Logons dreadfully slow at "Preparing Network connections" window....

[Tom Felts]

Dell Latitude D400 with XP SP2. No Adware, spyware or any other malicious
software running. When booting normally, the Preparing Network connections
screen stays up for over a minute, before moving on to Applying computer
settings. I have plugged it directly into the same segment as the domain
controllers, etc. If I use MSConfig, and boot minimally, it comes up as
expected, but of course without network functioning.


Where do I go with this from here? (Please no posts about spyware, etc.) I
have started playing with starting with different services disabled, but it
is a slow boat to old age.....not really how I want to spend my time. This
is happening on all of our D400's, and is particularly worse after SP2....


Thanks,

 

[bumtracks]

Might reboot the network, check the cables ... sounds like your network
connection is slowed because of elsewhere - I'll have that when one other
computer is partially hung.

 

[Tom Felts]

Been there done that, latest BIOS too, adnlatest Network card driver. It is
definately an XP software issue...can any one address that?

 

[Kerry Brown]

Dell Latitude D400 with XP SP2. No Adware, spyware or any other malicious
software running. When booting normally, the Preparing Network
connections screen stays up for over a minute, before moving on to
Applying computer settings. I have plugged it directly into the same
segment as the domain controllers, etc. If I use MSConfig, and boot
minimally, it comes up as expected, but of course without network
functioning.


Where do I go with this from here? (Please no posts about spyware, etc.)
I have started playing with starting with different services disabled, but
it is a slow boat to old age.....not really how I want to spend my time.
This is happening on all of our D400's, and is particularly worse after
SP2....


Thanks,

Sometimes caused by a misconfigured DNS setting. At a cmd prompt type
ipconfig /all and compare the DNS settings to a computer that doesn't have
the problem.

Kerry

 

[Tom Felts]

DNs actually works fine....even stopped the local server,a nd flushed the
cache and restarted.
This all is happening BEFORE the log-in widow appears.
Like I said earlier, if I do a diagnostic boot, it works as it should...but
if I uncheck everything and enable processing the sys.ini file, it goes back
to hanging forever...other machines (not SP2) on the same network do not
have this problem....

 

[Kerry Brown]

DNs actually works fine....even stopped the local server,a nd flushed the
cache and restarted.
This all is happening BEFORE the log-in widow appears.
Like I said earlier, if I do a diagnostic boot, it works as it
should...but if I uncheck everything and enable processing the sys.ini
file, it goes back to hanging forever...other machines (not SP2) on the
same network do not have this problem....

Is the DNS server that shows up in ipconfig /all the expected one? Are there
any other DNS servers that show up? Is the firewall turned on or controlled
by group policy? This is usully a DNS or DHCP issue, sometimes a firewall.
One trouble shooting step is to disable DHCP and set a static IP with the
correct DNS, WINS, and gateway settings. Another is to ping the logon DC by
name and by IP.

Kerry

 

[Tom Felts]

DNS and DHCP all show up as expected. Hard coding them does not change the
behavior....

 

[Kerry Brown]

DNS and DHCP all show up as expected. Hard coding them does not change
the behavior....

A google search doesn't come up with any obvious problems with D400s and
SP2. Are all the D400s in the same OU? I would suspect a group policy issue.
Are there any errors in the event logs? Can you move one D400 to a separate
OU for testing? Once they are logged on do they work normally? Is the
problem unique to D400s with SP2 or does it happen to d400s without SP2? Are
they set to register with DNS? From what you have described the problem lies
somewhere in the acquiring a IP lease, setting up DNS and NETBIOS, reading
the group policy part of the boot. As DNS appears to be correct I would
start checking group policy processing.

Kerry

 

[Kerry Brown]

DNS and DHCP all show up as expected. Hard coding them does not change
the behavior....

Tom

There is a similar discussion happening in
microsoft.public.windows.server.active_directory. The subject is: Slow boot
at "Applying Computer Settings"

Kerry

 

[Tom Felts]

Thanks, Kerry. I will take a look over there....

Tom

There is a similar discussion happening in
microsoft.public.windows.server.active_directory. The subject is: Slow
boot at "Applying Computer Settings"

Kerry

 

[ixeye]

Ever find a positive fix to this problem?
Same problem here

Brent Carey
(e-mail address removed) or (e-mail address removed)

 

[wittgrjp]

Ever find a positive fix to this problem?
Same problem here

Brent Carey
(e-mail address removed) or (e-mail address removed)


This reply is posted a little time after the event but it may help
anyone web searching for a solution.

I had exactly the same problem after logging into the Internet at a
hotel. From then on, my PC waited for minutes at "Preparing Network
Connections" whereas before it did not. Trying changing network
settings didn't work, even to the precise config of a colleague who
did not have the problem on an identical machine/os/setup.

On my PC I resolved this simply by pressing "ESC" during the
"preparing network connections" message (and also the fn keys in turn
to see if any of these had any effect). Within a few seconds the login
prompt appeared instead of within a few minutes. After a few reboots
using the same method the waiting dissappeared altogether. Each time
I was able to logon to my network as normal.

 

[giogioforums]

HI all.
After getting crazy for fours months here the solution to save you some pain.
Once I've fould out that the workstation service was slowing the all start up / login process with windows XP.
Here I am posting some considerations.
First the problem appear as a very slow login after typing your passord prior the desktop to appear.
The problem also appeared as an infinite need to repair continuously the connection (right clicking on the wireless icon) or often as inability to connect wirelessly.

The problem appears also as <Preparing Network Connection> prior login with a different mmc setup to show the activity prior login. That's because even though the problem seems to appear after typing the login password, actuality the long delay starts prior typing it.

The SOLUTION to the problem "login to XP takes forever" is to remove any other software that manages the wireless card and let only the native Windows Wireless Zero Configuration to handle it but the problem immediately desappear!!!.
Once you unistall any other software excepts the drivers of the wireless card, you must go on control panel/network connections/advanced/general/properties/wirelss network and click on Use
Windows to configure my wireless network settings which will anable the native Windows Wireless Zero Configuration.

The problem is probably found in many computer that have the intel centrino chip set which uses the Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network Connection but maybe is with any other wireless
card that uses the intel software to manage.

Myself I did also utilize a second D-Link wireless card which was also utilizing its own software to manage and could work with the native Wireless Zero Configuration) but it turned out because of the Intel(R) PRO/Wireless manager.
Myself just to be safe I unistalled also the D-Link softwarebut is not really necessary.

TWO MORE IMPORTANT Considerations:
THE PROBLEM DID NOT IMMEDIATELY GO AWAY!
1)
I had to reinstall (from an image I had) the entire operating system and then remove the Intel Wirelss manager from it.If I was not removing the Intel SW the problem after few hours the problem reappeared (I restored the OS from the image like 30 times so I am certain).
For many people the problem will go away immediately just unistalling the wirelss software but that was not my case.
If you do not want to uninstall the operating system.you may go through a procedure to reset entirely the networking in your OS, I know there is a way to do it but I never researched it.
(Maybe all you need to do is to remove all network conncections by uninsalling all drivers I chose to restart with a new XP)

2)
I utilize 2 wireless cards and I am having a second minor issue:
IF I DISABLE the wireless switch of my Intel card and connect the 2nd one, the pc still says that there are network available on the 1st. In other words the card is not entirely off. I use a brand new DELL LATITUDE D820. Maybe this is to avoid the Plug&Play procedure.
As result I see two wireless icons on the bottom right when I only want one and altough the external DLINK says that is correctly connected to the wireless network, Windows still seem to remain internally connected to the Intel one and as result will still be unable to see a webpage.
In order to "connect" Windows to the correct external network card I must click on its repair button (right click on its icon) and then everything is ok. Maybe this is another bug of the os which wouldn't come as a real surprise.
I hope this all note will be useful to you and save you a lot of time.
Good luck!
PS
If you find on the web that the prefetcher is the problem.. I think it is not true.