Internet Connection Drops Constantly

[D.]

Hello, I'm experiencing frequent problems with my Internet Connection. My
computer is connected to the Internet through a Motorola Surfboard modem from
Charter Communications. My computer will randomly disconnect from the
Internet around every hour. The modem still says that it is connected as will
my computer if I go to the Network and Sharing Center. Even though the
computer says that it is connected, no program can access the Internet.
Anytime I open a Firefox it will usually say "Cannot Find Server" and
Internet Explorer will just say that it cannot display the webpage. Sometimes
I will get popups from Windows (I believe, though it could be FireFox) trying
to connect to a broadband connection. It never works, though, and it asks for
a password and username. I do not have one, though. I have not set up any
sort of password for accessing any Internet connection on my computer. When I
first upgraded computers all I had to do was plug in the cable modem and
Vista automatically connected. It was perfect and I had no issues for quite a
while. The connection dropped on day and Charter walked me through a process
which reset my cable modem and got me back online. Ever since then I have
been having this issue where my computer randomly loses it's connection. I
was not able to get online for about an hour today. I did a System Restore to
see if anyone had possibly done something, but the problem presisted. I came
back later and now everything is running relatively fine!? It's like the
computer has a mind of it's own. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I
called Charter and it is supposedly normal for the connection to drop from
time to time. They suggest unplugging the modem for 30 seconds, but that does
nothing for my issue and their support pretty much ends there. Thanks.

 

[Barb Bowman]

first, you should get yourself a router to put between your cable
modem and your computer. it is much safer.

second, if you have unrecognized password prompts, you should scan
for malware. start here http://aumha.org/a/quickfix.htm

lastly, you have provided no info about your connection. please post
the text output of ipconfig /all

http://digitalmediaphile.wordpress.com/ipconfig-all-how-to-get-text-output/

Hello, I'm experiencing frequent problems with my Internet Connection. My
computer is connected to the Internet through a Motorola Surfboard modem from
Charter Communications. My computer will randomly disconnect from the
Internet around every hour. The modem still says that it is connected as will
my computer if I go to the Network and Sharing Center. Even though the
computer says that it is connected, no program can access the Internet.
Anytime I open a Firefox it will usually say "Cannot Find Server" and
Internet Explorer will just say that it cannot display the webpage. Sometimes
I will get popups from Windows (I believe, though it could be FireFox) trying
to connect to a broadband connection. It never works, though, and it asks for
a password and username. I do not have one, though. I have not set up any
sort of password for accessing any Internet connection on my computer. When I
first upgraded computers all I had to do was plug in the cable modem and
Vista automatically connected. It was perfect and I had no issues for quite a
while. The connection dropped on day and Charter walked me through a process
which reset my cable modem and got me back online. Ever since then I have
been having this issue where my computer randomly loses it's connection. I
was not able to get online for about an hour today. I did a System Restore to
see if anyone had possibly done something, but the problem presisted. I came
back later and now everything is running relatively fine!? It's like the
computer has a mind of it's own. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I
called Charter and it is supposedly normal for the connection to drop from
time to time. They suggest unplugging the modem for 30 seconds, but that does
nothing for my issue and their support pretty much ends there. Thanks.

--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/

 

[D.]

first, you should get yourself a router to put between your cable
modem and your computer. it is much safer.

second, if you have unrecognized password prompts, you should scan
for malware. start here http://aumha.org/a/quickfix.htm

lastly, you have provided no info about your connection. please post
the text output of ipconfig /all

http://digitalmediaphile.wordpress.com/ipconfig-all-how-to-get-text-output/



--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/

Thanks for the response. I've run Adaware, Spybot, and AVg AntiSpyware. None
of these found anything, except Adaware which found some tracking cookies.
The password window is popping up in response to my browsers trying to
connect to the Internet. All of my programs know when my connection is gone,
but Network Sharing Center and the actual system seems to think it's working
fine. I'd post a screenshot, but I'm not getting the message at the moment
since my Internet is working properly. Here is the information from ipconfig:

Microsoft Windows [Version 6.0.6001]
Copyright (c) 2006 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

C:\Users\Deondria Douglas>ipconfig /all

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : -PC
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) 82562V-2 10/100 Network
Connecti
on
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-1A-A0-8C-AA-9C
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::b5f6:7911:29f7:4c00%9(Preferred)
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 97.89.18.154(Preferred)
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.224.0
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, March 25, 2008 9:08:14 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Thursday, March 27, 2008 6:24:01 PM
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 97.89.0.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 68.114.38.210
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 24.197.160.21
24.197.160.18
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 6:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 02-00-54-55-4E-01
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 7:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . :
isatap.{07A348D5-E7E4-4ED6-AA8F-7E8A9A15F
F31}
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 9:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : 6TO4 Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 12:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : 6TO4 Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IPv6 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 2002:6159:129a::6159:129a(Preferred)
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 2002:c058:6301::c058:6301
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 24.197.160.21
24.197.160.18
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

 

[D.]

I guess I spoke too soon. Here is a link to an image of the popup that comes
up when the Internet connection starts to fail.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj34/stkr_2008/connectbroadband.jpg

 

[Barb Bowman]

I don't know what Charter had you do that day. Can you go back to a
system restore before they had you make changes?

Then, unbind IPv6:
http://digitalmediaphile.wordpress.com/ipv6-how-to-unbind-from-a-nic-in-windows-vista/

You really should get a router to put between your computer and the
cable modem for safety.

I guess I spoke too soon. Here is a link to an image of the popup that comes
up when the Internet connection starts to fail.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj34/stkr_2008/connectbroadband.jpg

--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/

 

[D.]

I don't know what Charter had you do that day. Can you go back to a
system restore before they had you make changes?

Then, unbind IPv6:
http://digitalmediaphile.wordpress.com/ipv6-how-to-unbind-from-a-nic-in-windows-vista/

You really should get a router to put between your computer and the
cable modem for safety.


--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/

I wish I could, but my system only has restore pints dating back to the
installation of Service Pack 1 for Vista. Charter rest my connection, but
that didn't work. They asked for my ip address and that's about all I can
specifically remember. It happened quite a while ago, but the issue has
gotten worse so I'm seeking help from other places. How will a router between
my computer offer security? I don't know that much about routers, but
wouldn't it open up possibilities of others using my connection? Thanks for
the help .

 

[Barb Bowman]

most modern routers have a hardware firewall and all offer the
protection of NAT. you can disable the wireless radio in some
wireless routers (this is not the same as disabling SSID broadcast).
and you leave the router and your cable modem turned on 24/7 so you
don't lose the IP from your ISP.

don't know if this will improve the situation, but it might.

did you unbind IPv6?

How will a router between
my computer offer security? I don't know that much about routers, but
wouldn't it open up possibilities of others using my connection? Thanks for
the help .

--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/

 

[brummyfan]

most modern routers have a hardware firewall and all offer the
protection of NAT. you can disable the wireless radio in some
wireless routers (this is not the same as disabling SSID broadcast).
and you leave the router and your cable modem turned on 24/7 so you
don't lose the IP from your ISP.

don't know if this will improve the situation, but it might.

did you unbind IPv6?


--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/

I disabled few services which I thought were unnecessary, as I am not using
any Symantec products I disabled "Symantec Lic Net Connect Service" then my
Internet connection started dropping very often. I was thinking it was SP1
but when I changed Symantec Lic Net Connect Service back to manual everything
is fine. I hope this will be helpful to someone and suggest not to throw
money away on new equipment before trying something simple.

 

[Barb Bowman]

the fact that you have this service on your computer indicates that
Norton/Symantec products were installed at one point. If you have
disabled but not uninstalled a Norton product, almost anything can
happen. Norton acknowledges that they have issues with their
programs. See
http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPOR...docid=2003022510471206&nsf=nav.nsf&view=docid
as an example.

your issue seems completely different. You should not need this
service running if you are not using Norton products.

I disabled few services which I thought were unnecessary, as I am not using
any Symantec products I disabled "Symantec Lic Net Connect Service" then my
Internet connection started dropping very often. I was thinking it was SP1
but when I changed Symantec Lic Net Connect Service back to manual everything
is fine. I hope this will be helpful to someone and suggest not to throw
money away on new equipment before trying something simple.

--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/

 

[RalfG]

Regarding those logon prompts, I think probably you have 'dial whenever a
connection is not present' enabled in your Internet Explorer connection
settings. That could be correct if your modem is set to log off when there
is no keyboard activity for a period of time, but if the internet connection
is supposedly 'always on' then you should change the IE setting to "never
dial" a connection. The logon prompts should stop happening after that.

If you have a 3rd party firewall on your computer it could be the source of
your intermittent connection problems. Try disabling it or uninstall it and
use the Vista firewall instead.

 

[brummyfan]

the fact that you have this service on your computer indicates that
Norton/Symantec products were installed at one point. If you have
disabled but not uninstalled a Norton product, almost anything can
happen. Norton acknowledges that they have issues with their
programs. See
http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPOR...docid=2003022510471206&nsf=nav.nsf&view=docid
as an example.

your issue seems completely different. You should not need this
service running if you are not using Norton products.




--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/

I am sorry Barb Bowman, I spoke too early.
I have disabled Symantec Lic Net service and my Internet doesn't drop
anymore and you are absolutely right mine is entirely different from what you
are discussing here.

 

[D.]

most modern routers have a hardware firewall and all offer the
protection of NAT. you can disable the wireless radio in some
wireless routers (this is not the same as disabling SSID broadcast).
and you leave the router and your cable modem turned on 24/7 so you
don't lose the IP from your ISP.

don't know if this will improve the situation, but it might.

did you unbind IPv6?


--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/

Yes. There were two, iPv4 and iPv6, but I only unchecked iPv6.. What exactly
does this do if you don't mind explaining? Thanks for the help and
clarifications.

 

[D.]

Regarding those logon prompts, I think probably you have 'dial whenever a
connection is not present' enabled in your Internet Explorer connection
settings. That could be correct if your modem is set to log off when there
is no keyboard activity for a period of time, but if the internet connection
is supposedly 'always on' then you should change the IE setting to "never
dial" a connection. The logon prompts should stop happening after that.

If you have a 3rd party firewall on your computer it could be the source of
your intermittent connection problems. Try disabling it or uninstall it and
use the Vista firewall instead.

You are correct . I have checked "Never Dial A Connection". The only
firewall I have on my computer is the Windows Firewall . Could that be
effecting my Internet Connection?

 

[Barb Bowman]

IPv6 is not always handled properly by the server on the other end.
It is possible your ISP (and this also can happen on an older
residential router) has not updated on their side to be fully aware
of IPv6 and handle it properly. You NEED IPv4, do not disable that!

Yes. There were two, iPv4 and iPv6, but I only unchecked iPv6.. What exactly
does this do if you don't mind explaining? Thanks for the help and
clarifications.

--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/

 

[RalfG]

You are correct . I have checked "Never Dial A Connection". The only
firewall I have on my computer is the Windows Firewall . Could that be
effecting my Internet Connection?

I haven't seen the Windows firewall causing that kind of intermittent
connection problem, just 3rd party firewalls. Seems to be related to their
intrusion detection feature blocking ports, or the firewall mistakenly
detecting a new network if the connection drops or changes IP. I wonder if
it's possible your ISP is changing your IP address every hour?

To make sure the firewall isn't involved in the disconnects you could
disable it for a while and see if the problem goes away... but stay off of
IRC, P2P and messenger programs while testing. No sense advertising an open
connection in places where hackers hang out looking for victims. From the
IPCONFIG you posted earlier you seem to have Netbios enabled on your
internet connection as well, which is not a good idea unless the ISP
configuration requires it for some reason.

 

[D.]

IPv6 is not always handled properly by the server on the other end.
It is possible your ISP (and this also can happen on an older
residential router) has not updated on their side to be fully aware
of IPv6 and handle it properly. You NEED IPv4, do not disable that!


--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/

Okay, thanks. I unchecked it and I unchecked the options that this user also
unchecked
:http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/co...BBC929A3DB97&lang=en&cr=US&sloc=en-us&m=1&p=1

and I haven't had any issues. Hopefully I'm not speaking too soon, but this
is the longest I have went since the issue began happening without having the
Internet connection drop or lag. Hopefully this "fix" keeps everything
working correctly, If there is a way to give you all credit for the help
please let me know. I really appreciate all of the help you all have given .

 

[Barb Bowman]

thanks for the update. hope it is smooth sailing from this point--

Okay, thanks. I unchecked it and I unchecked the options that this user also
unchecked
:http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/co...BBC929A3DB97&lang=en&cr=US&sloc=en-us&m=1&p=1

and I haven't had any issues. Hopefully I'm not speaking too soon, but this
is the longest I have went since the issue began happening without having the
Internet connection drop or lag. Hopefully this "fix" keeps everything
working correctly, If there is a way to give you all credit for the help
please let me know. I really appreciate all of the help you all have given .

--

Barb Bowman
MS-MVP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/meetexperts/bowman.mspx
http://blogs.digitalmediaphile.com/barb/