[SOLVED] Brand new computer..but my internet connection only works intermittently

[johnwill]

Have you booted in Safe Mode with Networking and run the line quality test?

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.

[overlook2521]

I'm a field tech for Comcast and I have run into this problem with about 8 to 10 customers pc's in our area. They all have brand new Dell computers and are having the same issue as you. If you do a ping test (ping www.yahoo.com -t) you'll see that a lot of pings are cannot reach, connection timed out, etc:. I hooked my laptop up to the very same cable modem and didn't have the problem at all. One customer called Dell support and must have gotten a "good tech" because he did fix the problem for her over the phone. When I talked to her on the phone she couldn't remember what he had done. I believe you are dealing with a software problem w/ Windows Vista. (networking) Anyhow I hope this helps you or directs you in the right direction. Good luck. :)

[johnwill]

That test is positively UGLY! That shows massive packet loss!

Connect directly to your broadband modem with a wired connection and run the test again.

[tik-tok]

Thanks to overlook2521 for assuring me that my problem was not an isolated event. Thus encouraged, I started to look harder for characteristics of my Dell Inspiron 530s that might make the Comcast connection unstable. Long story short, I think it is the Dell Remote Access program that came preinstalled. I started the wizard and chose to uninstall the whole thing without ever setting it up. Although I only have tested over a period measured in minutes, my Comcast connection now seems near perfect, whereas previously I might have had dozens of failed or slow connections within an hour. I don't know whether allowing the wizard to set up the service would also have solved the problem.

I didn't find anyone at Comcast or Dell who knew the solution. See more at http://en.community.dell.com/forums/....aspx#19480108 .

If things go bad again and Dell Remote Access was not the problem, I'll post again.

[johnwill]

YIKES! You have a REALLY bad line there! I think it's time to call the ISP and get really obnoxious! That's one of the worst displays I've see for anyone that's still connected at all.