Over the last week or so I have been unable to access the internet other than
the sign in pages for my accounts with Amazon and Newegg. All other attempts
at accessing web pages is met with an error message that the network has
timed out while trying to establish a connection. This occurs with both the
latest version of Mozilla Firefox and IE8. I ran a network diagnostics with
IE8 and was informed that I had a possible firewall problem with ports 80,
433 and 21. I checked those via the Windows firewall and the firewall
provided by the Trend Micro Systems anti-virus program that I use. All the
ports are fine and functioning normally (TCP, allowed). I ran a full system
scan for viruses, malware, spryware and adware, including MS' update malware
detection and removal tool -- no issues and no solution to the problem. I
use System Mechanic Pro for general system monitoring, but have opted out of
using the registry repair tools, other than registry back up, on the advice
of users more knowlegable than myself. System Mechanic has detected no
issues with the system. I tried System Restore for a quick fix, but XP
informed me that it was unable to restore the computer to ANY of the dates I
attempted. I ensure that System Restore was running on the C drive via both
Control Panel and Component services. I even turned off the feature,
rebooted the system and restarted the process all to no avail. I am running
XP Pro SP3 and I have ruled out all possibilites that I can think -- I have
internet access with my laptop, which is virtually a mirror, in terms of
system settings as my problematic desktop. Any ideas would be most
appreciated!

I ran a full system scan for viruses, malware, spryware and
> adware, including MS' update malware detection and removal tool -- no
> issues and no solution to the problem.

That does NOT mean the machine is 100% hijackware-free.

Unexplained computer behavior may be caused by deceptive software
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/827315

Run a /thorough/ check for hijackware, including posting the requested logs
in an appropriate forum.

Checking for/Help with Hijackware
http://aumha.net/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=4075
http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm
http://inetexplorer.mvps.org/data/prevention.htm
http://inetexplorer.mvps.org/tshoot.html
http://www.mvps.org/sramesh2k/Malware_Defence.htm
http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/...moving_Malware

**Chances are you will need to seek expert assistance in
http://spywarehammer.com/simplemachi...php?board=10.0,
http://www.spywarewarrior.com/viewforum.php?f=5,
http://www.dslreports.com/forum/cleanup,
http://www.bluetack.co.uk/forums/index.php,
http://aumha.net/viewforum.php?f=30 or other appropriate forums as well.**

If these procedures look too complex - and there is no shame in admitting
this isn't your cup of tea - take the machine to a local, reputable and
independent (i.e., not BigBoxStoreUSA or Geek Squad) computer repair shop.

--
~Robear Dyer (PA Bear)
MS MVP-IE, Mail, Security, Windows Client - since 2002
www.banthecheck.com


kevpken wrote:
> Over the last week or so I have been unable to access the internet other
> than the sign in pages for my accounts with Amazon and Newegg. All other
> attempts at accessing web pages is met with an error message that the
> network has timed out while trying to establish a connection. This occurs
> with both the latest version of Mozilla Firefox and IE8. I ran a network
> diagnostics with IE8 and was informed that I had a possible firewall
> problem with ports 80, 433 and 21. I checked those via the Windows
> firewall and the firewall provided by the Trend Micro Systems anti-virus
> program that I use. All the ports are fine and functioning normally (TCP,
> allowed). I ran a full system scan for viruses, malware, spryware and
> adware, including MS' update malware detection and removal tool -- no
> issues and no solution to the problem. I use System Mechanic Pro for
> general system monitoring, but have opted out of using the registry repair
> tools, other than registry back up, on the advice of users more
> knowlegable
> than myself. System Mechanic has detected no issues with the system. I
> tried System Restore for a quick fix, but XP informed me that it was
> unable
> to restore the computer to ANY of the dates I attempted. I ensure that
> System Restore was running on the C drive via both Control Panel and
> Component services. I even turned off the feature, rebooted the system
> and
> restarted the process all to no avail. I am running XP Pro SP3 and I have
> ruled out all possibilites that I can think -- I have internet access with
> my laptop, which is virtually a mirror, in terms of system settings as my
> problematic desktop. Any ideas would be most appreciated!

Thanks so much for your advice. I will see what I can do with the links
you've posted. I appreciate your timely response!


"PA Bear [MS MVP]" wrote:

> I ran a full system scan for viruses, malware, spryware and
> > adware, including MS' update malware detection and removal tool -- no
> > issues and no solution to the problem.
>
> That does NOT mean the machine is 100% hijackware-free.
>
> Unexplained computer behavior may be caused by deceptive software
> http://support.microsoft.com/kb/827315
>
> Run a /thorough/ check for hijackware, including posting the requested logs
> in an appropriate forum.
>
> Checking for/Help with Hijackware
> http://aumha.net/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=4075
> http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm
> http://inetexplorer.mvps.org/data/prevention.htm
> http://inetexplorer.mvps.org/tshoot.html
> http://www.mvps.org/sramesh2k/Malware_Defence.htm
> http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/...moving_Malware
>
> **Chances are you will need to seek expert assistance in
> http://spywarehammer.com/simplemachi...php?board=10.0,
> http://www.spywarewarrior.com/viewforum.php?f=5,
> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/cleanup,
> http://www.bluetack.co.uk/forums/index.php,
> http://aumha.net/viewforum.php?f=30 or other appropriate forums as well.**
>
> If these procedures look too complex - and there is no shame in admitting
> this isn't your cup of tea - take the machine to a local, reputable and
> independent (i.e., not BigBoxStoreUSA or Geek Squad) computer repair shop.
>
> --
> ~Robear Dyer (PA Bear)
> MS MVP-IE, Mail, Security, Windows Client - since 2002
> www.banthecheck.com
>
>
> kevpken wrote:
> > Over the last week or so I have been unable to access the internet other
> > than the sign in pages for my accounts with Amazon and Newegg. All other
> > attempts at accessing web pages is met with an error message that the
> > network has timed out while trying to establish a connection. This occurs
> > with both the latest version of Mozilla Firefox and IE8. I ran a network
> > diagnostics with IE8 and was informed that I had a possible firewall
> > problem with ports 80, 433 and 21. I checked those via the Windows
> > firewall and the firewall provided by the Trend Micro Systems anti-virus
> > program that I use. All the ports are fine and functioning normally (TCP,
> > allowed). I ran a full system scan for viruses, malware, spryware and
> > adware, including MS' update malware detection and removal tool -- no
> > issues and no solution to the problem. I use System Mechanic Pro for
> > general system monitoring, but have opted out of using the registry repair
> > tools, other than registry back up, on the advice of users more
> > knowlegable
> > than myself. System Mechanic has detected no issues with the system. I
> > tried System Restore for a quick fix, but XP informed me that it was
> > unable
> > to restore the computer to ANY of the dates I attempted. I ensure that
> > System Restore was running on the C drive via both Control Panel and
> > Component services. I even turned off the feature, rebooted the system
> > and
> > restarted the process all to no avail. I am running XP Pro SP3 and I have
> > ruled out all possibilites that I can think -- I have internet access with
> > my laptop, which is virtually a mirror, in terms of system settings as my
> > problematic desktop. Any ideas would be most appreciated!
>
>

"kevpken" wrote:

> Over the last week or so I have been unable to access the internet other than
> the sign in pages for my accounts with Amazon and Newegg. All other attempts
> at accessing web pages is met with an error message that the network has
> timed out while trying to establish a connection. This occurs with both the
> latest version of Mozilla Firefox and IE8. I ran a network diagnostics with
> IE8 and was informed that I had a possible firewall problem with ports 80,
> 433 and 21. I checked those via the Windows firewall and the firewall
> provided by the Trend Micro Systems anti-virus program that I use. All the
> ports are fine and functioning normally (TCP, allowed). I ran a full system
> scan for viruses, malware, spryware and adware, including MS' update malware
> detection and removal tool -- no issues and no solution to the problem. I
> use System Mechanic Pro for general system monitoring, but have opted out of
> using the registry repair tools, other than registry back up, on the advice
> of users more knowlegable than myself. System Mechanic has detected no
> issues with the system. I tried System Restore for a quick fix, but XP
> informed me that it was unable to restore the computer to ANY of the dates I
> attempted. I ensure that System Restore was running on the C drive via both
> Control Panel and Component services. I even turned off the feature,
> rebooted the system and restarted the process all to no avail. I am running
> XP Pro SP3 and I have ruled out all possibilites that I can think -- I have
> internet access with my laptop, which is virtually a mirror, in terms of
> system settings as my problematic desktop. Any ideas would be most
> appreciated!


#-Click start >> Control Panel >> Double Click Network and Internet
Connections >> Double click Internet Options, on the IE Properties window
you will see these Options:
General | Security | Privacy | Content | Connections | Programs
| Advanced .

Click on General Tab (1st Tab on the left) and you will see a Button called
[ Clear History ..] click on it to clear your History caches, then click on
[Delete Files..] to delete Internet Files created over the time, click on [
Delete Cookies...] to delete your cookies left by visiting websites.

- Click on Connections tab then click LAN Settings Button, there make sure
nothing checked.

-Then try to Disable the Add-Ons on your Browser somehow installed on your
browser, On how to disable the Add-ons follow this:
Click on Programs Tab and then click the Manage Add-Ons Button there Disable
the None/Not Verified Plug-ins/Add-ons ( you need to Renable them one-by-one
later and see which is the culprit .
How to manage Add-Ons:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/883256

Click on Advanced Tab and scroll down under the browsing option and uncheck
this box:
[&] Browsing
[ ] Enable Third-Party browser extensions (Req Rest)

&] HTTP 1.1 Settings
[ ] Use HTTP 1.1 ,= Make sure this checked
[ ] Use HTTP 1.1 through proxy connections
If you using proxy check the proxy one if not check only the first one.

Then under Security Option:
[&] Security
[ ] Use SSL 2.0
[ ] Use SSL 3.0
[ ] Use STL 1.0

and click Apply then [OK] to close the IE properties

Scan for malware from here:
SuperAntispyware - Free
http://www.superantispyware.com/supe...freevspro.html
http://www.malwarebytes.org/rr-update/rr-free-setup.exe
http://onecare.live.com/site/en-gb/d....htm?s_cid=sah

Open Run command type in:
ipconfig /flushdns click [OK]
ipconfig /renew click [OK]
netsh winsock reset click [OK]
Reboot your machine and see if you can access any website/link easily and
without the cannot connect error message.
or this tool (winsock-Fix) from here:
http://www.nasstec.co.uk/tools.html

How to troubleshoot network connectivity problems in Internet Explorer
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/936211


HTH,
nass
--
http://www.nasstec.co.uk

Why don't you try another anti-virus such as bitdefender? I've being trying it and I think that is very useful anytime and anywhere you navigate on the internet. It protects you from viruses, spyware, rootkits, hackers, online fraud, identity theft and all other Internet threats. You won't be disappointed!