XP thinks it's online, but it can't reach anything. ISP tech says it's MB, and that's BRAND NEW.

if its not a bad winsock (try these first):

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/811259
http://www.spychecker.com/program/winsockxpfix.html
LSPFix >> http://www.spychecker.com/program/lspfix.html
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/winsock.htm
http://www.snapfiles.com/get/winsockxpfix.html



It could be due to a problem with a recently installed MS patch:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;918165
Problems in Windows Explorer or the Windows shell after you install security update MS06-015

I am not convinced that the proposed MS fix will necessarily correct the problem with the faulty MS patch, for I think it depends upon you using HP products or Sunbelt Kerio Personal Firewall with your computer.  If you don't get the problem corrected with the above, then read this:

http://episteme.arstechnica.com/groupee/forums/a/tpc/f/12009443/m/810008568731/r/758002668731
That patch that came out 4-11 causes problems on some computers. I am sure Microsoft will end up reissuing the patch that does not break some computers.

Here are the symptoms:

Office Products:

When choosing Save As it will lock up. If you look in Task Manager you will see one or possible 10-20 or more processes of verclsid.exe running. Killing that process will probably allow the office products to work fine in that one instance.

Internet Explorer:

Typing in any address and then hitting enter will launch a process of verclsid.exe and it will not go away. IE will sit there and appear like you have done nothing. Killing all processes of verclsid.exe will let IE work fine.

Fix:

Uninstall KB908531 from any computer that is affected then reboot.



Or, as another temporary workaround until MS comes out with the corrected patch, you can find verclsid.exe in \Windows\System32\ folder and rename it to verclsid.old

I don't recommend using the Ethernet and USB connections on a cable modem simultaneously; I've had poor results with such scenarios. But I presume you've tried connecting with the other computer completely out of the picture.

Have you tried plugging the computer into the router (without plugging the router into the modem) to see if you can get to the router setup page? The default IP address for the D-Link is 192.168.0.1; user: admin; blank password (but you don't really need to log in, as long as you get the page asking for it). If you can't browse the setup page, that's a confirmation that the computer is at issue, not the Internet connection.

It's not impossible for the motherboard to be DOA, but I'd think you'd have a more severe problem than simply an inability to get online. Can you use its USB connection for other things (a pen drive, a printer)? If you can, it would seem more like a software than a hardware problem, and Craig's suggestions are worth working through. Does IPCONFIG say you have a reasonable IP address (i.e., not starting with 169)?

Yah I definitely agree w ElrondCT.. if your TRYing to use both usb and ethernet... dont.. use one or the other... I have seen em work... but I have also seen problems arise from it...

I'm doing all testing with just the one computer connected - I've been concentrating on the standard enet, having been checked out already with the other computer (the cable's good).

ipconfig results:
1 - nothing
2 - 169.254.165.228
3 - 255.255.0.0
4 - nothing

No evidence of verclsid.exe problem.

Part of my handicap, by the way, is from strokes.  I'm slow, and not as smart as I used to be.  I will not be insulted by reminders of the obvious - and I do not intend to be rude when my replies are short.

your ipconfig is saying its not connecting to anything.. or receiving any data from the connecting devices...

the other computer(standing) that was connected was able to get out to internet... and its IPconfig does show ip info so it should be safe to say something blocking access on this one.. do you have a firewall on the problem machine? norton internet security? if so can you disable it.?

Did you try the winsock resets?

here is a command line vs to reset the tcpip stack:
netsh int ip reset c:\resetlog.txt

I reset the stack:  nothing.
I did the winsock resets earlier.
The only firewall is Windows.  It happens to be on at the moment, but I didn't think that it could really matter.  I'll turn it off now.

No need for apologies. I don't see anything "not smart" in what you've said or done.

Is the Ethernet connector part of the motherboard, or on a separate card? Since it's a brand-new motherboard, I'd assume the first, but just want to make sure.

If you go to Control Panel, System, Hardware, Device Manager, then look at Network Adapters, what do you see? Is there an X or ? on top of the icon for the adapter? Have you tried running its troubleshooter? They're limited, but sometimes they can actually help with figuring things out.

The ethernet port is in the mb.  The "Network Adapter" entry is "VIA Rhine II Fast Ethernet Adapter", which appears to be a software entity.

Troubleshooter's 1st question is, "I'm having trouble with my hardware device."  I don't know if it's hw or sw.
The second question must be answered online, using the affected computer.

-Do you get Link lights when connecting ethernet cable into the eth port?

-I assume when you double click on the rhine II network entry. it says the device is working properly.

-just a thought - but do you know the IP info for you working machine? and can you statically assign this info into the non working PC (shutting off the working one while doing this)?

-what type of service is the ISP providing? a standard DHCP? or pppoe client logon? do they require a MAC address to assign an IP?

Craig:
Yes, I get lights.
Where, specifically, should I click for the Rhine II entry?
I can pull up all of the IP info, but dunno what "statically assign" means - why must the worker be shut down?
ISP is providing pppoe logon from the Speedstream, but it's a DHCP to the Speedstream.

ElrondCT:
Yes, thousands of resets.

ECNSSMT:
1.  It already had a recently-installed XP 2nd Ed. on that HD.  No cd accompanied the replacement board, though it was in a box as new - included 1 drive cable & 1 floppy cable.
2.  Installed IP addresses stick.
2a.  Ping too the NIC card is positive (127.0.0.1).  Ping to the router (Speedstream) is negative.  The ISP tech had me use 192.168.254.254, and gave me 192.168.0.1 for the D-Link router, when I put that back in the system.  I pinged your suggested IPs and all (169.254.165.228, 192.168.1.1, 192.168.1.2)  failed.

After my sessions with ISP techs a coupla nights ago and this morning, my ipconfig is:
Connection-specific DNS Suffix:  none
IP Address:  192.168.254.2
Subnet Mask:  255.255.255.0
Default Gateway:  192.168.254.254

ipconfig for the working machine, using ME 2nd ed., is:
1 Ethernet adapter :
        IP Address. . . . . . . . . : 192.168.0.1
        Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
        Default Gateway . . . . . . :
2 Ethernet adapter :
        IP Address. . . . . . . . . : 4.0.0.0
        Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.255
        Default Gateway . . . . . . :
3 Ethernet adapter :
        IP Address. . . . . . . . . : 0.0.0.0
        Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . : 0.0.0.0
        Default Gateway . . . . . . :
4 Ethernet adapter :
        IP Address. . . . . . . . . : 0.0.0.0
        Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . : 0.0.0.0
        Default Gateway . . . . . . :

I tested the working machine with the ethernet hookup and it worked fine; I'm runnig it on the USB connection, for convenience, until I fix the other machine.  I unplug the working machine's USB connection when running tests, just to ensure no interference.

I have no friends or neighbours to do anything.  I live on $600/mo and have a 40-hr nurse provided by a local hospice for the terminally ill.  That's why I didn't just hire someone to come in here and fix the thing; this $10/mo is missed, but I can skip a coupla lunches for tech help.  Experience has taught me, also, that an honest repairman will do the work here on my desk - if the machine leaves, I won't get everything back the way it was.  My day nurse is here on weekdays and she can get behind the machine and unplug things for me.

-I am a bit confused by the 4 adapters you have in the working machine... not that its a prob.. coz its working ... but do you really have 4 network adapters in there?

-ok back to the problem machine... the ip address is interesting.. your suposedly getting that via DHCP from the speedstreem.. when the working machine is on your getting a different ip on the working one than the problem one.. ? those IP's should be the same as far as subnet and gateway, notice there is no gateway on the working one? was that coz you didnt write it in? or coz there was none...

- also notice the IPs are on different subnets according to the subnet mask. your problem pc IP address should be similar to the working on in the 3rd octet field.. (192.168.254.2 should be 192.168.0.2 by the working machines info)....

-staticallly assigning the info means going into the network connections/ under the icon for lan connection and double clicking the tcpip properties and switching it from DHCP to manually assigned ip info.. I thnk this might be something we need to look at to make sure its not being done... and could be incorrectly being done to cause your prob.... you can also check to see if this is being done by going to command prompt and using the command "ipconfig /all" (if you cant get into the properties the other way)... in the ipconfig /all output you should see physical mac address, then under it dhcp enabled .. and yes/no in that field... if it says no then we have to make it dhcp enabled in the properties of the network card.. this could be "pointing" your pc to the wrong place for communication..

oh.. and the reason you want to shut down the working machine while statically assigning the other machine with the working machines ip address is because of IP Conflict... one will have a problem on the network if they use the same ip info...they both cant use the same address.. this could be worked around by simply incrementing your 4th octet field by 1 in the ip address.. statically assigning the ip is sometimes necessary when the router DHCP server is not functioning or failing to issue the ip to a computer.. I dont think this is the case here,. right now my hunch is leaning to a static assignment you might have as described in the last paragraph...

dont get discouraged we are moving forward.. lets keep going!

in the second paragraph from the bottom.. I said "it says no then we have to make it dhcp enabled in the properties of the network card.. this could be "pointing" your pc to the wrong place for communication.. " -- this is actually found in the TCPIP properties of the connection... not the network card... sorry bout the confusion.

I made the following note on the night of the 25th, then promptly forgot exactly what I was doing (too many strokes):
Network Connections - reset folders
The Network Connections Folder was unable to retrieve the list of Network adapters on your machine.  Please make sure that the Network Connections service is enabled and running.

The 4 adapters represent an exact cut-and-paste of the response to "ipconfig" from this machine.  No idea why 4 are listed, unless I have created too many entries and they just exist in the registry.  Definitely should have 2 showing, for this machine is using the USB to the Speedstream and also has a network port.

I have been back-and-forth with "autoconfigure the IP" and "manually assign the IP" many times.  This morning it happened to be on "auto", and the tech had me assign it manually.  I listed all of his addresses above - made him wait while I read my notes back to him and tried them in the computer.

Instead of shutting down the working machine, I just unplug its USB cord from the Speedstream, then pull the power cord from the Speedstream for 30 seconds while I reconnect the ethernet cord from the XP machine.

Thank you very much for the quick response.  I'm doing my damnedest to give you guys a puzzle worth solving!

what IP config info do you get when you have the computer autoconfigure the IP?


***Instead of shutting down the working machine, I just unplug its USB cord from the Speedstream, then pull the power cord from the Speedstream for 30 seconds while I reconnect the ethernet cord from the XP machine.----------This is a good method.

My system has been up and down while I rebuilt.  The ISP is sending me a replacement Speedstream, because its ethernet port is where everything stops.  It'll probably be a few days yet before that arrives.  While I'm waiting...can anyone tell me how I can ADD microphone ports to the fronts of my machines?  I don't want to close the ones in back - I want to be able to plug/unplug headsets while leaving my speakers plugged in.

Can I request a split between the experts?

thanx