Ubuntu

unusual internet/network problem

Asked by Ben Sykes

Hi, just tried my first install which went well apart from using the internet. I've been fiddling around for about a day or so and havn't got anywhere so I think the problem might be above me. The problem is that, while seemingly being able to connect to my wired network I cant get onto the internet. This problem is not mirrored on other windows pc's in the house or when using a different linux distro (as I'm writing this on).
What strikes me as unusual in this case is that sometimes it appears as I am connected to the internet (e.g. I can ping google's ip in the terminal) yet I still cant get web pages. I'll try to explain the steps I've gone through so far and provide as much info as I can.
-I can ping 192.168.1.1 (my routers setting page) fine. My router is a safecom SWAMR-54125.
-I can ping 66.249.93.147 (google's ip) fine, along with other web pages ip's.
-If I type www.google.com into firefox I get connection timed out message
-if I type 66.249.93.147 into firefox I get google's home page. I can partially navigate through google's page. For example, if I search xubuntu in the google page I get results but I if I click to go onto the xubuntu page it times out the same as if I'd written the url into the bar.
-I've played with the network settings and had no differing results. I get the same results when in roaming mode, in dhcp and with a static IP put in. I've also gone through the terminal network set up procedure and still the same results.
-I've tried with a different network card and also through USB. Both gave the same problem.
-At this moment in time I cannot access the packages from the package manager however strangely it did this at one point last night (the settings were as they are now). During the time I could download packages I installed some alternative browsers and again got the same results. I tried the package manager again and it wouldn't connect to the site to download them. (i.e. I only managed to succesfully connect once.) N.B. when this happened xubuntu was installed on the HD, subsequent tests have been from the live CD.

I had a read through some of the other posts and tried everything I'd seen there to no avail.
I don't have anyway of saving files when I'm live booting ubuntu so havn't got any readouts to paste but if you need anything else then I'd be happy to write out the whole readout on paper and post it here.
I'm using the latest download (with kernal 2.6.22-14-generic)

I would really appreciate any help as this problem's the only things stopping me from converting to xubuntu.

Thanks,
Ben

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Allen Chemist
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Ivan Lautaro Lemos (ivancete) said : 		#1

The resolvconf package provides a framework for dynamic management of information about available nameservers. It solves the long standing problem of how to maintain dynamic lists of nameservers for the resolver and DNS caches to use. Resolvconf sets itself up as the intermediary between programs that control network interfaces and supply nameserver information, and applications that need nameserver information.

resolvconf is designed to work without any manual configuration needing to be done. However, the package is quite new and may require some manual intervention to get it to work properly. This is certainly true if you have ever customized packages so that they update /etc/resolv.conf: you will need to disable your customizations. See /usr/share/doc/resolvconf/README.gz for details.

of: http://www.debian.org/doc/manuals/reference/ch-gateway.en.html#s-dns-resolvconf

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Ben Sykes (bensykes55) said : 		#2

Thankyou for your reply but that went completly over my head. I'm not sure how rosolvconf would solve the problem?

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marcobra (Marco Braida) (marcobra) said : 		#3

Your issue seems like this solved question: https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/3498

Hope this helps

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Ben Sykes (bensykes55) said : 		#4

Thankyou very much for directing me to that post, the problems encountered there seem to mirror my circumstances. Hopefully this will sort it.

Thankyou

Ben

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Ben Sykes (bensykes55) said : 		#5

Hi again, very happy to be writting this from ubuntu. I changed the IP adresses in the DNS tab of network settings and it seemed to do the trick.
There is however a problem in that after about 15 minutes the IP automatically changes back to the one that was there before (my routers IP). I tried saving the network configuration using the button at the top of the screen but it still changes back automatically after that period of time. The old settings are there from the drop down menu for me to change back to after it has changed, without having to type them in but I can't keep doing that all the time. Is there any way to make the network settings stay as they are or does anyone have any ideas why it keeps changing back?

Thankyou for your previous help again, and any further help with this would be greatly appreciated. I'm now definately an ubuntu convert.

Ben

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Best Allen Chemist (alchemist) said : 		#6

This is more of a workaround than a solution, but what if you disable DHCP altogether? This way, linux wouldn't request an IP/subnet/gateway/DNS from the router, and you would specify it once. Just be careful to choose one that your router won't assign (mine assigns 192.168.1.101 -> 192.168.1.149 ...but i've never had 50 people connected)

Click Settings -> Administration -> Network

Highlight your ethernet connection (or wireless if you are connecting via wireless), and choose Properties

Disable roaming mode, choose "Static IP address" in the dropdown box, and give it an IP address that you are not using (probably these will work:)
IP Address: 192.168.1.10
Subnet: 255.255.255.0
Gateway: 192.168.1.1

and hit OK.

Then hop over to the DNS tab (where you have been changing it all along), and change it hopefully one last time.

You may also want to log in to your router's configuration page, and make sure everything is setup in there correctly. My guess is there is something wrong with your router's DNS server settings in the router configuration, and it's passing this bad info to your computers attached to it. As to why windows works, and linux gets confused...nooo idea :)

HTH
-Allen

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Ben Sykes (bensykes55) said : 		#7

Thanks very much Allen, I'll try this out just now and hopefully it'll get going.

Ben

P.S. It just seems to be Debian based linux systems that work like this, other linux distros don't appear to have a problem. Strange ay. :)

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Ben Sykes (bensykes55) said : 		#8

It is connecting now using the Static IP, it prefered 192.168.1.9 to 192.168.1.9 but I'm so happy it's working, thanks a lot. Hopefully it will save these settings now.

Ben

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Ben Sykes (bensykes55) said : 		#9

Thanks Allen Chemist, that solved my question.