Local Only - Wireless

[jamiwr]

I have a Sony laptop that is running Vista home. My issue is that I am receiving local only access for my home network. I get an area someting saying it is not able to connect to the DNS.

I have tried all the different fixes I have found online and nothing seems to be working.
-Turn off IPv6 and turn it back on
-Repair Connection
-Microsoft fix now site
-Remove the network and then add it back
-Reset router
-Re-input password
-Download driver


Every once in a while when I turn on the LAN and turn it back on I am able to connect. I am able to connect to an unsecured network that is in the area.

Does anyone have a list of steps I could take to fix the problem?

Thanks,

 

[Shadowjk]

Hello,

I Am currently on my phone so my support is very limited

Please follow these steps and post back your results

http://www.vistax64.com/network-sharing/284688-network-posting-tips.html

Many thanks,
Josh

Sent from HTC

 

[jamiwr]

CMD Snippets attached.

 

[Lorien]

Hi jamiwr,

Welcome to Vista Forums!

Your setup is wrong. Not only are you not getting a DNS connections (no IP address for a DNS server which is usually the same as the default gateway), but if you look at your IPCONFIG report, you have an IP of 169.168.x.x which means you are not getting a valid IP address (it should probably say 192.168.x.x) and you also have no default gateway (which means you are not setup to connect to the router or making contact with the router - which is usually 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.0.154 though it could be anything in between those numbers). DHCP is also not supplying an IP address for the DHCP Server (which is usually the same as the Default Gateway). In essence, you are not connecting with the router or the router is not configured properly or your computer is not configured properly to make the connections. I'm not certain exactly where the problem is located. Incidentally, IP4 is typically more crucial than IP6 in getting your network functioning.

Try reviewing the following articles. The last one is of particular significance in your situation, but if your whole home network is setup wrong, then that last one won't work on its own, so that's why I included the others. If you followed step 3 that Shadow provided, then we can be pretty sure you basic network functions are working - so it's just a matter of proper configuration.

Here's a tutorial on how to setup a home network (including a wireless one) - check out the additional links for further information that may be of great help: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/Setting-up-a-home-network.

Here's an article on troubleshooting wireless network connections (again with helpful links): http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/Troubleshoot-network-connection-problems.

Here's a long guide on wireless internet connections in Vista: http://www.techwarelabs.com/guides/misc_mod/vistaconnection/.

Here's an article on how to setup wireless internet connection in Vista: http://www.clpgh.org/usingthelibrary/technology/wireless/WindowsVista.pdf.

Hopefully, these will assist you in either correcting your current networking setup or, if necessary or you prefer, setting up an entirely new set of connections. A few months ago, in order to connect I needed a separate connection for my wireless connection and another one for my internet connection (that's how the ISP modem worked). Then I got a new modem and suddenly I did not need the separate internet connection (in fact, I had to delete it because it was causing problems) and connecting to the wireless network automatically connected me to the internet. i don't know your situation.

After reading the above, I recommend you contact your ISP, explain the problem, and have their phone technical support people walk you through the setup step-by-step (mine is great at providing such help 24/7) until you're connected - they may even help you with your router (where a reset may not be enough if it isn't properly configured in the first place and doing that means accessing the router setup and putting in the correct settings for your network and your ISP). I would not let them off the phone until you have a good connection everywhere - even if you need to ask to speak to a supervisor. Most have people who spend all day doing just this and they have scripts to follow so they don't miss anything so they are usually very good at it - if you feel uncomfortable with the person you get, then ask for a supervisor who will have a much better knowledge.

I'm not trying to "pass the buck" to the ISP, but there are settings and configurations we simply do not know and that only your ISP can provide. Plus they can talk you through it over the phone step-by-step whereas we can only communicate by these messages so it would take MUCH longer even if we had all the information needed to do it.

I hope this helps. Please post back if you have further questions or problems - or to let us know how it went.

Good luck!

 

[jamiwr]

Thank you for the information. I will give it a try next week when I am back home.

The weird thing about the issue is that it only happens on my laptop. All other computers, phones, internet radios, blue ray players, are able to connect to the network without any issues.

Does this seem weird to you?

 

[Lorien]

Hi jamiwr,

Nope - it doesn't surprise me whatsoever. I see it all the time. In fact, I see it much more often then a generalized loss of access by all computers and devices. Those are much easier to diagnose as it is pretty much limited to the router, the modem, or your connection to the ISP - all of which are best handled by a call to the ISP. Individual computer problems are much harder (especially when I can't work on them in person where things would go MUCH faster) because there are many causes for such problems (hardware and sofware - I've spent a lot of time more than once to find that the ethernet cable was unplugged!) and being remote it's harder to spot as I could by scrolling quickly through your various screens and programs (and checking the hardware and connections) looking for something amiss. There are a lot of things to look for and while I can move quickly in person, it takes time to explain each step to you and then await feedback before moving on - and I need to do it methodically whereas in person I would be hopping around in a seemingly random fashion but that won't work using this method of troubleshooting. And even if I had access to software to establish a remote connection to your computer to work hands-on (I can't afford the $80/month fee), it doesn't work if the problem IS the connection.

I should be here when you get back and after you've tried the above suggestions and read that material - or perhaps someone else will assist you. We do work as a team and when one is away, the others cover for that person (and sometimes answer even if that person is online if they have something useful to offer - which is better for you as you then get the benefit of more than one person working on your problem).

I hope it helps. If not, post back and we'll dig deeper. There IS an answer - it's only a matter of time finding it.

Good luck!