Do I need a new router? (Netgear/Comcast connectivity problem)

[Prokofiev]

I've been having wireless connectivity problems all week. I connect to the internet through a Netgear router and Comcast cable modem. Sometimes the connection drops, seemingly randomly.* Sometimes it won't reconnect. Not a Comcast problem because I can unhook the router and use only the modem and the connection to the desktop computer works.

Running XP(sp 2) on the desktop. Running Vista(Home edition) on the laptop.

Router is a Netgear WRG614v.6

Internet browser is Chrome and also Firefox 3

When the problem happens, you can't run a ping.



*The connection icon shows as active, but no websites will load. They get stuck on "Connecting..." or "Resolving host...".

I've tried several things.

• Rebooting computer,modem,router
• Changing the MAC address (tried the MAC of my laptop, of my desktop, automatic configuration, default configuration)
• Manually setting the DNS servers (I called Comcast and asked what DNS servers to use)
• Resetting the router completely and going through setup again
• Moving the laptop closer to the router
• Disabling Windows Firewall
• Updating the router firmware

When I set the DNS servers manually it didn't work. I changed it in the router profile and in the TCP/IP properties on the connections of the laptop and desktop. These blocked my connection completely so I reset it to automatically get DNS.

These error messages were stored in the event viewer:

The description for Event ID 1003 from source Microsoft-Windows-Dhcp-Client cannot be found. Either the component that raises this event is not installed on your local computer or the installation is corrupted. You can install or repair the component on the local computer.

If the event originated on another computer, the display information had to be saved with the event.

The following information was included with the event:

0019D2AC3F38
%%2163146757

The description string for parameter reference (%1) could not be found

The IP address lease 192.168.16.26 for the Network Card with network address 0019D2AC3F38 has been denied by the DHCP server 0.0.0.0 (The DHCP Server sent a DHCPNACK message).

The Network Diagnostics Framework has completed the diagnosis phase of operation. The following repair option was offered:.

Repair option: Reset the network adapter "Wireless Network Connection 2"
Resetting the adapter can sometimes resolve an intermittent problem.

RepairGuid: {07D37F7B-FA5E-4443-BDA7-AB107B29AFB9}

Seconds required for repair: 70

Security context required for repair: 37

Helper Class (RNWF MSM Helper Class) Event:

Wireless Diagnostic Helper Class Event

For complete information about this session see the Wireless Diagnostic Informational Event.

Helper Class: Native WiFi MSM
Initialize status: Success

Information for connection being diagnosed
Interface GUID: 606c4818-b469-4341-b680-2ed67d6b7027
Interface name: Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network Connection #2
Interface type: Native WiFi
Profile: MXXNET
SSID: MXXNET
SSID length: 6
Connection mode: Infra
Security: Yes
Connect even if network is not broadcasting: No

Result of diagnosis: There may be problem
Issue referred to: RNWF Extensible Helper Class

Root cause:
This computer has low signal strength from "MXXNET"
This could be caused by the computer being too far away from the wireless router or access point, or interference from other wireless devices.

Repair option:
Try moving the computer to a different location, eliminating any sources of possible interference, and then try connecting to "MXXNET" again
Possible sources of interference include microwave ovens and cordless phones that are in use, and other wireless networks.



Event Verbosity:0

What else can I do? Any ideas or do I just need a new router?

[Prokofiev]

ipconfig /all

Microsoft Windows [Version 6.0.6000]
Copyright (c) 2006 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

C:\Users\MXX>ipconfig /all

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : MXX-PC
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Wireless LAN adapter Wireless Network Connection 2:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network Con
nection #2
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : [removed for personal protection]
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::e465:62e0:457d:a9a4%14(Preferred)
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.4(Preferred)
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Monday, December 08, 2008 9:43:15 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, December 09, 2008 9:43:15 PM
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.37
192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCPv6 IAID . . . . . . . . . . . : 352328146
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 6:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft ISATAP Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 10:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : 6TO4 Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 11:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 02-00-54-55-4E-01
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

C:\Users\MXX>

[Prokofiev]

I enabled "Wired Autoconfig" and restarted "WLAN AutoConfig" and maybe that will make a difference. Will post results.

[Prokofiev]

Ping information from affected computer

Microsoft Windows [Version 6.0.6000]
Copyright (c) 2006 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

C:\Users\MXX>ping 206.190.60.37

Pinging 206.190.60.37 with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 206.190.60.37:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

C:\Users\MXX>ping yahoo.com
Ping request could not find host yahoo.com. Please check the name and try again.


C:\Users\MXX>NBTSTAT -n

Wireless Network Connection 2:
Node IpAddress: [192.168.1.3] Scope Id: []

NetBIOS Local Name Table

Name Type Status
---------------------------------------------
MXX-PC <00> UNIQUE Registered
WORKGROUP <00> GROUP Registered
WORKGROUP <1E> GROUP Registered
MXX-PC <20> UNIQUE Registered

C:\Users\MXX>IPCONFIG /all

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : MXX-PC
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Wireless LAN adapter Wireless Network Connection 2:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network Con
nection #2
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : [deleted by Prokofiev for privacy concerns]
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::e465:62e0:457d:a9a4%14(Preferred)
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.3(Preferred)
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Monday, December 08, 2008 9:52:00 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, December 09, 2008 9:52:00 PM
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.37
192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCPv6 IAID . . . . . . . . . . . : 352328146
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 6:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft ISATAP Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 9:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft ISATAP Adapter #2
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::5efe:192.168.1.3%23(Preferred)
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 10:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : 6TO4 Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 11:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 02-00-54-55-4E-01
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IPv6 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 2001:0:4137:9e50:4d2:f8a:b3ef:b712(Prefer
red)
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::4d2:f8a:b3ef:b712%18(Preferred)
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : ::
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

C:\Users\MXX>

[Prokofiev]

Moved the laptop directly next to the router and the problem happened anyway.

Reset the Winsock, rebooted, problem still happened.

[Prokofiev]

This appears to be the recurring error

The IP address lease 192.168.1.3 for the Network Card with network address [physical address] has been denied by the DHCP server 0.0.0.0 (The DHCP Server sent a DHCPNACK message).

[johnwill]

IP addresses of all zeros are normally caused by one of the following.

Diagnosis:

1. DHCP Service not running.
2. Duplicate IP address on the network.
3. Bad NIC card drivers.
4. Defective NIC hardware.

Resolution:

1. Check Control Panel, Administrative Tools, Services. The DHCP Client service should be Started and its Startup Type should be Automatic.
   
2. Turn off ALL of the computers and other network connected devices, restart (power cycle) the router, then restart all the computers and other network devices.
   
3. Check for upgraded drivers and/or reload the Network drivers.
   
4. Replace the Network Interface Card.

[Prokofiev]

Originally Posted by johnwill

IP addresses of all zeros are normally caused by one of the following.

Diagnosis:

1. DHCP Service not running.
2. Duplicate IP address on the network.
3. Bad NIC card drivers.
4. Defective NIC hardware.

Resolution:
[list=1][*]Check Control Panel, Administrative Tools, Services. The DHCP Client service should be Started and its Startup Type should be Automatic.

Done.

[*]Turn off ALL of the computers and other network connected devices, restart (power cycle) the router, then restart all the computers and other network devices.

Done.

[*]Check for upgraded drivers and/or reload the Network drivers.

Upgraded drivers on both computers

[*]Replace the Network Interface Card.

I don't know how to do this.



Do routers just stop functioning? I'd buy a new one if I knew that would fix the problem.

[johnwill]

Before giving up on the router...


Some things you can try here.

1. For wireless connections, change the channel on the router, I like channels 1, 6, and 11 in the US.
2. For wireless connections, try moving either the wireless router/AP or the wireless computer. Even a couple of feet will sometimes make a big difference.
3. Update the firmware to the latest version available on the manufacturer's site.
4. Reset the router to factory defaults and reconfigure.
5. Update the network drivers (wired and wireless) on your computer to the latest available.

Many times these measures will resolve a lot of intermittent issues.

[Prokofiev]

Hi

Thank you for your help so far. I have determined that the problem is with my computer, not the router. I use an HP Pavillion dv9000t laptop. The wireless internet connection will only work when in Safe Mode with Networking. Can you maybe give me some tips about what I can do to make the network connection work after a normal start? Is it a bad driver and how do I tell which one is the problem-maker?

[johnwill]

If it works in Safe Mode, I'd be looking for some other application or security suite blocking it in normal mode.

Let's see this for both normal mode and for safe mode.


Hold the Windows key and press R, then type CMD to open a command prompt:

In the command prompt window that opens, type type the following command:

Note that there is a space before the /ALL, but there is NOT a space after the / in the following command.

IPCONFIG /ALL

Right click in the command window and choose Select All, then hit Enter to copy the contents to the clipboard.
Paste the results in a message here.

If you are on a machine with no network connection, use a floppy, USB disk, or a CD-RW disk to transfer a text file with the information to allow pasting it here.

[Prokofiev]

Ipconfig running Vista normally follows. The wireless light just changed from blue to orange(off) and required restarting.

Microsoft Windows [Version 6.0.6000]
Copyright (c) 2006 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

C:\Users\Mark>ipconfig /all

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : Mark-PC
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Wireless LAN adapter Wireless Network Connection 2:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network Con
nection #2
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-19-D2-AC-3F-38
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::e465:62e0:457d:a9a4%14(Preferred)
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.7(Preferred)
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Friday, December 19, 2008 2:46:23 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Saturday, December 20, 2008 4:20:33 AM
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCPv6 IAID . . . . . . . . . . . : 234887634
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection 3:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/1000 PL Network Connection #
2
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-1B-24-1B-43-F2
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Ethernet adapter Hamachi:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Hamachi Network Interface
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 7A-79-05-7A-42-BC
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 5.122.66.188(Preferred)
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.0.0.0
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Friday, December 19, 2008 2:46:20 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Friday, December 19, 2008 6:56:07 PM
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 5.0.0.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 5.0.0.1
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 9:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 02-00-54-55-4E-01
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 3:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : isatap.{606C4818-B469-4341-B680-2ED67D6B7
027}
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::5efe:192.168.1.7%22(Preferred)
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 4:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : isatap.{05A1AB57-23CD-4A72-A49F-4977E807D
A9C}
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::200:5efe:5.122.66.188%19(Preferred)

Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 6:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : 6TO4 Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Temporary IPv6 Address. . . . . . : 2002:57a:42bc::57a:42bc(Preferred)
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 2002:c058:6301::c058:6301
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 10:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : isatap.{9600C6B0-BBBC-420D-ACA1-7BA98BEAA
136}
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

This is what shows up in Event Viewer, below. Literally hundreds of these messages generated in an hour.



This is the ipconfig in Safe Mode with Networking. The internet works continuously with no problems when in Safe Mode with Networking.

*ERROR: It won't let me copy the CMD text when in Safe Mode*