Member Avatar for _ladyjane

I own a Sony Vaio VGN-N150G, and I have had this problem for about a week now. I can use Mozilla Firefox without a problem, but I cannot use any messaging services such as AIM. When I try configuring, it says it was unable to connect. When I try using Windows Live Messenger, it says that there is something wrong with my default gateway. In other words, I think it's telling me that it can't detect my internect connection. I can surf the web no problem on Mozilla Firefox...but for some reason any of those other programs have a difficulty. Not only messaging programs but Norton 360 freezes up when I attempt to clean up my computer using the internet connection. It's really bizarre, and it happens anywhere I am on campus (I'm a college student) and it happens when I'm at home, too. Therefore, no matter which wireless internet I am connected to, I can't use any programs that deal with the internet. I've tried what seems like everything, and I can't figure it out.

I have been searching the web for an answer, and I saw something about using IPCONFIG/ALL in the Run..program thing. So, I'm going to copy and paste my results to hopefully make this easier, because I assume you're going to ask me for that.

Microsoft Windows XP [Version 5.1.2600]
(C) Copyright 1985-2001 Microsoft Corp.

C:\Documents and Settings\Nicole Dix>IPCONFIG/ALL

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : VALUED-11599CE5
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Unknown
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : Yes
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : Yes
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : nmu.edu

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Marvell Yukon 88E8036 PCI-E Fast Eth
ernet Controller
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-13-A9-4C-D2-E2

Ethernet adapter Wireless Network Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : nmu.edu
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Networ
k Connection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-18-DE-75-F2-31
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . :
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . :
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . :
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . :

Primary WINS Server . . . . . . . :
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Thursday, March 20, 2008 6:23:35 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Thursday, March 20, 2008 6:33:35 PM


Any help would be GREATLY appreciated.
Thanks so much.

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by Michael York

Dani AI

Generated

The pattern here — Firefox works but AIM, MSN and Norton network features fail both on campus and at home — points to a client-side filter or configuration problem rather than pure network outage. Because Firefox can be set to use its own connection model while other apps use Windows system settings or the Winsock stack, common causes are a misconfigured system proxy, a local firewall/antivirus blocking non-HTTP ports, or a corrupted Winsock/TCP-IP stack. This is consistent with 's symptom set and complements 's Norton-related advice.

Check Windows' system proxy first. Many IM and system services rely on the Internet Explorer/WinINET proxy settings while Firefox can bypass them. In Internet Options -> Connections -> LAN Settings, clear any manual proxy entries (and test with Auto Detect off). Then compare Firefox's Connection Settings to confirm Firefox is not using the same proxy that system apps are.

Next, isolate the security suite. Norton 360 can block outbound ports or interfere with the network stack and can also be damaged by malware. Briefly stop/disable Norton 360 (or exit it) and test an IM login. If messaging works with Norton disabled, create explicit allow rules for the IM executables or repair/reinstall Norton. Take care: disabling firewall protection temporarily exposes the machine.

If proxy and firewall checks do not fix it, reset the network stack (this often fixes broken sockets/LSPs left by malware). From an elevated command prompt run:

netsh winsock reset
netsh int ip reset

Reboot after running those commands.

If problems persist: update/reinstall the wireless driver, try an alternate IM client, and run a thorough malware scan in Safe Mode (as recommended). Also remember IMs use dedicated ports (AIM commonly 5190, MSN Messenger 1863), which can be blocked by network firewalls on some campuses — but because this happens at home too, focus on local proxy/firewall/winsock fixes first.

Member Avatar for Michael York

Hi ladyjane,

This is Mike from the Norton authorized Support team responding to your post. I can assist you with the Norton 360 issue you are experiencing.

First, can you please let me know what version of Norton 360 you are using?

Regardless of the version, you mention that Norton 360 "freezes" when you try to scan. This could indicate that your system has an infection.

Please open Norton 360 and click on "Run LiveUpdate." This will ensure that you have the latest definition and program file updates applied to your installation of Norton 360. After you have run LiveUpdate and it notifies you that the updates have been applied, please restart your computer in Windows Safe Mode and then run a Full System Scan.

Please try this process and let me know if you are notified of any infections, etc.

Thank you,
Mike

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