Windows Server 2008 R2 refuses all inbound TCP connections
I am unable to connect for example via http, to a brand new installation of 64-bit Windows Server 2008. The server is on a domain, but is not DC (that's another problem altogether). As a specific example, IIS7 is running on the server and the website is accessible locally via http://localhost, but when I try to connect from another machine on the same subnet, the connections is refused, even though Windows Firewall is disabled in all profiles. I am able to connect to and browse the shared folders on the server using Windows Explorer, so it is not a physical connection or user account issue. I can ping other machines on the network from the server, but trying to ping the server from another machine results in "Destination host unreachable". I have determined that the server just refuses any TCP connections from any other machine. I am thinking, there must be some other configuration setting that I am missing... In the Network and Sharing Center, I can see that my connection type is "Internet", which may well be what the problem is, but I have no way of changing that. Please help!
July 26th, 2011 9:12pm

That's a firewall doing it's job... Please disable or open the corresponding ports on the Windows Firewall or on any third party firewall that you have installed.Miguel Fra / Falcon IT Services Computer & Network Support, Miami, FL Visit our Knowledgebase and Support Sharepoint Site
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July 26th, 2011 10:31pm

Sorry, but I specifically said "Windows Firewall is disabled in all profiles". There is no other firewall involved on the subnet.
July 26th, 2011 10:43pm

Hello, Then check your router/firewall for packet filter rules that drop packets going to that particular host. Also check that the default gateway is configured correctly on the NIC and that you only have one NIC with a default gateway. CheersMiguel Fra / Falcon IT Services Computer & Network Support, Miami, FL Visit our Knowledgebase and Support Sharepoint Site
Free Windows Admin Tool Kit Click here and download it now
July 27th, 2011 10:18am

Actually, the solution turned out to be embarrassingly simple and straightforward: rename the host. Once upon a time, another machine with the exact same name as the culprit server lived on that (sub)network. That machine has since been decommissioned, but its ghost still lives in the local DNS cache somehow, causing the name to resolve to a - now - incorrect address. Renaming the host magically opened up its inbound TCP interface. We still have to find out how to get rid of the old address association for the now defunct name, but that's a minor problem by comparison.
July 27th, 2011 9:25pm

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