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Network Troubleshooting and Problem Resolution Procedure - Step 3

Back to Steps 1 and 2.

STEP 3 -- Review the information displayed.

The information displayed is:

The information displayed begins with Windows IP Configuration

     Host Name is the name given to this PC on the network.
     The remaining items in Windows IP Configuration are of less interest to us.

Next is Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

   Connection-specific DNS Suffix : TMChqtrs.local
   Description . . . . . . . . . .: Realtek PCI-E Gigabit NIC
   Physical Address. . . . . . . .: 00-1D-92-B4-42-04
   Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . .: Yes
   Autoconfiguration Enabled . . .: Yes
   IP Address. . . . . . . . .: 192.168.30.64
   Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . .: 255.255.255.0
   Default Gateway . . . . . . . .: 192.168.30.1
   DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . .: 192.168.30.5
   DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . .: 192.168.30.5
                                    151.196.0.38
                                    71.252.0.71
                                    151.203.0.86
                                    192.168.30.20
   Primary WINS Server . . . . . .: 192.168.30.5
   Secondary WINS Server . . . . .: 192.168.30.20
   Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . .: Wed,Sept 30,2009 10:48:46 PM

If there is more than one Network adapter in the PC you get one of these for each adapter.

The fifth line down says IP Address. It has special meaning.

   Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
   Description . . . . . . . . . . . : 3CSOHO Fast Ethernet NIC
   Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-50-DA-0F-B1-36

Then the cable into the LAN card is broken or disconnected somewhere.  The media disconnected is the definitive clue.

If the IP Address numbers are 169.254.n.n -- then the card is not connected to a network. Windows is just picking IP address numbers that are Automatic IP Addresses from a pool of 169.254.n.n numbers.

When the IP Address numbers are 192.168.n.n -- they are Industry Standard IP Address numbers that suggest things are working correctly. Any numbers other than 169.254.n.n could be good working numbers.

Think of an IP Address as State.City.Street.HouseNumber. So the State is 169 or 192, the City is 254 or 168, and we use any street and house number in those cities and states.

When the IP address numbers are 169.254.n.n, it usually means that there is a physical connection problem. In this case use the lights on the switch or router to diagnose the problem. A switch with connections and lights is shown below.

The lights on the left must light for each active connection. Unplug your PC and plug it into another port. Do the lights for that port light up?  If not then there is a physical problem with the cable, the connections (cable to LAN card or cable to Switch-router), or the LAN board (Network Interface Card – NIC) in the PC.

When the cable is unplugged Windows displays a cable unplugged message or you do not get the message just the network icon with the big red X as shown in the pictures below.


Since cables rarely fail, check the connections to make sure they are securely seated, then try a different switch-router port (if other ports are lighted it is likely not the switch-router). Finally, replace the Network Card (NIC) in the PC.

Please Click Here for Steps 4, 5 and 6.

© 2000-2013 P. D. Moulton

Link to Network Troubleshooting

© 2000-2013 P. D. Moulton
DialANerd
7146 Rivers Edge Road Columbia, MD 21044 US
Phone: 410-531-5890 Website: dialanerd.com

DialANerd Columbia, MD Network Troubleshooting and Problem Resolution Procedure - Step 3