Client for Microsoft Networks

[Joe Rose]

This is a post I made last night which, for some reason, I cannont find
today. I'm sorry if it really is a repeat that I just cannot find. Anyway,
my Sony laptop (Vaio 170B) suddenly no longer wishes to all me to accesss the
Internet. he only thing I can see that might cause this is in "Windows
Network Connection Properties. Looking at it I can see the check box for
Client for Microsoft Networks is shaded. That means, I guess, that part of
that component is not present. How do I get this back? Windows XP Home was
installed on my computer when I purchased it so I have no Windows XP disks
for a reinstallation. Please Help!

 

[R. McCarty]

Client for Microsoft Networks is a service that is bound to the NIC
(Network Interface Controller). Not having this bound to the NIC is
not responsible for loss of Internet connectivity.

You did not mention your connection method ( Cable, ADSL or dial
up ). If Broadband the first thing you do whenever connection is lost
is to power off and then power on the access device. These devices
boot much like a computer and retain connection settings. Once they
are powered on the LEDs indicate status. You want to check that the
"Activity" LED is flashing. This indicates data traffic between your ISP
and the device. Once you verify the device is connected you then
test the connection between your PC and the access device.

 

[Joe Rose]

For the record, I am using broadband via DSL connection. I'm also using a
wireless network in my house. Rebooting the DSL modem as well as the
wireless router makes no difference. The message in the task bar says I have
excellent connectivity to my home network. Nonetheless I still cannot access
the Internet
I have a desktop computer that is connected by cable to the wireless router
and it is able to access the Internet perfectly. That's the computer I'm
using to write these posts. Do you have any other suggestions for me?
Thanks.

 

[R. McCarty]

Appreciate the additional info.

Since you've verified the Internet you'd want to check the TCP/IP settings
on the problem computer. Open a Command Prompt window.

IPConfig

Note the Gateway & DNS assignments. Make sure the IP address does
not start with 169 - that indicates an inability of DHCP to assign your PC
an address from the Wireless address range.

Ping 'Gateway Address'
Ping 'DNS Server Address'

Both Pings should yield a 0% loss meaning that each received a reply from
the destination computers.

 

[Joe Rose]

Thanks for the quick comeback. Perhaps you've hit on my problem, but I don't
know how to correct it. When i do an ipconfig I get an autoconfiguration ip
address that is 169.254.246.180 The subnet mask is 255.255.0.0. There is
nothing indicated for default gateway and I see nothing for a DNS server
address. Any suggestions? I really appreciate your time and help with this.

 

[Unknown]

Easiest and fastest fix is to call your ISP tech.

Thanks for the quick comeback. Perhaps you've hit on my problem, but I
don't
know how to correct it. When i do an ipconfig I get an autoconfiguration
ip
address that is 169.254.246.180 The subnet mask is 255.255.0.0. There is
nothing indicated for default gateway and I see nothing for a DNS server
address. Any suggestions? I really appreciate your time and help with
this.

 

[Lem]

The "excellent connectivity" reported by Windows is highly misleading
for wireless networks. All it indicates is that the wireless adapter is
detecting a radio signal - which could by your router, someone else's
router, or some other source of rf energy at the correct frequency.

The most common cause of the symptoms you describe is a problem with
wireless security. Try temporarily reconfiguring your router with *no*
wireless security (i.e., no encryption, no MAC filters, no anything
else). On your problem computer, go into the list of preferred wireless
networks and delete the entry for yours. Then try to connect to your
now-unsecured network. If you can connect under these circumstances,
reconfigure the router to use WPA2-PSK or WPA-PSK.

Thanks for the quick comeback. Perhaps you've hit on my problem, but I don't
know how to correct it. When i do an ipconfig I get an autoconfiguration ip
address that is 169.254.246.180 The subnet mask is 255.255.0.0. There is
nothing indicated for default gateway and I see nothing for a DNS server
address. Any suggestions? I really appreciate your time and help with this.

--
Lem -- MS-MVP

To the moon and back with 2K words of RAM and 36K words of ROM.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Guidance_Computer
http://history.nasa.gov/afj/compessay.htm