Network connects but no internet access

[Guest]

I have a Toshiba laptop XP/SP2. It came down with spyware. I've successfully
removed it, every scan by multiple programs/AVs shows its clean.

However, the computer no longer has the ability to connect to the internet.

Connecting to known, working networks by either ethernet or wireless always
indicates connection is working properly. Checking status of the network
connection in XP says everything's ok.

But when I open a browser (or any other net-accessing program) it is unable
to access anything.

I've doublechecked IE's connections tab, run winsockXPfix.exe and reset the
TCP/IP as described in MSFT's knowledgebase #299357 can't fix it.

Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance.
Ed

 

[Steve Winograd [MVP]]

I have a Toshiba laptop XP/SP2. It came down with spyware. I've successfully
removed it, every scan by multiple programs/AVs shows its clean.

However, the computer no longer has the ability to connect to the internet.

Connecting to known, working networks by either ethernet or wireless always
indicates connection is working properly. Checking status of the network
connection in XP says everything's ok.

But when I open a browser (or any other net-accessing program) it is unable
to access anything.

I've doublechecked IE's connections tab, run winsockXPfix.exe and reset the
TCP/IP as described in MSFT's knowledgebase #299357 can't fix it.

Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance.
Ed

Run this command, which is better than the ones in KB299357, then
reboot and try Internet access again:

netsh winsock reset catalog

If that doesn't solve the problem, then some troubleshooting is called
for:

1. Right-click the wireless network connection and click Status |
Support | Details. What does it show for IP Address, Subnet Mask,
Default Gateway, and DNS Server?

2. If those values look OK, open a command prompt window and try these
pings. Each one should receive four replies:

ping <ip address>
ping <default gateway>
ping <DNS server>
ping 216.239.39.99
ping google.com

3. If those pings succeed, enter these addresses in IE. Both should
take you to the Google web page:

http://216.239.39.99
http://google.com
--
Best Wishes,
Steve Winograd, MS-MVP (Windows Networking)

Please post any reply as a follow-up message in the news group
for everyone to see. I'm sorry, but I don't answer questions
addressed directly to me in E-mail or news groups.

Microsoft Most Valuable Professional Program
http://mvp.support.microsoft.com

 

[Guest]

Steve,

Thanks for your reply. I did all you suggested (details below) but I still
can't get the connection to work in regular mode,

But I have discovered the computer connects just fine in Safe Mode with
Networking. First time I've ever seen that! Is that a clue to follow? An app
or process that's getting in the way that's not there in Safe Mode?

Meanwhile, responding to your post:
- The netsh command didn't fix the problem. All worked fine with the command
and reboot, but no change on connectivity.
- The connection details (I'm using my network; once I get that going I'll
tackle the wireless) are:
address type assigned by DHCP
ip address 192.168.1.5
Default gateway 192.168.1.1
DNS server 192.168.1.1 (should these two be identical?)
- When I ping, I get the ip address fine, but I don't get a response for
anything else: not gateway, not DNS, not google.

Something is clearly different in the regular boot vs safe mode. Any ideas?

Ed

 

[Guest]

Got it!

After I discovered the computer would connect in Safe mode but not in
regular, I ran a Hijack This log in each mode and compared them. I found the
remnants of an old firewall the guy had installed. I removed it, and all is
well. I'm seeing a lot of anti-spyware over-installs these days.

Thanks again for your help. I very much appreciate it.
Ed

 

[Steve Winograd [MVP]]

Steve,

Thanks for your reply. I did all you suggested (details below) but I still
can't get the connection to work in regular mode,

But I have discovered the computer connects just fine in Safe Mode with
Networking. First time I've ever seen that! Is that a clue to follow? An app
or process that's getting in the way that's not there in Safe Mode?

Meanwhile, responding to your post:
- The netsh command didn't fix the problem. All worked fine with the command
and reboot, but no change on connectivity.
- The connection details (I'm using my network; once I get that going I'll
tackle the wireless) are:
address type assigned by DHCP
ip address 192.168.1.5
Default gateway 192.168.1.1
DNS server 192.168.1.1 (should these two be identical?)
- When I ping, I get the ip address fine, but I don't get a response for
anything else: not gateway, not DNS, not google.

Something is clearly different in the regular boot vs safe mode. Any ideas?

Ed

Got it!

After I discovered the computer would connect in Safe mode but not in
regular, I ran a Hijack This log in each mode and compared them. I found the
remnants of an old firewall the guy had installed. I removed it, and all is
well. I'm seeing a lot of anti-spyware over-installs these days.

Thanks again for your help. I very much appreciate it.
Ed[/QUOTE]

You're welcome, Ed. You did a great job finding the problem. Thanks
for posting the result.

Both of these clues point to a firewall as a possible culprit: can
ping some addresses and not others, different results in Safe mode and
normal mode.

BTW, it's normal for the default gateway, DNS server, and DHCP server
addresses to be the same when connecting through a broadband router.
--
Best Wishes,
Steve Winograd, MS-MVP (Windows Networking)

Please post any reply as a follow-up message in the news group
for everyone to see. I'm sorry, but I don't answer questions
addressed directly to me in E-mail or news groups.

Microsoft Most Valuable Professional Program
http://mvp.support.microsoft.com

 

[Guest]

Hi Steve/Anyone;

I'm having a similar problem, but since ejbsf found a solution himself I
need to ask you. Basically I can not access any sites on the internet when I
dial up. I've tried with 2 different dial up service providers but no luck.
This is a laptop which has been working fine until 3 weeks ago when it
mysteriously stopped letting me have access to web sites. I can dial into the
service provider but can not access WWW sites when I use dial up. However
when I use broadband (in the office) this works fine.

I've followed your instructions as far as running command netsh winsock
...... and can ping ip address, default gateway, dns server and 216.239.39.99.
But can not ping google.com.

Also when I open browser, I can addess google site using it's IP address but
not it's name google.com.

Any suggestions?

Mo