[SOLVED] this is wierd. IE can't see any websites

[fermat543]

I'm trying to remotely help my mother with her PC afte she had a virus. It looks like i have got rid of it as i have used avast antivirus and spybot search and destroy both of which say her PC is now clean.

However a by-product of her issues is that internet explorer is no longer able to access any websites. I can remotely access her PC and am able to ping various websites with good results from her PC. The network card and ISP are therefore working fine, it's just internet explorer which doesn't. She doesn't have another browser installed so can't try that route.

When i run internet explorer diagnostics i get the following info back.
=======================================
Last diagnostic run time: 10/28/08 20:53:33
Network Adapter Diagnostic
Network location detection

info Using home Internet connection
Network adapter identification

info Network connection: Name=Local Area Connection 2, Device=Broadcom NetLink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet, MediaType=LAN, SubMediaType=LAN
info Network connection: Name=Local Area Connection 3, Device=Broadcom NetLink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet #2, MediaType=LAN, SubMediaType=LAN
info Network connection: Name=1394 Connection, Device=1394 Net Adapter, MediaType=LAN, SubMediaType=1394
warn This machine has more than one Ethernet or more than one Wireless adapter
info Redirecting user to support call

HTTP, HTTPS, FTP Diagnostic
HTTP, HTTPS, FTP connectivity

info FTP (Passive): Successfully connected to ftp.microsoft.com.
warn HTTP: Error 12029 connecting to www.microsoft.com: A connection with the server could not be established
warn HTTP: Error 12029 connecting to www.hotmail.com: A connection with the server could not be established
warn HTTPS: Error 12057 connecting to www.passport.net:
warn HTTPS: Error 12057 connecting to www.microsoft.com:
error Could not make an HTTP connection.
error Could not make an HTTPS connection.
================================================


as you can see FTP works, but HTTP and HTTPS dont. I have used spuninst to remove IE version 7 and when it reverts to version 6 of IE... same error with that version. I have tried flushing the DNS cache with ipconfig, releasing and renewing the address etc.. but nothing seems to have an impact.

The one strange bit about the diagnostic above is that there are two connections. However network connection 2 is disabled and i have been unable to delete it.

Any ideas of where i might look to find out why this is happening would be greatly appreciated.

Mike.

[lisanmike]

Hi, Mike ... I'm by no means an expert whatsoever ... however, I had an IE issue (would not display websites after about 5 min of use, unless I did a complete reboot, yet my internet connection was fine) and while waiting for someone to give me some assistance, I started reading thru numerous recent threads in this section, the authors of which all had similar problems. Eventually, after trying a few of the things that worked for others, I realized that Zone Alarm had had a meltdown during a routine update, and as soon as I uninstalled it, I'm 100%. Now, I'm not saying it's a Zone Alarm issue for your mom, but maybe something you read in here will twig and help you solve this. Otherwise, you may be waiting a while cuz it seems busy in here, and I never did get a response from an 'expert'.

Just my 2 cents ... you may be able to solve it on your own!

[justpassingby]

Hi fermat 543 !

First thing would be to make sure that there are no remnants of the infection, avast and spybot will clean the bigger threats but an HJT log would tell us more. Follow these instructions and post your log(s) in a new thread in the HJT section :
http://www.techsupportforum.com/secu...oval-help.html
Use another computer to download the needed programs and copy them on the infected computer with an USB flash drive.

If you still have issues once the security analysts say the system is clean give the system file checker a try (sfc /scannow) and in last resort try a repair installation (you'll need an XP CD with the same service pack as what's installed on the computer). Ask for more instructions if needed.

[fermat543]

Many Thanks for your help ...

turns out that the virus had mucked aroud with the proxy settings which meant that IE couldn't resovle any webstie addresses...

I do appreciate your help, many thanks ... this post can be remvoed now!

Mike

[justpassingby]

Happy to know you got it solved. We usually leave resolved threads on the forum, other people could have the same issue and your thread would help them. I marked your thread as solved.