Can't access web site from two of three computers on home network

[Julian]

I'm pretty good at solving computer problems, in fact it's my job. But
this one has me stumped. It all started when my wife told me she could
not access the site www.hsbc.co.uk from her computer. Since this is a
banking site, I was concerned. I could access the site from my computer,
so the site was not down.

I checked the hosts file - there was no problem with that. The web
address resolves to the same IP address as it does on my computer.

I installed and ran MS AntiSpyware - it found and removed one suspect
file which I don't think had any bearing on the problem, and it made no
difference.

I cleared out the web browser cache. Internet Explorer could still not
access the site.

I installed the Firefox browser. That could not access the site.

I tried Telnet to www.hsbc.co.uk port 80 - it timed out.

All computers run Windows XP2 updated to the same level. There is no
firewall software on any of the computers, either the Windows XP
firewall or a third party one. All three computers access the Internet
via an SMC Barricade ADSL modem/NAT firewall/router, which also works as
a DHCP server. I reset the Barricade - it made no difference.

I fired up the laptop - the third computer on the network - which does
not use the same anti-virus as the other two. I could not access
www.hsbc.co.uk from that, either.

I can still access the site from my own computer.

My wife's computer is 192.168.2.103.
My computer is 192.168.2.108.

I'm completely at a loss.

 

[Ron Lowe]

I'm pretty good at solving computer problems, in fact it's my job. But
this one has me stumped. It all started when my wife told me she could not
access the site www.hsbc.co.uk from her computer. Since this is a banking
site, I was concerned. I could access the site from my computer, so the
site was not down.

I checked the hosts file - there was no problem with that. The web address
resolves to the same IP address as it does on my computer.

I installed and ran MS AntiSpyware - it found and removed one suspect file
which I don't think had any bearing on the problem, and it made no
difference.

I cleared out the web browser cache. Internet Explorer could still not
access the site.

I installed the Firefox browser. That could not access the site.

I tried Telnet to www.hsbc.co.uk port 80 - it timed out.

All computers run Windows XP2 updated to the same level. There is no
firewall software on any of the computers, either the Windows XP firewall
or a third party one. All three computers access the Internet via an SMC
Barricade ADSL modem/NAT firewall/router, which also works as a DHCP
server. I reset the Barricade - it made no difference.

I fired up the laptop - the third computer on the network - which does not
use the same anti-virus as the other two. I could not access
www.hsbc.co.uk from that, either.

I can still access the site from my own computer.

My wife's computer is 192.168.2.103.
My computer is 192.168.2.108.

I'm completely at a loss.

Check name resolution first.

Go to a command prompt, and issue the command:

ping www.hsbc.co.uk

Now, the server does not respond to pings, so you will just get 'request
timed out'.
However, you will see the IP address which the site resolved to:

Pinging www.hsbc.co.uk [161.113.4.1] with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Do you get the same IP address: 161.113.4.1 ?

 

[Julian]

I'm pretty good at solving computer problems, in fact it's my job. But
this one has me stumped. It all started when my wife told me she could not
access the site www.hsbc.co.uk from her computer. Since this is a banking
site, I was concerned. I could access the site from my computer, so the
site was not down.

I checked the hosts file - there was no problem with that. The web address
resolves to the same IP address as it does on my computer.

I installed and ran MS AntiSpyware - it found and removed one suspect file
which I don't think had any bearing on the problem, and it made no
difference.

I cleared out the web browser cache. Internet Explorer could still not
access the site.

I installed the Firefox browser. That could not access the site.

I tried Telnet to www.hsbc.co.uk port 80 - it timed out.

All computers run Windows XP2 updated to the same level. There is no
firewall software on any of the computers, either the Windows XP firewall
or a third party one. All three computers access the Internet via an SMC
Barricade ADSL modem/NAT firewall/router, which also works as a DHCP
server. I reset the Barricade - it made no difference.

I fired up the laptop - the third computer on the network - which does not
use the same anti-virus as the other two. I could not access
www.hsbc.co.uk from that, either.

I can still access the site from my own computer.

My wife's computer is 192.168.2.103.
My computer is 192.168.2.108.

I'm completely at a loss.

Check name resolution first.

Go to a command prompt, and issue the command:

ping www.hsbc.co.uk

Now, the server does not respond to pings, so you will just get 'request
timed out'.
However, you will see the IP address which the site resolved to:

Pinging www.hsbc.co.uk [161.113.4.1] with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Do you get the same IP address: 161.113.4.1 ?

That's what I got.

Aha!! I'm getting 161.113.*0*.1 now
the request is not timing out and the site is working again!

I wonder if HSBC had some DNS screw-up?

I just remembered that I am using TreeWalk DNS from
http://www.ntcanuck.com/ on my computer, so it was probably caching the
old, good address while the other PCs were trying to use the new, wrong one.

Ah well, an hour of my life fruitlessly wasted! I should have remembered
the advice I usually give people who have an Internet access related
problem: Switch off, wait a few hours and try again later.

Thanks again, Ron.