tray look, well, weird. Like the colors are slightly off. The AOLIM icon's blue circle background is lighter than normal. Could be unrelated, but certainly weird

Hot days lately? I just had an ethernet card blow up with a similar problem, but its rare at best.

Try running "ping www.google.com -t" from the Start > Run menu on your computer. Get ping times back? That means something like Windows Firewall or NetNanny, etc.. is blocking websites.

Try pinging your ISP and your router. If you can't hit your router, then you know the issue is your computer or the cable.

If your ethernet port on your motherboard/card has a light, make sure if its on. If its not, you could try swapping out the cable.

Try connecting the laptop via a wire, if you can. Then you'll know its your computer-- hardware or software.

Another thing.. make sure you run "ipconfig" from the command prompt.. if you're getting a 169.xxx.xxx.xxx IP, it means your DHCP router isn't correctly assigning an IP address, and likewise not sharing internet connectivity. If you turn off the router, your computer, then turn the router, then computer back on.. it might fix this as well..

I'll try all that. I tried just typing "ping" into the "run" command prompt, but the window flashed on and off so fast I couldnt' read it. I'm running off of the wireless card in my desktop right now and will try this stuff later.

How do I ping my ISP and router?

oh, and we had serious thunder storms last night. That might have fried the card.

type "cmd" in the run prompt. You'll get a cli that you can type in.

Oh, and if your are running a wireless connection on the desktop and it is connecting to the network, the ping will just travel over the wireless connection and not tell you anything you shouldn't already know.

I would say that if you are connecting fine through the wireless I would say that you have a fried NIC.

NIC = Network Card? How would that have fried? The computer was in standby mode overnight...

In my experience (System Admin.), sometimes they just die. May have over heated, may have had a spike in the ethernet cabling, may have been a manufacturer defect.

I always keep a few handy just in case.

----deleteme----

UPDATE:

Verizon sent me a new modem and all is well....almost.

When I boot up my system, my computer won't connect to the modem via the NIC. If I fire up my wireless card, I'm all good. THEN, if I turn off my wireless card, I seem to be able to still surf via the NIC. Not sure why it won't work at the startup. Many have suggested uninstalling/reinstalling the NIC, but it came with my computer and I'm not sure I have the software on CD anywhere.

Sometimes boot order can actually matter.. when I "reboot" my connection, I have to kill router1, router2, and then PC.. and then turn back on router1, router2, PC.. in that order -- or it wont work.

Have you tried turning it all off, turning ON the modem and then turning on your PC? Or the opposite order?

Just a thought..

I'll have to fiddle with it. Could still be something weird about my NIC, but who knows. luckily I have the wireless card as backup.

If boot order matters, does it make sense to see that only one component is asigning
ip addresses?

how would i go about doing that?

Only one computer or router or other device should provide the DHCP function.

You can look it up in Windows help or Google.