Browser connection timing out; possibly DNS related issue

Hi, I've been having an internet connection problem.

First though, My Computer Specs:
-Gateway 510 Series
-WinXP SP1
-Pen 4 2.80Ghz
-512mb RAM
-NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200
-Adware/Spyware/Virus Protection used regularly are Ad-aware, Spyware Doctor, AVG, NOD32 and COMDO Firewall Pro
-Cable Modem: Scientific Atlanta Webstar DPC2100 Series

I am able to browse websites for the first couple of minutes I turn on my computer and the browser. Then after a x amount of time I get the "Problem loading page" error. the times varies, but usually within 10 minutes of when i turn on my computer, which is why I believe it is a DNS timing out issue.

the only way to browse the net again is to restart, but the cycle repeats and after a x amount of time it times out again. sometimes i dont have to restart my computer but close firefox and wait a coupleseconds then open it up again. but then the timing out cycle continues.

I'm sure its not Firefox as i've tried reinstalling it and this happens in IE as well.

Furthermore some programs and some games can connect to the internet like battlefield 1942, World in Conflict and instant messagers. While others can't like, Steam (Half-Life 2) and Battlefield 2. I'm guessing the programs that i cant get online with uses the DNS servers.

I've had this problem before but never fixed it and just lived with it. then my old hard drive crashed back in July and i got this new one with a clean install of windows and i didnt have this problem, til a couple weeks ago.

I'm pretty sure it aint my cable modem or net connection per se, just the DNS servers. I've disabled my firewall and it still happens. I've scanned for viruses and i dont have any. I tried my ISP tech support but they were no help. I've tried different DNS servers, using OpenDNS, but that didnt work either.

I dont know what else to do to try and fix this, any help would be appreciated. thanks in advance.

 

Let's first verify it is a DNS problem. There is a built in tool for testing DNS in Windows called nslookup. This is a command line utility. Give it a shot, when you first turn on your computer, test it with a few web sites. It will return IP addresses. After you can no longer browse the internet, test again. If you continue to get IP addresses back, and they are the same IP addresses, DNS is working. If nslookup is giving you errors, the problem is DNS related. Keep in mind big sites like Microsoft and Google have many servers. You may want to try some smaller sites that will have just one server. Just so you know the IP is not one out of a pool of valid addresses.

 

Are you running 2 resident AV applications at the same time, AVG and NOD32?
If so, that may be part of the problem. Uninstall one.
Also, you should install Service Pack 2 for security upgrades.

 

thanks for the replies, ill try the nslookup. and ill uninstall one of my AV programs. ill get back and post later if it made a difference.

 

ive also posted about my connection problem on a few other forums; so far the problem could be any one of these:

-AV/Security Programs running in the background cutting the connection (i doubt it cause in task manager none of them are running)

-Virus/Trojan or Spyware (doubt it because ive been running scans all week and ive had the HD for only 2 months)

-Bad Network Card

-Bad Modem (doubt it as ive just got this in July) but ill try running it on a different computer and operating system

im also gonna run traceroutes, pings and nslookup when the net is working and when its down to make sure it is in fact a DNS issue and not something else. and ill also try a system restore.

 

i ran the traceroutes and it works both when the browser connection is on and when its not on. the pinging also works when the connection is on and not on, with 0% packet loss. i also tried nslookup and it also works when the connection is on and not on.

however when i input the ip address in the browser when the connection is down it still cant connect to the webpage, so it might not be a DNS issue after all...

 

Hi
I'm a relative noobie and am wondering if i have a similar problem. Every now and again webpages come back with problem loading page message but my peer2peer program is still running fine.
This has been going on for a while now and like Jerry i've just been living with it cause i don't understand what it could be. I tried to open Messenger while i was unable to open the webpages and i've had two different messages. One was about the DNS (which i don't understand) and the other referred to problems with the Key ports ( i think).
I've just read the thread and was gonna run the nslookup but i don't understand it so it's a bit difficult.
Could you point me to some online resources where i might be able to get a greater understand of what could be the underlying problems?
Thanks...and all help is much appreciated

 

sounds like the same problem im having cause i can run my p2p program too. as well as most other programs that requires internet access.

DNS stands for Domain Name System, its like a "phone book" for the internet as it translates domain names (i.e. google.com) to ip addresses (i.e. 64.233.167.99). you can read more about it here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name_system

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/D/DNS.html

As for Key Ports im guessing you mean ports. which need to be opened for certain programs to access the internet when you are behind a router. read more about ports:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_port_(software)

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/p/port.html (See 2)

nslookup is a networking tool used to find a particular ip for a computer or server (ie website). to run it in windows goto the command prompt (type cmd in run or look under all programs). and type in

Code:

nslookup [I]majorgeeks.com[/I]

instead of typing in majorgeeks.com you can type in any domain name like google.com. read more about nslookup here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nslookup
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/nslookup.mspx

also the other networking tools that can be used are pinging and traceroutes.
ping tests whether a particular host is accessible across a network. traceroute is similar but its also more detailed as it shows what route is taken by packets to get across the network. both ping and traceroute are used in the command prompt like nslookup.

to use ping type in

Code:

ping [I]majorgeeks.com[/I]

same as before instead of typing in majorgeeks.com you can type in any domain name like google.com.

to use traceroute type in

Code:

tracert [I]majorgeeks.com[/I]

read more about ping:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ping
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/ping.mspx?mfr=true

read more about traceroute:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traceroute
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/tracert.mspx?mfr=true

you can try these networking tools in command prompt and like stated in the previous posts, if they all work when the browser's connection is both up and down than it might not be a DNS issue. also try typing in the ip address in your browser when the connection is down if you can load the website than it probably is a DNS issue if you cant then it isnt a DNS issue.

also you can just google any term that you are not familiar with and you'll probably find out what they mean.

 

As for my problem, like i said in the earlier post it might not be a DNS issue after all. i just tried system restore, restoring it to a point prior to having this problem and it didnt work either.

my next option is it might be the hardware, NIC or modem.

however i forgot to mention that my modem is connected via USB, so it is in fact not connected to a NIC but to the mobo through a USB port. ive tried connecting it using Ethernet but thats a whole other problem. when i do that in my local area connection under network connections, the status of it all says <invalid> (status as in ip, subnet mask, default gateway, ect). my modem was connected via ethernet at one time a while ago (talking 2003, 2004). but i changed it to usb when my comp crashed and i started getting the <invalid> thingy.

but still ill put in my spare NIC and try connecting it that way. now assuming i still dont get the <invalid>, ill see if my browser's connection doesn't time out.

 

im using my spare ethernet card now but im still getting the DNS error. at this point i dont know what else to do, theres a small chance it might be the cable modem so ill see about getting a new one from my ISP.

 

Have you tried booting into Safe Mode with Networking, see if the same thing happens?

 

no i havent. i'll try that

 

Well i finally "fixed" it. not exactly a fix but more of a trick. i installed Microsoft's .NET framework 1.1 which creates a login prompt at the login screen instead of automatically logging you in. here i just wait for about 10 minutes and after i log in there are no connection errors. even the programs that never used to work now can access the internet without a problem like BF2 and Steam.

so thanks to all who replied and tried to help me fix this problem.