Cannot open 99.99% of web pages

I am dealing with a computer at a group home. When I open explorer it gives me the no connection error. It cannot open 99.99% webpages but it does have internet access; I can ping external servers, and I can open the webpage that is used for employees to clock in and out but that is the only page I have found to work.

When I dial into our main server with a VPN it suddenly gains the ability to open webpages.

Note: This is the case wether "use default gateway on remote network" is checked or uncheked.

Note: the firewall is off

How can a computer have the internet but not be able to use the web?

 

Upon further experimentation it seems that if I open web pages when the VPN is active and then disconnect from the VPN I can open those pages, but absolutly no others.

This problem makes no sense!

 

Okay, I figured it out, no thanks to you guys, . Seems some idiot had gone into internet options and set it to only use a proxy server.

 

We appreciate you coming back and posting the resolution even if no one "helped" you. Thanks.