Fuzzy Internet

[owlface]

For some reason my computer is having issues obtaining data from the internet. It seems it has developed a very off/ on nature in the past few days. When attempting to view a website, it will wait for a while, and then the website will load very quickly as normally. Sometimes it will wait to long and display the message ?connection has timed out?. Other times it will load part way, and then fail to load half the images. It does this both when I am plugged into my home network or when I am using it wirelessly. Any idea what this could be?

 

[mechBgon]

Maybe your computer is using flaky Domain Name Servers. Run a command prompt at Admin level and run the command ipconfig /all to see what DNS entries you have. Then try pinging them. You might want to post their IP addresses too... there are Trojan Horse programs which alter the DNS entries to the bad guys's DNS servers to make them money off of search results.

 

[owlface]

thanks for your mechBgon, unfortunately when I type in ipconfig / all a black window pops up and and disappears before I have the chance to read anything it says. It also disappears from the task bar? Any ideas?

 

[owlface]

I plugged in a very old computer of mine that hasn't been used for about 2 years. It too had a similar problem of only certain websites are functional and the ipconfig or ipconfig / all completely disappears?

 

[2Xtreme21]

Originally posted by: owlface
I plugged in a very old computer of mine that hasn't been used for about 2 years. It too had a similar problem of only certain websites are functional and the ipconfig or ipconfig / all completely disappears?

Go into your command prompt first. Start > run > type "cmd". Then do the ipconfig /all in the black box that pops up.

 

[owlface]

It says:

Windows IP Configuration

Host name .... : Danieltop
Primary DNS Suffix.....:
Node Type.... :Broadcast
IP Routing Enabled .... :No
WINS Proxy Enabled ....:No
DNS Suffix Search List .......: gateway.2wire.net
gateway.2wire.net

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Media State ..... : Media disconnected
Description ........: Broadcom 440x 10/100 Integrated Controller
Physical Address ... :00-14-22-E5-6D-51

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix : gateway.2wire.net
Description ......: Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 2915ABG Network Conection
Physcial Address ..... :00-13-CE-51-56-51
Dhcp Enabled ....:Yes
Auto configuration Enabled ....:Yes
IP Address ??:192.168.1.66
Subnet Mask??.:255.255.255.0
Default Gateway??.:192.168.1.254
DHCP Server ???.:192.168.1.254
Lease Obtained?..: Sunday, May 25, 2008 9:30:41 AM
Lease Expires??: Monday, May 26, 2008 9:30:41 AM

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection 2:

Media State ?? :Media disconnected
Description ? :Bluetooth Personal Area Network from TOSHIBA
Physical Address??: 00-10-C6-E6-68-91



Does this help?

 

[mechBgon]

As a fact-finding step, set your network connection to use OpenDNS's DNS servers: https://www.opendns.com/start Does this resolve the problem?

 

[owlface]

How do I set the connection to Open DNS? The link you sent is one that is not openable to me.

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: owlface
How do I set the connection to Open DNS? The link you sent is one that is not openable to me.

You change your network connection's TCP/IP properties so it uses OpenDNS's servers, namely 208.67.222.222 and 208.67.220.220. If you need help changing that, post what operating system you're using.

 

[owlface]

I am using:
Microsoft Windows XP
Media Center Edition
Version 2002
Service Pack 2

Thanks

 

[mechBgon]

Ok, refer to these instructions: http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/mechBgon/OpenDNS_XP.PNG If you encounter (worse) problems, switch them back to Auto.

 

[Continuity28]

Is this a DSL connection?

 

[owlface]

Originally posted by: mechBgon
Ok, refer to these instructions: http://pics.bbzzdd.com/users/mechBgon/OpenDNS_XP.PNG If you encounter (worse) problems, switch them back to Auto.

Thanks for the help, but unfortunately I can't open the link you posted. I am not sure if I have cable or DSL. Is there anyway to check?

 

[owlface]

Is there anyway that you can describe it on here?

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: owlface
Is there anyway that you can describe it on here?

Sure, here's a copy-&-paste:

1. Select Control Panel from the Start menu.
2. Click Network Connections from the Control Panel choices.
3. Choose your connection from the Network Connections window.
4. Click Properties button.
5. Select Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) and click Properties.
6. Click the radio button Use the following DNS server addresses and type in OpenDNS addresses in the Preferred DNS server and Alternate DNS server fields (208.67.222.222 and 208.67.220.220)

 

[Megatomic]

mech, entering the OpenDNS info on my router makes the changes for my entire household, correct? If so, thanks for the link. I set myself up on their service and added some content filtering. I seem to get pages to load quicker now, perhaps it's placebo or maybe it's not. Either way, thanks.

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: Megatomic
mech, entering the OpenDNS info on my router makes the changes for my entire household, correct? If so, thanks for the link. I set myself up on their service and added some content filtering. I seem to get pages to load quicker now, perhaps it's placebo or maybe it's not. Either way, thanks.

Yeah, exactly (unless someone in the household manually changes their own computer's DNS entries, rather than using the DNS entries that the router assigns via DHCP). Among other things, these guys filter for known phishing domains, which I considered valuable for my mom's computer, since she wouldn't be good at identifying phish. Glad it was useful

 

[Megatomic]

Awesome. No one else here would think to manually config their internet connection so I don't have to worry about that. I added porn, dating, s&m, and some other shady stuff to the filter, with 3 teenagers at home I'm sure their gonna try to see that stuff sooner or later.

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: Megatomic
Awesome. No one else here would think to manually config their internet connection so I don't have to worry about that. I added porn, dating, s&m, and some other shady stuff to the filter, with 3 teenagers at home I'm sure their gonna try to see that stuff sooner or later.

I've heard that you can set up your own custom "dude, this site is blocked" page with OpenDNS, too (haven't tried it myself). The imagination runs wild... :evil:

 

[Megatomic]

I thought about doing that, but that might give the kids the ammo they need to figure out how to bypass the blocking.

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: Megatomic
I thought about doing that, but that might give the kids the ammo they need to figure out how to bypass the blocking.

If they're on non-Admin accounts, they wouldn't be able to change the DNS settings, if that helps any. Non-Admin accounts would also make infections far, far less likely. But the flip side is you as the Admin would have to do all the admin-ing.

 

[Megatomic]

The kids all have limited accounts on the Vista machine. My wife has an admin account on her XP machine. There'd be a rebellion if I tried to change her account to limited user, she likes to try new software and set up printers and stuff. But I already do all the admin-ing anyways, so I'm used to it.

 

[owlface]

I changed the preferred and alternate DNS server numbers to the ones you described, for both my wireless network connection. I also tried plugging in an ethernet cable to the back of my laptop and changed the settings for that as well. I had no luck in either case.

 

[mechBgon]

Maybe your computer has some sort of spyware or other malware. You might want to try F-Secure's online scanner, if you can get to it. Open up Internet Explorer and try going to http://support.f-secure.com/enu/home/ols.shtml to run the scanner. Bring snacks, it can take a while

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: Megatomic
The kids all have limited accounts on the Vista machine. My wife has an admin account on her XP machine. There'd be a rebellion if I tried to change her account to limited user, she likes to try new software and set up printers and stuff. But I already do all the admin-ing anyways, so I'm used to it.

In that case, you can also fire up Vista's Parental Controls to keep tabs on them, if desired (except Vista Business). Depending on how strict you want to be, it's even possible to blacklist all websites that you haven't specifically whitelisted, and block all downloads too, an option I'm considering for a one-purpose computer at work.

In this day and age, if your wife insists on running as an Admin on WinXP, you might want to check it with Secunia's vulnerability checker/fixer utility if you haven't already been doing so. The bad guys will use those toeholds if they're left lying around with Admin powers on tap.