Campus Network (Windows Vista, 7, 8,10) - Connectivity Troubleshooting

If a user is unable to connect to the network, first check for a valid IP address by doing the following:

• If you are not already on the Start screen, click on the Start
• Start typing Cmd while in the Start screen and click on Cmd.
  

• When the Command Prompt appears, enter ipconfig and press enter. If the machine is properly configured, ipconfig should return a valid IP address, as show below:
  

If a user is unable to connect to the network, first check for a valid IP address by doing the following:

• If you are not already on the Start screen, click on the Start
• Start typing Command Prompt while in the Start screen and click on Command Prompt:
  

• When the Command Prompt appears, enter ipconfig and press enter. If the machine is properly configured, ipconfig should return a valid IP address, as show below:
  

• Try accessing a common website, such as Google. If the page does not load, continue.
• Check the Activity statistics.
• Open the Start screen, type Control Panel and then select Control Panel.

• Under Network and Internet, click on View network status and tasks.

• This will bring up the Network and Sharing Center. In the View your active networks section, click on Ethernet, as shown below:

• If zero bytes have been received under the Activity section, the issue may be with the network adapter, ethernet cable, or the jack.

• Try pinging a common website like www.wisc.edu or www.google.com:
• Open up Command Prompt, as described in the beginning.
• In the Command Prompt, type "ping www.wisc.edu" or "ping www.google.com" and press enter. If the connection is working correctly, it should appear roughly as shown below. Otherwise, you may see an "unknown host" or "unable to resolve" error.

• If unable to ping www.wisc.edu, try typing "ping 144.92.104.243" to test whether the issue is with the DNS servers or Winsock issue. If "ping 144.92.104.243" connects without error, type the following:

netsh int ip reset resetlog.txt

• Try renewing the IP address.
• In the Command Prompt, type:

ipconfig /renew

and press enter. Does the machine come back with the same IP address as before or a different one? If the new IP address is valid, try going to a common website again.

• If the connection still isn't working despite pulling down a valid IP address, you should try commands for Windows given in Windows - Quick Fix for Networking Problems.
• If that fails, you should verify the network card is working properly by checking Device Manager.
• Open Device Manager by going to the Start screen,typing Device Manager and then clicking on Device Manager.

• Expand the Network Adapters section and confirm that the ethernet is properly installed.

• If the icon for the network adapter has a downward-pointing black arrow, it may be disabled. Right-click on the device and select enable.
  
• If the icon for the network adapter has a yellow exclamation mark, the drivers may need to be re-installed.
  

If a user is unable to connect to the network, first check for a valid IP address by doing the following:

• Click Start

• Type "command" in the search bar, as shown below, and press enter:

  

• When the command prompt appears, enter ipconfig and press enter. If the machine is properly configured, ipconfig should return a valid IP address, as shown below:

  

Generally, UW-Madison IP addresses fall within 128.x.x.x, 146.x.x.x, or 144.x.x.x. An IP address of 169.254.x.x or 192.168.x.x is a private IP address automatically assigned by Windows when it is unable to locate a DHCP server on the network.

If ipconfig returns an invalid or private IP address, the issue may be with the network connection configuration. If so, refer to Wireless UWNet - Unable to Connect for more information about properly configuring Windows to connect to the campus network. If the connection is properly configured, try the following steps:

• Try accessing a common website, such as Google. If the page does not load, continue.

• Check the Activity statistics.

• Click on Start, then select Control Panel.

  

• Under Network and Internet, click View network status and tasks.

  

• This will bring up the Network and Sharing Center. In the Connections: section, click Local Area Connection, as shown below.

  

• If zero bytes have been received under the Activity section, the issue may be with the network adapter, ethernet cable, or the jack.

  

• Try pinging a common website like www.wisc.edu or www.google.com:

  • Click Start and enter "command" in the search bar, as done previously.

  • In the command prompt, type "ping www.wisc.edu" or "ping www.google.com" and press enter. If the connection is working correctly, it should appear roughly as shown below. Otherwise, you may see an "unknown host" or "unable to resolve" error.

    

  • If unable to ping www.wisc.edu, try typing "ping 144.92.104.243" to test whether the issue is with the DNS servers or Winsock issue. If "ping 144.92.104.243" connects without error, type the following:

    netsh int ip reset resetlog.txt

• Try renewing the IP address.

  • Type "command" in the search bar and press enter, if the command prompt is not already up.
  • When the command prompt appears, type

    ipconfig /renew

    and press enter. Does the machine come back with the same IP address as before or a different one? If the new IP address is valid, try going to a common website again.

• If the connection still isn't working despite pulling down a valid IP address, you should try commands for Windows given in Windows - Quick Fix for Networking Problems.

• If that fails, you should verify the network card is working properly by checking the Device Manager.

  • Click Start and right-click on Computer. Click on Properties.

  • The System control panel will appear as below. Click on Device Manager.

    

  • Expand the Network Adapters section and confirm that the ethernet adapter is properly installed.
  • If the icon for the network adapter has a downward-pointing black arrow, it may be disabled. Right-click on the device and select enable.
  • If the icon for the network adapter has a yellow exclamation mark, the drivers may need to be reinstalled.

If a user is unable to connect to the network, first check for a valid IP address by doing the following:

• Click Start

• Type "command" in the search bar, as shown below, and press enter:

  

• When the command prompt appears, enter ipconfig and press enter. If the machine is properly configured, ipconfig should return a valid IP address, as shown below:

  

Generally, UW-Madison IP addresses fall within 128.x.x.x, 146.x.x.x, or 144.x.x.x. Campus Network (Housing) IPs fall in the range of 10.x.x.x. (See [Link for document 76064 is unavailable at this time.].)An IP address of 169.254.x.x or 192.168.x.x is a private IP address automatically assigned by Windows when it is unable to locate a DHCP server on the network.

If ipconfig returns an invalid or private IP address, the issue may be with the network connection configuration. If so, refer to Wireless UWNet - Unable to Connect for more information about properly configuring Windows to connect to the campus network. If the connection is properly configured, try the following steps:

• Try accessing a common website, such as Google. If the page does not load, continue.

• Check the Activity statistics.
  • Click on Start, right-click on Network, and select Properties.

  • This will bring up the Network and Sharing Center, as shown below

    

  • Click on Manage Network Connections, and double-click on the Local Area Connection.
  • If zero bytes have been received under the Activity section, the issue may be with the network adapter, ethernet cable, or the jack.

• Try pinging a common website like www.wisc.edu or www.google.com:

  • Click Start and enter "command" in the search bar, as done previously.

  • In the command prompt, type "ping www.wisc.edu" or "ping www.google.com" and press enter. If the connection is working correctly, it should appear roughly as shown below. Otherwise, you may see an "unknown host" or "unable to resolve" error.

    

  • If unable to ping www.wisc.edu, try typing "ping 144.92.104.243" to test whether the issue is with the DNS servers or Winsock issue. If "ping 144.92.104.243" connects without error, type the following:

    netsh int ip reset resetlog.txt

• Try renewing the IP address.

  • Type "command" in the search bar and press enter, if the command prompt is not already up.
  • When the command prompt appears, type

    ipconfig /renew

    and press enter. Does the machine come back with the same IP address as before or a different one? If the new IP address is valid, try going to a common website again.

• If the connection still isn't working despite pulling down a valid IP address, you should try commands for Vista given in Windows - Quick Fix for Networking Problems.

• If that fails, you should verify the network card is working properly by checking the Device Manager.

  • Click Start and right-click on Computer. Click on Properties.

  • The System control panel will appear as below. Click on Device Manager.

    

  • Expand the Network Adapters section and confirm that the ethernet adapter is properly installed.
  • If the icon for the network adapter has a downward-pointing black arrow, it may be disabled. Right-click on the device and select enable.
  • If the icon for the network adapter has a yellow exclamation mark, the drivers may need to be reinstalled.