Windows XP Troubleshooting Guide
There are several things that you can
check on your own before submitting a help request. These are a few of
the more common mistakes made, or things to look for that can get your
connection working.
The first thing to check is to make sure
that everything is plugged in correctly. The end of the cable that goes
in the wall is exactly the same as the end that goes into your computer.
The cable itself needs to be CAT 5. This is a description of the quality
of the cable, and is generally printed on the side of the cable. Cables
can be obtained from the MHC Book Store.
The port in the wall should be marked as
the data port. This will be indicated by the word DATA, or a small icon
representing a computer. It is found next to the phone port and it is
easy to confuse the two. If there are two sets of ports available, and
both are open, then you can use either port. If one of them doesn't seem
to work, you can try the other. Sometimes one or the other port may not
be working properly, so make sure that you have exhausted all
possibilities.
Problem:
- If Windows doesn't report errors,
but you are still unable to reach any other computers on the
network, see Solution 1.
- If Microsoft networking ("Network
Neighborhood", or "Map Network Drive") seems to function properly
but you cannot Telnet, FTP, Browse the Web, or use other TCP/IP
based programs, see Solution 2. *** Please
note that Microsoft networking (Network Neighborhood) is not
supported by the University Support Center.
- If you receive an error message
reading "No protocol to bind to" or something similar, see Solutions
2 and 3.
- If your computer is reading a
unknown PCI network card, see Solution 4A.
Solutions
If you are running Windows XP and networking doesn’t work
properly, following the steps below might help solve your problem.
- The first thing to check is your
cable. You must be careful because Ethernet cables and telephone
cords look a lot alike. You can tell the difference if you realize
that the connector on the end of the Ethernet cable is wider than
the end of a phone cord. People are often misled because a telephone
cord is able to fit into an Ethernet port. Make sure that you are
using a real Ethernet cable and that one end is plugged into the
Ethernet port in the wall and the other end is plugged into the
Ethernet card in your computer.
Once you are sure your cable is the
correct one and is plugged in correctly, the next step is to see if
there are any signals coming through your Ethernet cable. You must
turn your computer on and have your Ethernet card plugged in
properly for this to work! You should have one or more lights on the
back of your Ethernet card. You should check the instruction manual
for your Ethernet card to find out what the lights mean. Here are
some common meanings for different lights:
Power: This means that
your Ethernet card is plugged into your computer properly. This
is usually a steady, green light.
Link: This means that the
Ethernet cable is plugged into the Ethernet card and the wall
properly. This is also usually a steady, green light.
Data (Receive): This is
usually an irregular blinking light. If you see any blinking
light on the back of your card, it usually means that you are
receiving data from somewhere. This means that your card is
talking with the network properly. This is a good sign. If you
do see a blinking light this is a good sign that your network
card is probably not broken and everything from the card to the
wall and to the network is working. If you don't see a blinking
light, it doesn't mean things aren't working. Some cards do not
have a Data (Receive) light on them. If your card does not have
one, you will have to skip this test.
If everything is okay up to this point, you
know that all the physical hardware is okay.
- Open the "Control Panel" and
double-click on the "Network Connections" Icon. Next, Click on
the Local Area Connection Icon. Then choose "Properties" from the
drop down menu. There should be a minimum of 3 things installed. One
of the items in the list should be the TCP/IP protocol. (If it is
not, you should click on "Install", select "Protocol", click on
"Add", select "TCP/IP" and click on "Ok". The next step is to ensure
that the network control panel is configured correctly by following
step 4B.
- Open the "Control Panel" and
double-click on the "Network Connections" Icon. There should be
a minimum of 3 things installed. At the top of the list should be
the "Client for Microsoft Networks". This must be installed in order
to communicate with other Windows computers on the network. No
configuration is required for this item, and it should be the only
client installed. You may set the workgroup to anything you wish,
but it is suggested that you set it to the name of your residence
hall.
- A. This will happen if you did not
run the pre-install program. What you need to do is shut down the
computer, pull the card out of the machine and restart the computer
two times with out the card in the slot. At this point if the
pre-install is not loaded, reinstall and then put the card back in.
B. From the Local Area Connection
Properties window, select the TCP/IP protocol and click the
Properties button. Then, do the following:
Click on the General tab (if it isn't
already selected) and verify that the default "Obtain an IP address
automatically" and "Obtain DNS Server automatically" are selected.
You do not need to enter that information yourself. The rest of the
IP settings under the Alternate Configuration tab should be left
blank. Click OK to close the Internet Protocol Properties Window and
click OK again to close the Local Area Connections Properties
Window. When prompted, do not restart your PC; this might cause your
PC to freeze up with the file system in an unstable state. Instead,
click No, close other applications, then restart your computer using
the Start/Shut Down command.
You can find out if the configuration
was completed correctly with a few simple tests:
Please note that the numbers you receive from these commands are
different from the numbers in the images below. The images are provided
as a reference only.
From the ‘Start’ menu, select ‘Run.’ Enter 'cmd'. At the command
prompt type 'netstat -r'. It will output as shown.
Next look at the output from the netstat command to show what the
Default gateway is. You will want it's IP address. From the command
prompt ping the gateway by typing 'ping' and the IP address of the
gateway, such as in the following example 'ping 155.31.235.254'.
