DNS server is not responding.
The computer detects that it is configured correctly but continually tries to obtain a DNS. System is a HP Pavilion Windows 64 bit Home Premium Edition running Windows 7. I am running to a Cisco router by Hard wire not wireless. HughesNet is ISP. This problem is not stopping me from connecting to the internet; however, the event viewer log displays this as an error that can be corrected. I have disabled the Internet Protocol Version 6(TCP/IPv6). Doing that got rid of the errors in the event view log; but, when troubleshooting is ran on the network connection, the same message appears: Your computer appears to be correctly configured but the DNS server is not responding. Windows will continue to try to obtain a DNS. This is a problem simply because my Anti-Virus requires a constant DNS in order to have Real-Time protection. Panda is different from other anti-virus programs because it constantly updates where other anti-virus programs just update once after a computer is started. So if a DNS is not obtained at the exact moment Panda tries to update (which is all too often lately) the update is lost until I manually update, in turn which leaves my system vulnerable until a usable DNS is obtained. I am using the Internet Protocol Version 4(TCP/IPv4) and have tried just running the IPv6 but that led to no internet access. I have updated the Cisco router and therefore that is not the culprit. Cisco tech support assures me that it is a Microsoft problem because they do not have a workaround for Windows 7 based systems that share a router - Is there any validity to their claims that it is Microsoft's fault for not having software updates for network connections? I have also read that if one of the computers that is hooked to the router is using Vista Ultimate, this sometimes causes an issue? True/False?
December 21st, 2010 9:27am

Windows (or networked computers in general) don't try to obtain DNS, they try to contact a DNS server to resolve addresses; DNS is either there or it's not, it's not dynamic - I think you're confusing DNS and DHCP as far as your terminology. Anyway... This DNS error means that one or more of your defined DNS servers can't be contacted or isn't responding within the timeout period. If you are absolutely sure that both your Windows networking and router are configured correctly, this could be an ISP issue. Also, if you're running an internal DNS server (not relying on your router), your Forwarders could be improperly configured. If you're relying on your router for DNS forwarding here are a few things you might try: Make sure the DNS servers on your router's WAN side are pointing to valid addresses (ISPs sometimes change these around and you might have stale addresses in your router's setup). Make sure your Windows configuration is pointing to your router for DNS and not your ISP. Make sure you have the most current network drivers for your network card.
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December 21st, 2010 12:14pm

Thank You!! Understood. Does DNS determine whether or not one will connect successfully to the Internet? The reason I ask that is because windows stated specifically that it was trying to obtain one. If it isn't there (DNS)and I am already on the internet and is assigned automatically, why would windows try to obtain one? Or better yet, why is it not doing it fast enough when I troubleshoot the problem? - I think that is the real problem here! I might have to manually input one. Like I aforementioned, I am successfully connecting to the Internet, but according to my configuration report, it is intermittent because a DNS is not established consistently- which I know for a fact is automatically assigned also; but, I can assign it a permanent one if I wish. Just don't know of a good one to use in this situation????? My DHCP has always been assigned automatically and I never had an issue with that. That has something to do with dynamic host right?
December 21st, 2010 1:00pm

Well, absence of DNS won't keep you from connecting, but it will keep you from doing anything useful on the internet. Let's try updating your network drivers first - what model of Pavilion do you have? Then we'll check your Windows network configuration; can you post the results of an IPCONFIG /ALL here? We don't need the whole thing, just the relevant parts. Example: Windows IP Configuration Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : Toshiba-Laptop Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . : Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No Wireless LAN adapter Wireless Network Connection: Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Atheros AR5007EG Wireless Network Adapter Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-17-C4-31-91-79 DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.0.100(Preferred) Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0 Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, December 21, 2010 1:08:31 PM Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, December 28, 2010 1:08:30 PM Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.0.1 DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.0.1 DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.0.1 NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled
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December 21st, 2010 1:45pm

This is what appears by way of the command prompt to obtain the network configuration: I removed my host name so don't worry about that. Windows IP Configuration Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : ***** Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . : Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection: Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : Description . . . . . . . . . . . : NVIDIA nForce 10/100 Mbps Ethernet Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-26-18-F8-1B-BA DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.131(Preferred) Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0 Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, December 21, 2010 4:50:38 PM Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, December 22, 2010 4:50:38 PM Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1 DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1 DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 66.82.4.8 192.168.1.1 NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled Tunnel adapter isatap.{FB4DF66A-4FCD-4402-9A10-30418DCEBE9A}: Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Microsoft ISATAP Adapter Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0 DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 9: Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0 DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes IPv6 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 2001:0:4137:9e76:24a4:c729:b757:7922(Pref erred) Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::24a4:c729:b757:7922%13(Preferred) Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : :: NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Disabled Computer Results: OS Name Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium Version 6.1.7600 Build 7600 Other OS Description Not Available OS Manufacturer Microsoft Corporation System Name ******** System Manufacturer HP-Pavilion System Model NY638AA-ABA p6203w System Type x64-based PC Processor AMD Athlon(tm) II X2 215 Processor, 2700 Mhz, 2 Core(s), 2 Logical Processor(s) BIOS Version/Date Phoenix Technologies, LTD 5.49, 8/6/2009 SMBIOS Version 2.5 Windows Directory C:\Windows System Directory C:\Windows\system32 Boot Device \Device\HarddiskVolume1 Locale United States Hardware Abstraction Layer Version = "6.1.7600.16385" User Name ******* Time Zone Eastern Standard Time Installed Physical Memory (RAM) 4.00 GB Total Physical Memory 3.87 GB Available Physical Memory 2.67 GB Total Virtual Memory 7.75 GB Available Virtual Memory 6.30 GB Page File Space 3.87 GB Page File C:\pagefile.sys If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
December 21st, 2010 5:08pm

Try using ipconfig /all to get a report that shows us your DNS and DHCP server settings (which are missing from your report). FYI DHCP - Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol is a service usually provided by your Router (in a small non-server based LAN for example). This service provides IP addresses to hosts connected to the LAN. Your report shows that you have an assigned IP address. DNS - Domain Name Service - a service that provides IP address to Name mappings (for example one of Google.com's IP addresses is 74.125.227.19). Computers use the DNS service to lookup friendly names and obtain their IP address so the underlying network technology can find and establish connections with each other. Your problem as you described it sounds like it is DNS related (not DHCP). You mentioned that your ISP is HughsNet which is satellite. There may be a high degree of latency that is causing your DNS lookups to timeout. Try running the following command and post the results to see what the latency is for your connection: ping -n 20 google.com "It's a tough life... but someone has to enjoy it!"
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December 21st, 2010 5:45pm

That's fine. Remove the DNS server 66.82.4.8 from your list of configured servers if possible. If it's doled out as part of your DHCP service you may have to do it at the router. This address is probably for one of your ISP's DNS servers, and although it's not wrong to have it there, by your configuration it appears that your router is forwarding all your DNS requests to your ISP so it's redundant. The host and user names aren't important, although you really didn't have to edit them out because they're specific to your network and no one else really cares what they are (in other words, they're useless to anyone outside your network). Check the WAN (ISP) setting on your router and make sure at least 2 of your ISP's DNS servers are listed - more than 2 is fine, but if it's only 1 this might explain your problem. I can't tell from the info you gave what Pavilion model you have. The SKU listed (NY638AA-ABA) comes back as a hard drive, not a PC; and Pavilion 6203 returns 3 different models (2 notebooks and a desktop). The model number should be branded on the front bezel and on a sticker or plate on the back. This will help up find the correct network drivers for your NIC.
December 21st, 2010 6:38pm

The router did not carry any static DNS's for the first, second, or third slots. Here is the information I copied to the clipboard from the router diagnosis itself: Model name: Linksys E3000 Model number: E3000 Serial number: CVQ01K600788 Firmware version: 1.0.02 build 4 Operating system: Windows 7 Software version: 1.2.10218.1 Connection type (WAN): DHCP IP address (LAN): 192.168.1.1 IP address (WAN): 192.168.0.2 Computer IP address: 192.168.1.131 I did not see an ISP setting in the above supplied information or a way to retrieve it via an options radio button tab when I opened the router application up. The computer model is a desktop: Model: p6203w Product#: NY638AA#ABA SN:3CR9351MJ6 That is the information that comes up when I click on system information (plus on a sticker on the side), so I honestly don't know any other way to identify this computer to you unless you need the product key, but I really doubt that! As far as obtaining the correct network drivers for the NIC, doesn't windows automatically check? I went into device manager to obtain any outdated drivers. The only one I found outdated in the whole slew was the ethernet driver, and i got an upgrade to my soft modem - no harm from the upgraded modem, or I would have rolled back the driver. If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
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December 21st, 2010 8:31pm

Oh joy, another "driverless" Realtek network controller... Anyway, according to Realtek's site the drivers are a part of the chipset drivers. According to HP's site (yes, I finally found your model...) your computer uses an nVidia nForce 430 chipset (relegated to "legacy" status by nVidia). In fact, your configuration says it's an nVidia card too. Who to believe, who to believe... Well, if we go with HP, this chipset driver is the most recent for 64-bit Windows 7: http://www.nvidia.com/object/nforce_vista_win7_64bit_15.49.html. It's dated October of last year; it's also quite large (210MB). Here's what you should do: go to Control Panel->Device Manager. Find Network Adapters on the list and expand it. The nVidia adapter should be listed. Right-click on the adapter and select Properties. Select the Drivers tab. If the driver date is older than the date of the above driver (10/1/2009), download the driver and install it. It's actually for 64-bit Vista, but it'll work for Windows 7 as well since they use the same driver model. The "Update Driver Software" selection in Device Manager only checks Windows Update for a newer version, not the manufacturer's site. Now, the router... In a web browser (your choice, any will do) go to "http://192.168.1.1". Enter your router's login info; if you haven't changed it, the defaults should be in your manual or somewhere on Linksys's website. Once logged in to the router there should be a selection for WAN or Internet setup. It may be set to get it's info from your ISP. If so, leave it alone. If not, check what the DNS servers are set for. You may have to contact your ISP to get the addresses (you could also look them up with a WHOIS search, but that may be going too far into it).
December 21st, 2010 9:27pm

Try using ipconfig /all to get a report that shows us your DNS and DHCP server settings (which are missing from your report). FYI DHCP - Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol is a service usually provided by your Router (in a small non-server based LAN for example). This service provides IP addresses to hosts connected to the LAN. Your report shows that you have an assigned IP address. DNS - Domain Name Service - a service that provides IP address to Name mappings (for example one of Google.com's IP addresses is 74.125.227.19). Computers use the DNS service to lookup friendly names and obtain their IP address so the underlying network technology can find and establish connections with each other. Your problem as you described it sounds like it is DNS related (not DHCP). You mentioned that your ISP is HughsNet which is satellite. There may be a high degree of latency that is causing your DNS lookups to timeout. Try running the following command and post the results to see what the latency is for your connection: ping -n 20 google.com "It's a tough life... but someone has to enjoy it!" Pinging google.com [72.14.204.103] with 32 bytes of data: Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=727ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=686ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=815ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=794ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=803ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=841ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=710ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=708ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=736ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=755ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=673ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=621ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=819ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=857ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=826ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=644ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=833ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=752ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=770ms TTL=53 Reply from 72.14.204.103: bytes=32 time=687ms TTL=53 Ping statistics for 72.14.204.103: Packets: Sent = 20, Received = 20, Lost = 0 (0% loss), Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds: Minimum = 621ms, Maximum = 857ms, Average = 752ms If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
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December 21st, 2010 9:35pm

Oh joy, another "driverless" Realtek network controller... Anyway, according to Realtek's site the drivers are a part of the chipset drivers. According to HP's site (yes, I finally found your model...) your computer uses an nVidia nForce 430 chipset (relegated to "legacy" status by nVidia). In fact, your configuration says it's an nVidia card too. Who to believe, who to believe... Well, if we go with HP, this chipset driver is the most recent for 64-bit Windows 7: http://www.nvidia.com/object/nforce_vista_win7_64bit_15.49.html . It's dated October of last year; it's also quite large (210MB). Here's what you should do: go to Control Panel->Device Manager . Find Network Adapters on the list and expand it. The nVidia adapter should be listed. Right-click on the adapter and select Properties . Select the Drivers tab. If the driver date is older than the date of the above driver (10/1/2009), download the driver and install it. It's actually for 64-bit Vista, but it'll work for Windows 7 as well since they use the same driver model. The "Update Driver Software" selection in Device Manager only checks Windows Update for a newer version, not the manufacturer's site. Now, the router... In a web browser (your choice, any will do) go to "http://192.168.1.1". Enter your router's login info; if you haven't changed it, the defaults should be in your manual or somewhere on Linksys's website. Once logged in to the router there should be a selection for WAN or Internet setup. It may be set to get it's info from your ISP. If so, leave it alone. If not, check what the DNS servers are set for. You may have to contact your ISP to get the addresses (you could also look them up with a WHOIS search, but that may be going too far into it). I had a real bad feeling about this when I started. Thank-you very much for looking into it. On my current download allowance, which is 375MB, I could do the driver download; but, will wait until after 2 a.m. Also, I will have to check the date of the driver like you stated. I turned my HP updates off because they were killing my download allowance in minutes not hours. There is like umpteen tons of downloads in just HP updates alone, and as far as I'm concerned, I have been getting along just fine without them for two years with this computer. Like I said, this DNS issue is not preventing me from browsing in any way I want, it was just that I was concerned about my Anti-Virus Real-Time Protection being affected. I'll have to wait until 2 a.m. when my downloads are not counted against my usage. Do you think my anti-virus is at risk of not updating continually with a wavering DNS?If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
December 21st, 2010 9:55pm

His updated post (above) shows the Router is getting the WAN config via DHCP (the ISP). Also, as I suspected, the Ping test results show a high level of latency just getting to Google (which is usually a very fast turn). He's on a Satellite Internet connection via HughsNet. So depending on how many hops it takes to get to his DNS server, he may be seeing some time outs. The driver updates won't hurt. Perhaps after that, he should Ping his DNS servers and see how slow the response is."It's a tough life... but someone has to enjoy it!"
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December 21st, 2010 9:57pm

I had a real bad feeling about this when I started. Thank-you very much for looking into it. On my current download allowance, which is 375MB, I could do the driver download; but, will wait until after 2 a.m. Also, I will have to check the date of the driver like you stated. I turned my HP updates off because they were killing my download allowance in minutes not hours. There is like umpteen tons of downloads in just HP updates alone, and as far as I'm concerned, I have been getting along just fine without them for two years with this computer. Like I said, this DNS issue is not preventing me from browsing in any way I want, it was just that I was concerned about my Anti-Virus Real-Time Protection being affected. I'll have to wait until 2 a.m. when my downloads are not counted against my usage. Do you think my anti-virus is at risk of not updating continually with a wavering DNS?If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
December 21st, 2010 9:58pm

Also, I just looked at the date of my network adapter and it is dated 7/30/2009. I click on update driver - I then get a window asking me if I would like windows to go online and obtain driver upgrades - I click O.K.- It responds that the best driver software is already installed for the device - what a crock - I just looked at the invaluable information you provided and I see that there is indeed an upgrade. Why would windows not want me to have the latest software drivers for my network adapters? Or is that wonderful Microsoft's doing? If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
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December 21st, 2010 10:09pm

No, it's not a Microsoft thing. The driver you have is probably stable and the "newer" version just fixes a few issues that affect a very small user base or very specific issues. It's important to keep in mind that newer <> better when it comes to drivers. You should only update them if you suspect an issue with your current one. No, your current setup won't affect your antivirus updates, it probably just won't update as often - it will update when it can contact Panda's servers... Just for grins and giggles, go to http://www.dnsstuff.com/. At the top of the page it'll give you the IP address you're presenting to the internet at large (and your location, but don't worry about that). Write the address down and post it back here; I'll PING or TRACERT it tomorrow and see what kind of times we get that way. It'll let us know if it is in fact an ISP issue, or somewhere else. Don't worry about privacy issues, that address probably changes every so often anyway. BTW, you can also run a TRACERT to try to find where the long latency times are being introduced - it may not be your ISP at all. You can run it against Google again: tracert google.com @Jagade: I rather suspected an ISP issue from the start and those latency times are pretty poor, but he's still getting a 0% loss. You'll also notice he's double NATed - the addresses on both sides of his router show that (192.168.1.1 for his router's LAN IP and 192.168.0.2 for his WAN IP); this could also be introducing some of the latency - and there's little that can be done about it if that's the case.
December 21st, 2010 11:30pm

Here it is: 72.168.134.221If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
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December 22nd, 2010 12:53am

Tracert from me to that IP address took 12 hops and crashed into a firewall somewhere on the HNS network... never making it to the final destination. However, I was able to Ping the IP address. Times were all over the place. Some near the 2 second range which is huge. All of the packets made it though and the average latency is running around 800ms. I don't think the problem is with your PC. I think it is with your ISP. Do you have another choice for Internet Service besides Hughs Net? You could always drag your PC to another Internet connection somewhere and test it out there. A good cable modem or DSL connection would be a valid test if available. Then, you'll know for sure. "It's a tough life... but someone has to enjoy it!"
December 22nd, 2010 1:12am

I knew the problem was never with the PC. This is going to crack you up. There is no other option for an ISP in the part of TN, I'm in. I'll elaborate, the area that I am in is very mountainous and they refuse to change with the times meaning no wires underground. They are afraid that they will run across someones burial grounds from the Civil War and various other reasons they won't dig because of farm land. They will eventually do something about the situation here, but I think it is delayed for reasons I can't get into on the internet because of the Internet Policing going on. Oh, that reminds me, you stated to not worry about a privacy issue when it came to you running the Tracerts and ping tests. I trust what you are saying; however, you have to look at the big picture. Everything you and I do or say on the computer is being evaluated somehow or another whether it is intentionally done or not is not the point. The point is that their is no such thing as privacy once you hook that ethernet cable (any cable to the modem) or satellite up. The only thing we can do is protect the computer a little better. This is ironic however, because what is the point of protecting the computer if the computer can't protect our sensitive information even with the most elaborate firewall. That is why I have a disposable computer (not hooked to any outside source) and secondary external hard drive that is also never hooked to any network. That is where my true information is and this identity is just a disguise. Wait, would I even make a statement like that knowing what I know? You bet, because that in itself is my right to plead the fifth anytime someone else thinks they have a whirlwind they think I should reap. Alright enough of that nonsense!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was getting on a rant- opps! I remember as a joke, a guy was explaining to me about state trees and I said to him that states have state birds and state flowers (which some states their flower is a tree also) that people remember easily. He said that is true, however his area was so industrialized (he was from up north, like where I came from), that their state tree was a stainless steel telephone pole. The phones are rotary style connections at 56K or lower here in this area - no thanks, I'll stay with satellite and deal with latency problems. No cable modems either - everyone that can afford it, uses a dish around here. The area is extremely rural and we don't even have a flashing neon sign for 25 miles until you get into the city. So you see, we are just so far away from the city that us poor folk out here just don't matter to them. To the government, were just a bunch of dumb, ignorant, barefoot hillbillies running around. They didn't even provide a satellite for us to look the other way either, we actually had to buy it so that I could turn my attention away from their (governments) ignorance. I feel like I am trapped in the 80's but it has it's advantages and disadvantages like the problem at hand that brought me to this sight for help. So, without further ado, your diligence in this matter has been outright fantastic and @ Jagade that joined in, Thank you also. Have some good holidays and a great New Year guys -- Thanks, Thank-you- Thanks- Thank-you very much- Thank-you- Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
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December 22nd, 2010 10:01am

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you too!!!"It's a tough life... but someone has to enjoy it!"
December 22nd, 2010 10:40am

You have a good holiday too. I ran the TRACERT and didn't bump into any firewalls from my end. The result was: Tracing route to host72168221134.direcway.com [72.168.134.221] over a maximum of 30 hops: 1 1 ms 1 ms 1 ms 192.168.0.1 2 8 ms 10 ms 8 ms 10.13.0.1 3 22 ms 9 ms 9 ms 72.240.0.207 4 9 ms 8 ms 9 ms core2.buckeyecom.net [72.240.0.205] 5 27 ms 65 ms 29 ms xe-10-2-0.bar1.Cleveland1.Level3.net [4.53.196.5] 6 29 ms 31 ms 28 ms ae-6-6.ebr1.Washington1.Level3.net [4.69.136.190] 7 28 ms 30 ms 35 ms ae-61-61.csw1.Washington1.Level3.net [4.69.134.130] 8 29 ms 28 ms 31 ms ae-12-60.car2.Washington1.Level3.net [4.69.149.4] 9 28 ms 28 ms 31 ms ge1-1.bbsr1.iad.megapath.net [166.90.148.2] 10 * 31 ms 29 ms ge-0-0-0.c01.ash.megapath.net [155.229.57.162] 11 32 ms 31 ms 31 ms 205-214-39-78.dcp-c001.cust.gw.epoch.net [205.214.39.78] 12 30 ms 30 ms 31 ms dpc6682017073.direcpc.com [66.82.17.73] 13 30 ms 30 ms 31 ms dpc6682017142.direcpc.com [66.82.17.142] 14 * 38 ms 33 ms dpc6682017214.direcpc.com [66.82.17.214] 15 36 ms 32 ms 34 ms dpc6682017178.direcpc.com [66.82.17.178] 16 1645 ms 669 ms 639 ms host72168221134.direcway.com [72.168.134.221] Trace complete. Hop #16 seems to be where the issue is and that's the link to your satellite transceiver. If any of your neighbors have the same service and aren't experiencing this issue you might want to have someone take a look at your dish hardware. JFYI - there may be a workaround to this. It doesn't address the problem directly, but if you're running multiple computers on your network and they're all experiencing this problem then it may be worth looking into. But for just one computer it's overkill. If you're interested, what you would need to do is set up a separate PC as a DNS and DHCP server, then set up DNS forwarding to one of the free DNS services like OpenDNS and/or Google. As the machine builds its DNS cache you'd find fewer DNS errors on your workstation (although they might still appear on the server, but less frequently). Since a domain isn't required you could use Linux for the server OS.
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December 22nd, 2010 12:45pm

Update: I downloaded and installed the updated driver software for the network adapter that you directed me to by way of the link you provided in your other post. The 15.49 nforce network adapter would install, but would not install all the way, for the sole purpose that windows could not find the PC to bridge hardware nor could windows locate the software on a download to make the existing hardware interface to complete the bridge. It stated in device manager: Other PC to bridge detected but windows kept insinuating the download was incompatible. I cannot count how many times I have tried downloads that someone claims even though it is for vista it will work on windows 7. It just simply doesn't hold true for any downloads I have tried. A compatibility issue always arises or install with recommended options screen appears and even then it cannot install software correctly. And yes, I uninstalled the other network adapter completely before trying the install of the new one. Don't worry though, I have a recovery partition that allowed me to restore the preexisting network adapter software since the installation of the supposedly better one wouldn't allow me to roll back the driver. I got to admit, that was a nice touch on Nvidia's end. I would like to type a bunch of vulgar language, but Santa Clause is coming to town!!!!! @Bob Reese: I should have done what you suggested and left it alone, I think it was you or maybe Jagade that suggested to leave it alone. I'm ambitious and a dare devil, so I tried it anyway!!!!!!!!!!!!!!-- No harm, No foul. Just thought I'd let you know the grin & giggles approach didn't work. It's not anyone's fault, I was going to try it anyway, I just couldn't find the software that you directed me to. That was funny how you stated: Oh Joy, another driverless Realtek network controller!!!!!!!!!If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
December 22nd, 2010 1:57pm

Ah well, the specs for your PC were confusing anyway - HP claims it's a Realtek controller, but your device manager says it's nVidia. Actually, those nVidia drivers do work well with Windows 7; before I swapped mainboards in my work PC I was running them (it was an older Biostar board with an Athlon 64 X2; the new board's an ASUS with an Athlon II X4). There's probably a conflict with one of HP's drivers somewhere; that's always a possibility when using the generic drivers vs. the mfg-supported ones. Not too oddly, I get the same thing on my HP Mini 2133 - HP says it's a VIA Rhine II card, but the device manager says it's a Broadcom. And the Broadcom drivers seem to work fine; I guess I'm just lucky. TRACERT is built into Windows; it has been since, well, NT 4 at least. Open up a command prompt and type TRACERT GOOGLE.COM (lower case is fine, I just used upper case to set it off from the body of the sentence). Or, since you're having the issue resolving the panda.com domain for your antivirus updates you could TRACERT PANDA.COM. You'll bump up against their firewall and the trace won't complete, but it'll get you close.
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December 22nd, 2010 3:11pm

Yeah, you think the specs for my computer are confusing, just think how frustrating it's been for me because I know how to lie to the computer to get old hardware to interface with current software - problem is, the updates cause the compatibility issues, not the hardware or software failing. I have an old Toshiba laptop Satellite model from the mid 90's and I know you remember about the USB's upgrades to 2.0. Everything I interface with this computer can interface with my 15 year old obsolete laptop. It is just a matter of trickery and not accepting certain updates. That is just unheard of these days. Someone once asked me why I do that with the laptop and I simply reply - because I can!!!! Another reason is the diverse options of certain programs that were on a laptops made some applications easier on the desktop once the data was transferred. I just had to remember to stall an update as long as it wasn't security related. Now, these clever programmers got it to where my 15 year old laptop is almost unusable because they figured a way to integrate security updates with random updates and the masking and storing routines are very difficult to separate to extract only the necessary part of the update. Difficult, but not impossible.If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
December 22nd, 2010 4:05pm

Jagade here: Speaking of network adapters and driver software, you can more or less determine which hardware you have by consulting the System Information tool via the Search utility under the Start menu. It will scan your system and report information you can use to help with this effort. fwiw - hardware drivers that work under Vista, by and large, do not always work too well under Windows 7. This has been my experience time and again. Application software generally works OK. Just not drivers. I'm not saying this is always the case. Just generally speaking. So, I would recommend that key system drivers be Windows 7 compatible unless some reputable information can be trusted to guide you on using Vista drivers to solve a Win 7 problem. Bob, has suggested that you setup your own DNS server. I tend to agree with him given your setup. You will have control over the Time To Live values for cached DNS entries so that ones you frequently need to stay active (Panda's site for instance) will stay cached locally longer. You can also simply update your local HOSTS file to add the IP for Panda, etc. there (unless they are not static IP's in which case the HOSTS file won't do you much good). "It's a tough life... but someone has to enjoy it!"
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December 23rd, 2010 10:37pm

@Jagade: Yes, I am completely aware of what is going on now, thanks to yourself and Bob. It has been quite an experience learning about the unique specs for this particular computers' setup. What I found odd, and you guys didn't speculate on much, was the fact of when I posted my routers' specs and it had no static DNS's listed for any of the three slots and I am assuming that there is three slots because three computers share the router to link to the Hughes modem tower. Remember when I asked about the possibility of this problem being related possibly to the fact that all three computers run a different version of windows operating system? One computer runs XP, one runs vista ultimate, and mine runs windows 7 Home Premium. I had read extensive articles about the possibility of the fact that the system running Vista Ultimate is causing corruption of the other two connections in the routers data cache. The other two computers are also configured correctly, so again, I am at a loss as to what to believe :-( You guys have been spot on and I honestly think that setting up my own DNS server will only complicate the matter until I am absolutely sure there is nothing wrong with my ISP or actual dish transceiver or transponder. Which I find highly unlikely due to the excellent feedback report from signal strength statistics ratios database. However, I have to remember that signal strength alone, does not determine how fast I can browse the internet but whether I can or not. I have had a signal strength as low as 45 and still browsed the web at the same speed as when I was connected at a signal strength of 76, which it is generally around 75 to 78. I still don't see this as a serious enough issue to set up a DNS server of my own, solely because my Anti-Virus can still update as often as it wants, irregardless of the DNS not being resolved and it has a nice little built in feature that notifies me instantly the moment the system becomes vulnerable. I just wanted to see some other speculation results from guys like yourself and Bob that could point me in alternative directions other then trying to find an alternate ISP provider or form of hookup other than dish. In conclusion, I just wanted to take the time and "Thank You" both again for the invaluable suggestions and spot on analysis of my situation! If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
December 24th, 2010 9:54am

I doubt that the fact that you're running three different OSes has anything to do with it. If you count 32- and 64-bit as different OSes I'm using nine... (32- and 64-bit XP, 32- and 64-bit Vista, 32- and 64-bit Windows 7, 32-bit Windows Server 2003, Linux and 64-bit Solaris 8.) Do your other two machines also exhibit the DNS timeout issue? There are three DNS slots because your router allows you to define up to three external DNS servers to use. The reason they're blank is that currently you're getting the info from your ISP and using whatever DNS resolver they've defined. This is normal, and usually works fine for most people. It has nothing whatever to do with how many computers you have hooked up.
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December 24th, 2010 1:37pm

No, the timeout only occurs on one other machine and that is the one running vista where the original router setup was established for all three computers. I followed the router setup instructions and made an SD Card key so when the connection was setup on the other two computers (this one and the one running XP), it would be a breeze. After making the key, you just insert it into the other computers SD slots and load up your router configuration right from the key - it's slick how it works- or is this possibly the problem to begin with? If it was, I would think the problem would exist on all three machines instead of just two of them.If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
December 24th, 2010 4:42pm

Jagade here, I guess I'm still old school. I almost never use the "easy bake" software that comes with a consumer grade Router. I use the native Windows configuration utility to configure each computer for wired/wireless access. It's much easier and cleaner imho because once the Router is setup, it's a cinch to connect a wireless (or wired) client to the Router. Much easier than going thru all the trouble to install the vendor software on each computer, make a key, etc. With your setup, your satellite service provided you a modemto which you have connected your Cisco/Linsys Router. Your Router is getting it's WAN configuration (aka Internet port in this case) via DHCP from the modem. In turn, your computers are getting their LAN configuration from your Router via its onboard DHCP Server. In this case, the proper PC network configuration is to obtain their IP and DNS settings automatically from the Router rather than configuring Static IP and DNS. So, your IP will be of the 192.168.1.xxx range, subnet mask is 255.255.255.0 giving you 254 usable LAN IP addresses, and your Gateway IP is 192.168.1.1 which is the LAN IP address of the Router. All of your PC's will have exactly the same configuration (except for their unique IP addresses). Also, if you have both a wired and a wireless connection running on each computer, they will then have two IP addresses each. But, the subnet mask and Gateway will be identical for each of the separate interface adapters. Bottom line is that each PC will request their configuration from the LAN DHCP server (your Router) when they boot up. The DNS Server (to each PC) is thus the Gateway at IP address 192.168.1.1. A PC will always try to find its initial DNS lookups by consulting the local DNS cache first (use ipconfig /displaydns to see the cache). If the DNS request cannot be resolved by the local cache, the Router will then be consulted to provide any information it has. The Router then forwards the request to its configured DNS Server which will be the Satellite modem. The modem then forwards the request to it's configured DNS server which will be a DNS server maintained by the Satellite company. And so it goes, forwarding of the DNS requests until some Server responds with the necessary information needed to resolve an IP address lookup. All of this information has to then be relayed back to your computer where it is cached in your local database for a short period of time before it is discarded if not used. Any significant delays in the transmission and retrieval of these lookups can cause timeouts with programs that are depending on the results to be retrieved in a reasonable time frame. In the end, it may be beneficial if you simply add the IP address and Host name entries directly in your HOSTS file for sites that you need to connect with frequently. Or, as Bob said, setup a DNS server on your LAN to facilitate better performance. Without that, you will continue to have problems on occasion with not being able to resolve address and establish contact with some sites in a timely fashion. Merry Christmas "It's a tough life... but someone has to enjoy it!"
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December 24th, 2010 6:02pm

Okay, that got me thinking - if the problem occurs in Vista and Win 7 but not in XP there must be a setting somewhere... I couldn't locate anything that explicitly says that the XP settings are different, but I did find these two pages that explain how to set the DNS timeout value (and what each parameter means): http://drewthaler.blogspot.com/2005/09/changing-dns-query-timeout-in-windows.html http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc977482.aspx The instructions are actually for Windows 2000 and XP, but since the specified Reg Key also exists in Win 7 you can certainly add the values and see if it makes a difference. It's not going to make the DNS lookups faster, but it will increase the wait time before it fails. Warning: editing the Registry wrong can seriously bork your PC.
December 24th, 2010 8:13pm

Oh man, I'm still in the ozone from that rum laden eggnog from Christmas. Just kidding. Well, I did find out what was causing this issue in both vista and windows 7. I couldn't believe this when I found out what was going on. @ Bob: I looked in the list of devices and printers by way of the control panel and found that the router device had not been added to the device manager. It didn't actually add the router itself, it added a network adapter sub-field called Network Infrastructure Devices. After adding it in by way of clicking "add device", I then went into my device manager and found that it added another sub-field under network adapters and clicked on it and the installed component works flawlessly. The device manager had already contained the network adapter listing, so I didn't think anything to be abnormal or out of parameters. It seems to me that Cisco would have forewarned customers that installation of the software does not necessarily add the device directly to the computers' list of devices and causes the device manager to not have the full network configuration displayed correctly. After correcting that little fiasco in both the computers using vista and windows 7, I haven't had a problem with timeout sessions yet. @Jagade, thanks for that in depth recap of what the problem has been. As you can see in my aforementioned post, I was able to nail down what I think was the culprit to this whole disaster. Thank-you and enjoy your New Year to come! If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
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December 26th, 2010 8:56am

I'm glad you got it fixed. Odd though, none of my routers show up on my network devices unless I enable UPnP on them and they still work fine even without that. I never would have considered that as a fix; I guess you do learn something new every day.
December 26th, 2010 11:00am

@CorruptedMemory, that's kind of an odd solution to the problem. As Bob stated, the Router most generally does not have to be configured as an installed device in order for a network to work properly. Device Manager should only hold settings for locally installed devices including network adapaters, video cards, sound cards, etc. My computers XP, Vista, Win7, etc. do not show my Router as a configured device. Network and Sharing Center will show the network Router name as one of the available networks. One can view and change settings related to a particular network and the local PC by using the links on this menu. I've worked with the Cisco E series Routers and have never seen the installation install the Router as a local device on each PC. This new news warrants a closer look into what might be going on. Glad to hear you have solved the problem. UPnP on the Router is used to allow apps (during installation and subsequent configuration) to configure port settings (among others) to facilitate devices working correctly on the network. Without UPnP enabled, you have to manually configure those settings on the Router."It's a tough life... but someone has to enjoy it!"
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December 26th, 2010 12:46pm

@ @Bob, yes it is odd because remember that my computer was distinguishing between Realtek drivers for the network adapter and HP's site had them completely listed different for the chip-set drivers? I am still not sure if this thing called Network Infrastructure Devices that was added in device manager is the router or modem device itself, because it is a sub-field that was added in device manager after making the computer accept the routers protocol as a valid handler. Whether this was a router/modem compatibility issue, or just simply another workaround, I'll never know. Also, it is not showing the router as a configured device as you have aforementioned; but, rather it is showing a Infrastructure device, and whether that is the router or not is purely speculation at this point. The only thing I can tell you for sure is that the router did not show up in "devices and printers", until I added it when I asked the computer to search for devices and should not be confused with my device manager where the actual infrastructure device was added but not named. At this point, if I have a workaround that is valid and has no more timeout issues, I'm wondering how the modem and router setup even got along at all considering the router wasn't even recognized properly in the networks full path domain as displayed by the network center. Usually, one gives the router a name so that they can see it listed in a display path within the homegroup network or whatever type of network it is joined to. If I'd known I was going to live this long, I would have made preparations.
December 26th, 2010 4:35pm

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