connected but no internet

[kerbhugger]

Please be patient with a wee granny - if this has been documented already i cant find it have been online for a few weeks now, no problems loving the speed    but have been trying to set my husbands laptop up - running xp.  Am connected to idnet with excellent connection but ie refuses to connect - tells me there is a problem and closes page.  have cleared the dns cache but no joy, have done the "netsh winsock reset catalog" but still no internet just a box saying internet explorer has encountered a problem and needs to close.  Any help very gratefully received. thanks 

[Den]

Hi kerbhugger, Welcome to Idnetters and have a welcome karma.    I assume you are running IE7 or IE8 if so add Idnetters to your compatibility view settings and all should be well.

[dujas]

Are you saying IE can't access any websites, yet all other Internet functions are fine? Have you tried Firefox? Assuming it's not set to Offline mode or is trying to use old proxy/connection settings, IE could have become corrupted and need re-installing.

[Ray]

 

[Lance]

I wonder if the tool den posted to fix ie8 might help?

[kerbhugger]

thanks for the replies and the karma my big problem is that when I hit the IE button  the page tries to load but a box comes up saying " internet explorer has encountered a problem and needs to close sorry for the inconvenience" - the IE page then shuts down and I cannot access IE at all to make any changes.  in add/remove programmes i can see he is using IE 7 and service pack 3.  i cannot remove or update or repair IE from add/remove it only gives me the option for "click here for support information" which tries to take me to a web site which again gives the  box saying "internet explorer has encountered a problem and needs to close etc."  It then closes . in network connections his idnet connection is listed as excellent, my laptop, my pc  both fine as is playstation network.  doing my head in   sorry

[Lance]

Basically it sounds like your ie7 installation has become corrupted. I think the best thing would be to us your pc to download eithe ie8 or firefox and then use a memory stick or transfer accross the network to the laptop and install.

[Simon]

   

[davej99]

I would try opening IE7 without add-ons. Right click the desktop or start menu IE  icon and you get the option to do this. If that works you can then disable add-ons one at a time to see which one is the problem.

If you search "internet explorer has encountered a problem and needs to close" you will see there are number of possible causes.

Here endeth the limit of my expertise!

[kerbhugger]

ok - installed ie8 no problem  but still no joy.  Small change though, now the page just hangs for an age then gives me a "this program is not responding" popup.     Can send and receive emails, running AVG, ( tried it with no avg running but still nothing)  and this problem only started when I switched over to idnet.  As I say everything else in network running fine.  Thanks again for all your help and patience - soon as I work out this karma thing I will send it to y'all  

[Simon]

I guess it's possibly you have a DNS problem at IDNet's end, but that's just an uneducated guess.    I think you should download Firefox onto the other machine (you don't need to install it), and copy the installation file to the machine with the problem via whatever means, then install Firefox on it.  That will prove whether it's an IE problem or not. 

[davej99]

Can we establish when the XP machine last successfully opened IE and in what configuration?

[kerbhugger]

last working just before 25th Sept.  My husband doen't go online very often so it took a coupla weeks to discover this problem.  sorry to seem dense but what do you mean by which configuation?  XP service pack 3 ie 7 (now upgraded to ie8)?  Been googling too but nothing seems to work - may resort to a hammer    Tried running it with no addons (thanks davej99) but made no difference. 

[kerbhugger]

Downloaded Firefox - same problem

[kerbhugger]

sorry - me again. Got a popup from Firefox saying "firefox can't establish a connection to the server at en-gb-.start3.mozilla.com"

[Simon]

Yes, that just means it can't access it's start page on the internet.  Do you have any firewalls or internet security programs running?

[kerbhugger]

have disabled avg, firewall and there are no proxies.

[Simon]

OK, I'm clutching at straws here, but sometimes just disabling a firewall such as AVG, doesn't actually stop it from 'working', unless you disable it completely, and reboot your machine without the firewall starting in the first place.  I know that's a bit of a risk, but it might be worth trying, just to eliminate it as the cause, then restart it again. 

What you could do first, though, is check the firewall configurations, and make sure that Internet Explorer (and now, Firefox) is 'Allowed', and that there are no other settings which might be blocking Internet access.  You might even find a log somewhere within the settings to check if anything is being blocked, but I haven't used AVG for years, so I can't help you specifically with that, sorry.

[Steve]

From a command prompt can you ping any internet addresses i.e www.idnet.net and receive a reply?

[kerbhugger]

I am learning how to do SO much today!!!!    Hope this is right...

Microsoft Windows XP [Version 5.1.2600]
(C) Copyright 1985-2001 Microsoft Corp.

C:\Documents and Settings\Billy>ping idnet.com

Pinging idnet.com [212.69.36.10] with 32 bytes of data:

Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=55ms TTL=59
Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=56ms TTL=59
Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=56ms TTL=59
Reply from 212.69.36.10: bytes=32 time=55ms TTL=59

Ping statistics for 212.69.36.10:
    Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
    Minimum = 55ms, Maximum = 56ms, Average = 55ms

[Sebby]

So it's not a DNS issue... I'm baffled.

[dujas]

Need to boot up XP in "Safe Mode with Networking" and see if IE8 or Firefox can access a webpage, if it works, then it would indicate a program is preventing access.

[sobranie]

If you have been finding no help with this problem regarding this error "Microsoft Internet Explorer has encountered a problem and needs to close" you're not alone. I had this on my computer and couldn't find any fix posted relevent to my problem.

Starting up in "Safe mode with Network support" seems to bypass this problem and IE fuctions normally. This leads me to believe that some third party program is causing the problem.

* Here is the workaround i found that worked for me. Go to Control Panel, Internet options. Next, go to Advance Tab.
Uncheck "Enable third party browser extension"
Click OK *

With Windows XP this worked right away for me, but you might have to restart computer. If you have multiple profiles setup on your computer, you will have to do this for each profile.

I also noticed that my home page had been changed to res://nshp.dll/index.html#37049
You can change this through the Control panel, Internet options as well.



Please note that I filched this info some time ago from another forum.

[kerbhugger]

Here's the thing - I just decided to download an AVG update to my memory stick and copy it over as I had tried everything else (except the hammer). Installed it and I can now connect...!   Have NO idea what the conflict was.  Want to thank everyone for all their help and patience, never been on such a helpful forum. Love being with idnet trying to send karma to y'all    Away now for a very strong drink and a wee lie down

[Simon]

Must have been a dodgy AVG update then.  Not the first!  Glad it's sorted. 

[Lance]

Glad it's sorted.

Assuming it's the free version of avg, you may want to consider avast as a alternative. I certainly found it much better when I had to install it on a few machines.

[kerbhugger]

Never heard of avast will give it a look see, thanks .  Been using AVG for years and have had a few occasions in the past when it has caused serious conflicts for no apparent reason but had it disabled today which is why I thought of it last. I just LOVE computers 

[Den]

Hi Kerbhugger, Sorry I have not been around today but Linda said I had to take her out    Glad your problem is now sorted, I must admit I never use AVG as it caused all sorts of problems in the past. A great but cheep way of buying a antivirus is to pop into The Works if you have one close by. Purchase Kaspersky 2007 and install, then update it to Kaspersky 2009 on the web, all for about £7.95 last time I looked.   

[Sebby]

Glad all is sorted.

[Gary]

Hi Kerbhugger, Sorry I have not been around today but Linda said I had to take her out    Glad your problem is now sorted, I must admit I never use AVG as it caused all sorts of problems in the past. A great but cheep way of buying a antivirus is to pop into The Works if you have one close by. Purchase Kaspersky 2007 and install, then update it to Kaspersky 2009 on the web, all for about £7.95 last time I looked.   

Kaspersky did really badly in recent AV comparative tests scoring less than Norton, and changes every file on your system permanently with a NTFS Identifiers that you can never remove. Since uninstalling it from my system (it leaves behind shell extensions) and using Nod32 v4 and a Cloud based behavioural scanner, my system has been more responsive, browses faster has gained greater throughput and has lost a few "quirks" there are better products out there than Kaspersky 2010 at this time in my opinion, Avast is good, so is Avira but has higher false positives.

[Simon]

Kaspersky has certainly gone downhill in recent years, hasn't it?

[davej99]

For others, and should the problem return, I have found this article most helpful when Internet Explorer stops responding. Switching of all add-ons and reverting to default settings, both from IE properties, which does not need IE to open first, is always worth a try.

On the antivirus debate, I junked resource hungry Norton for Kaspersky AV, a couple of years ago. I find it simple, unobtrusive and light on resources. It is quite good at flagging registry activity. I do not use any paranoia driven 3rd party internet security and spam bloatware, except the occasional root kit scan. A Netgear modem-router offers a passable network firewall, with a Microsoft firewall inside. I do run Defender, which seems undemanding. I kill off circulating email IDs regularly. Never been hit in 30 years as a PC user. As in life of course, the most effective defence is the avoidance of dubious contact and careless habit.

[Simon]

Thanks, Dave. 

[quandam]

Can't beat Avast Excellent free prog Used it for almost four years now without any probs

[Gary]

For others, and should the problem return, I have found this article most helpful when Internet Explorer stops responding. Switching of all add-ons and reverting to default settings, both from IE properties, which does not need IE to open first, is always worth a try.

On the antivirus debate, I junked resource hungry Norton for Kaspersky AV, a couple of years ago. I find it simple, unobtrusive and light on resources. It is quite good at flagging registry activity. I do not use any paranoia driven 3rd party internet security and spam bloatware, except the occasional root kit scan. A Netgear modem-router offers a passable network firewall, with a Microsoft firewall inside. I do run Defender, which seems undemanding. I kill off circulating email IDs regularly. Never been hit in 30 years as a PC user. As in life of course, the most effective defence is the avoidance of dubious contact and careless habit.

I don't agree on safe surfing helps anymore, that's like trying to cross a autobahn on foot when traffic is going flat out and saying its not that dangerous, there are so mnay rogue antivirus, and rootkits about that Kaspersky miss, Nod 32 miss and that have thier code changed within a day of release or sometimes hours so signatures and heuristics do not work as the processes are hidden from them, and you can bump into them easily, I did yesterday while looking up Firefoxs blacklisting of the windows plugins, Kaspersky on one machine and Nod32 did not blink at either when I tested, but a 768kb installation which is so simple a child could use it (PrevX 3) picked it up, and stopped it in its tracks. Cloud based antimalware is so much more effective than the usual signature and heuristics approach on its own, its light uses hardly any resources really 3,464k on my machine. Defender is rubbish its software explorer is good, but it does not notice a trojan let alone a rootkit. It seems that's a false sense of security by Microsoft and once again that did not notice the rogue AV.

A recent report said the internet is getting worse and worse, with venders struggling to keep up, I'm sure cloud techniques will be beaten soon and then we will need something else, but to be complacent could be your downfall.

I just used Nod32 v4 (AV) and Prevx 3 with Superantispyware for a scan now and then (free version) and windows firewall and my DG834N routers firewall. Its not complex does not slow my machine down with bloat, I use no antispam modules, I do use AdMuncher because I hate adverts and banners and it makes my pages load faster. With those things in place and some tweaking done to the OS to remove processes I don't use I am much happier than using a suite of any kind, and its more effective I believe.

[quandam]

Points taken Gary

You are no doubt very deeply involved and to be honest most of your post leaves me   You may well be right but to repeat,  Avast has 'looked after me' for almost 4 years without ANY problem whatsoever and that makes me very happy indeed without making my brain hurt

I do believe in keeping things very simple, and Avast has achieved this without causing me any undue stress or problems.

[davej99]

I just used Nod32 v4 (AV) and Prevx 3 with Superantispyware for a scan now and then (free version) and windows firewall and my DG834N routers firewall. .... I do use AdMuncher ...... . With those things in place and some tweaking done to the OS to remove processes I don't use I am much happier than using a suite of any kind, and its more effective I believe.

So, Gary, we both seem to be saying the same thing, mix-and-match AV, malware and adware products and simple precautions are better than a bloated off-the-shelf Internet Security package. But tell me this, when did you last get hit out of the blue? Like vitamin pills, fad diets, food combining, feng shui, homeopathy, snake oil and so on, many security products play to ignorance and paranoia. For the vast majority of threats, a basic anti-virus package together with the standards microsoft offering is quite adequate.

But do not dismiss my advice on the avoidance of careless habit and dubious contact. The overriding number of frauds arise from writing or storing PINS and passwords or by divulging personal info in a scam. Most PC invasions arise from badly maintained security updates, or from not using a basic AV and firewall. I am sure you can point to this or that threat that gets through Kaspersky, NOD, AV, Defender, from time to time. This does not mean they are not effective for the most part, for most users. My PC might get hit by lightning, but I do not keep it in a Faraday cage. Like crime the fear is worse than the reality and basic smart measures deal with most of it; but I do put my daily backup in a fire safe.

[quandam]

davej99

I think we almost (?) said exactly the same thing?

[Simon]

I think 'safe surfing' certainly has a relevance, as does educating people not to open unexpected attachments, emails asking for bank details, etc, etc.  I don't disagree with either Gary's or Dave's solutions - whatever suits you, and works to keep your machine safe, is fine, in my opinion.  I prefer suites because I feel there's less chance of conflicts than with several different branded products, but that's just a personal opinion.  I have used F-Secure Internet Security for four years, along with Windows Defender, just as a back up, and I haven't had a virus or any malware in that time, and I do use some torrent sites, which are not always 'safe'.

[davej99]

Best Security Policy:

   Aways have a defence.
   Focus on probable threats.
   Keep it simple.
   More armour is less speed.
   Maintain the kit.
   Keep your head down.
   Don't get suckered.

As in life, so the internet.