# Windows XP can't connect to DHCP server



## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

My Windows xp computer can't connect to the DHCP server correctly and thus can't connect to the internet. It is connected through an Ethernet cable to a wireless router. All other computers on the same network connect fine to the router, both wired and wireless.

This all started after I left my computer alone for a few hours and came back with it not coming out of idle. After shutting it off and turning it back on, it would not connect to the DHCP server.

It assigned me the autoconfig address 169.254.189.73 because it couldn't connect to the DHCP server. I even tried a static IP but even that wouldn't fix it. I have tried the same ethernet cable in another computer and it worked fine so I know that it is because of my computer.

I have tried renewing and releasing the connection using ipconfig in the command prompt but that did nothing. The settings are all the same as the other computers running through the same router. I have tried shutting down all the other computers and reconnecting the trouble one but again still nothing.

The last thing I'm not sure about is the network adapter driver. I have reinstalled it but I'm not sure if the driver is correct. I have an NVIDEA nforce 10/100 Mbps Ethernet adapter. I attempted to reinstall but I'm not sure I selected the correct generation when I downloaded the driver installer. My computer says nothing about the generation of the adapter so I just chose the newest generation. My adapter is integrated in the motherboard.

Any help is appreciated.


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## joeten (Dec 4, 2008)

Moved to networking for further help


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## Shekka (Jan 6, 2012)

Thanks joeten. 

27duuude,

What is the model of the motherboard? If its a prebuilt what is the make and model of the computer. 

Now when you say that you tried a static ip address did you make sure to enter in the correct ip address (one that is not in the dhcp range) as well as the correct gateway and dns?


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## Shekka (Jan 6, 2012)

Also, can you post a ipconfig /all from a good working computer so we can see the network info?


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

The computer is a Compaq CQ5112F. I'm not sure about what IP addresses are within the DHCP servers range but I have tried 192.168.1.64 and .99. The default gateway and the DNS server were the IP of the router which, acording to the other computers working properly, was 192.168.1.254. I was planning on upgrading to windows 7 soon anyway so I was also wondering if that would fix this problem or if I would have the same problem.


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## Wand3r3r (Sep 17, 2010)

do lights light up at each end when you plug the cable in?


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

Here's an ipconfig /all of my brothers laptop with a wireless connection:

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix: Home
Description: Atheros AR5007 802.11b/g WiFi Adapter
Physical address: 00-24-2B-C5-C5-CF
Dhcp Enabled: Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled: Yes
IP Address: 192.168.1.68
Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway: 192.168.1.254
DHCP Server:192.168.1.254
DNS Servers: 192.168.1.254


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

Wand3r3r said:


> do lights light up at each end when you plug the cable in?


Yes the cable is fine. I tested it on another computer and it connected the the internet fine.


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## Shekka (Jan 6, 2012)

What Wand3r3r is asking is, when you plug the cable into your system do the light on the router and or the computer (on the NIC card) light up. If so what color?


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

On my computer there are 2 lights. A green light next to where the ethernet plugs in that is constant and an orange on that blinks almost randomly. On the router there is one green light for each of the ethernet outputs and that is blinking in the same fashion as the orange light on my computer. So yes the lights are working properly.


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## Shekka (Jan 6, 2012)

Try running the MS Fixit tool for windows xp, and see if that helps.


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

Shekka said:


> Try running the MS Fixit tool for windows xp, and see if that helps.


Didn't fix it. If I cannot fix this then I'll just wait to upgrade to windows 7. It seems like I've tried everything.


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## Shekka (Jan 6, 2012)

Can you post the entire ipconfig /all from your system as is and unedited.


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

Here's my current Ipconfig /all. I don't have the static Ip on right now.

```
Windows IP Configuration

        Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : willie-3973721f
        Primary Dns Suffix  . . . . . . . :
        Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Unknown
        IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : Yes
        WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : Yes

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection 3:
        Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
        Description . . . . . . . . . . . : NVIDIA nForce 10/100 Mbps Ethernet
        Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-26-18-4B-68-BF
        Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
        Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
        Autoconfiguration IP Address. . . : 169.254.189.73
        Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.0.0
        Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 

Ethernet adapter VirtualBox Host-Only Network:
        Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
        Description . . . . . . . . . . . : VirtualBox Host-Only Ethernet Adapter
        Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 08-00-27-00-60-3A
        Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
        Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
        Autoconfiguration IP Address. . . : 169.254.179.12
        Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.0.0
        Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 

Ethernet adapter Hamachi:
        Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
        Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Hamachi Network Interface
        Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 7A-79-05-B4-76-74
        Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes 
        Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
        IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 5.180.118.116
        Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.0.0.0
        Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
        DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 5.0.0.1
        Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Tuesday, April 17, 2012 7:07:33 PM
        Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Wednesday, April 17, 2013 7:07:33 PM
```


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## Shekka (Jan 6, 2012)

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : willie-3973721f
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Unknown
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : Yes
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : Yes

You have both wins and ip routing enabled.

Take out the wins settings.
Are you using Internet connection sharing (ICS)? If not please disable it.

How to Disable Internet Connection Sharing on a Windows Computer


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

I have no idea how to disable WINS Proxy and the ICS is already off.


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## Shekka (Jan 6, 2012)

Follow these steps to disable wins proxy.
Start - Run - Regedit

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\NetBT\Parameters\EnableProxy

make sure the value is set to "0".

That should disable Wins proxy.

However, your Ipconfig shows that IP routing is also enabled. Follow these steps to disable that.

Start - Run - Regedit

_HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip \Parameters 
_subkey : "IPEnableRouter" entry , set to "0"


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

Ok so I was able to disable wins proxy but the value for IPEnableRouter was already 0. This still hasn't fixed it. I think it might be a corrupted file because right before this started happening, I forced a my computer to shutdown but I have no idea how what file(s) might be corrupted.


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## Shekka (Jan 6, 2012)

We still have a few more things that we can try yet. :grin: 
Can you post a new ipconfig /all for review?

Also, I just noticed that you have a himachi adapter installed. Are you using something like logmein vpn?

Can you please disable the himachi adapter for now.

Thanks


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

Ok so after starting up my computer today, the wins proxy was reenabled for some reason. And on another odd note, after saving the copied contents of ipconfig /all to a flash drive, I disconnected the flash drive to put it in a different computer to post it here, a warning bubble popped up that said this:

*Windows - Delayed Write Failed*
Windows was unable to save all the data for the file G:. The data has been lost. This error may be caused by a failure of your computer hardware or network connection. Please try to save this file elsewhere.

The file had saved fine. Not sure if it is relevant but the network connection thing caught my eye. Anyway heres the new ipconfig /all with hamachi disabled and wins proxy disabled again:

```
Windows IP Configuration
        Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : willie-3973721f
        Primary Dns Suffix  . . . . . . . : 
        Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Unknown
        IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : Yes
        WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection 3:
        Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
        Description . . . . . . . . . . . : NVIDIA nForce 10/100 Mbps Ethernet
        Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-26-18-4B-68-BF
        Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
        Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
        Autoconfiguration IP Address. . . : 169.254.189.73
        Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.0.0
        Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 

Ethernet adapter VirtualBox Host-Only Network:
        Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . : 
        Description . . . . . . . . . . . : VirtualBox Host-Only Ethernet Adapter
        Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 08-00-27-00-60-3A
        Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
        Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
        Autoconfiguration IP Address. . . : 169.254.179.12
        Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.0.0
        Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
```


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## Shekka (Jan 6, 2012)

The delayed write fail can occur if you don't use the safely disconnect removable drive option. 

Did you disable the himachi VPN adapter or just not post that part in the ipconfig? 

Are you using VPN software?


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## rgsalinger (May 18, 2009)

Given that this seems to be a difficult problem, I had a couple of thoughts:

1. Perform a complete network reset - turn off modem, router and all pc's. Then sequentially turn back on the modem, router and pc letting the modem and router settle into normal operating mode (couple of minutes for the modem until all the lights are on, about a minute for the router). Then reboot the PC and see if your good. 

2.The computer you have, according to HP, doesn't use an Nvidia ethernet NIC at all. Rather it uses a Realtek RTL8201N built into the motherboard. So, I'm wondering if you may have somehow gotten the wrong driver installed or maybe you are using something other than the MB nic - is that possible?

3. Make sure that the router is set to automatically detect the speed of the connection and isn't set to gigabit speeds. 

4. Check with whoever administers your router to make certain that they didn't change anything recently.

Good luck.


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

I have uninstalled Hamachi because I never use it any more so now the VPN is disabled and was in the ipconfig /all. As for the NIC I have been using the same driver for the past 3 months and the device manager says that its an NVIDIA nForce 10/100. I have tried a total network reboot and it still wasn't fixed. I'm going to be upgrading to windows 7 in a few days whether or not this gets fixed by then, and I would like to know if the upgrade will get rid of the problem or if it will persist even after an upgrade.


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

If you look at the motherboard specs on the site, under chipset it says:

Chipset: NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430

I'll try reinstalling the driver for the nforce 430. I had accidentally installed the generation 9 driver for the nforce.


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## rgsalinger (May 18, 2009)

It also indicates that the NIC uses the realtek, so I'm a bit puzzled about why it would use the Nforce drivers and a realtek nic. I'd certainly find the correct driver for nForce - whatever the manufacturer has in this case. I'll do some more research on chipsets. Try the other ideas tool.


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## 27duuude (Jun 22, 2009)

Ok so after a few driver reinstalls and a few reboots, I found the root of the problem. When my computer turns on with the ethernet cable plugged in, it won't work correctly. I just turned on my computer with the ethernet cable unplugged, then plugged it in after it started up, everything is now working properly. I had a similar issue with my ipod plugged in, except in that case, the computer wouldn't make it past the OEM manufacturer logo screen. I think that both these problems came from a forced shutdown. Either way, problem solved.


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