Network Cable Unplugged Error

Question

Vista64 Home Premium - NEW out of the box dell laptop

Cables checked, swopped out etc - all cables work with other routers and other PCs - not a cable problem

DLINK ASDL Wifi Router connects happily by cable to other PCs inc Linux etc! Not a router problem - in fact router cable port green light never lights up for the Vista64 Home Premium meaning (I think) that the other end in the laptop is not even recognised as being plugged into anything. It is of course.

Wifi works happily NEW out of the box - so internet connection exists and works well.

CA Internet Security suite installed - works well - it sees the network card but is unable to assign it to any 'zone' effectively showing it as inactive. Wifi is fine.

Cabled connection has NEVER worked. Laptop now 10 days old!

Absolutely at a loss on this one - before I spend a fortune on a Dell premium phone number (and I very much doubt its a network card/port/RJ45 issue at the laptop end) could anyone point me to anything in Vista64 Home Premium which might be the problem. I very very strongly suspect a Vista64 problem.

I have read a number of Microsoft KBs and none seem strictly to apply or aid in diagnosis. Vista64's own diagnosis always comes back and says a "network cable is unplugged" - BUT IT ISNT!!

Thanks - Ian

Answer 1

Thanks for the reply - its largely what I've done already. The network adapter is listed and is 'functional' and the fact that the CA software recognises it is also indicative of that. I will however go through the disable / enable cycle and if necessary reset the TCP/IP stack.

I will get back to you when I've done all that - but it did occur to me that there might just be a 'rogue' issue with the DLINK ADSL Router ports so I'm also firstly going to test the network adapter and new drop cable on a completely different router (USRobotics DSL router) to see if can pick up a DHCP. If the problem then persists, I'll know its internal to the laptop and will instigate your suggestions.

Ian M aka kewfriend

Answer 2

Hi,

Welcome to Windows Vista Answers community.

It sounds like your Network adater is not working or you do not have the right driver for your Network Adapter.

For more information refer this link.

First, let us check if the Network Adapter is enabled or not.

To enable the adapter:

1. Open Network Connections by clicking the Start button  , clicking Control Panel, clicking Network and Internet, clicking Network and Sharing Center, and then clicking Manage network connections.
2. Right-click the network adapter icon, and then click Enable.   If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.

Reset the adapter:

1. Open Network Connections by clicking the Start button  , clicking Control Panel, clicking Network and Internet, clicking Network and Sharing Center, and then clicking Manage network connections.
2. Right-click the network adapter icon, and then click Disable.   If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
3. Right-click the adapter icon again, and then click Enable.   If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.

The adapter is now reset. Try connecting to the network again, or run Network Diagnostics to verify that your network adapter is now working correctly.

Open Network Diagnostics by right-clicking the network icon in the notification area, and then clicking Diagnose and repair.

If you reset your network adapter and you still can't connect to a network, you might need to update the adapter driver. (Updating the driver can solve the problem of missing or failed drivers, as well as outdated ones.) To update your network adapter driver, follow these steps:

1. Open Device Manager by clicking the Start button  , clicking Control Panel, clicking System and Maintenance, and then clicking Device Manager.   If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
2. Double-click Network Adapters, right-click your adapter, and then click Properties.
3. Click the Driver tab, and then click Update Driver.

If Windows cannot find the driver on your computer and you do not have a connection to the Internet, you might need to contact the network adapter manufacturer or your computer manufacturer to get the driver. Check the information that came with your network adapter or your computer to see if you have a disc that contains the drivers.

For more information refer this link:

http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/Windows/en-us/help/555cea69-145e-4ab7-a226-76d8c0ee16d31033.mspx

How to reset Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/299357

How to determine and to recover from Winsock2 corruption in Windows Server 2003, in Windows XP, and in Windows Vista

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/811259

Regards,

Amritha- Microsoft Support.