Troubleshooting Internet Connection Problems

The purpose of this section is to give general tips on troubleshooting your Internet Connection
While there are many possible configurations, I'll try and cover the most common ones.
Making Sure You Have Correct IP Information
1.	Make sure you have the correct IP scheme for your network. This would include the: IP Address Subnet Mask Default Gateway DNS Servers
2.	There are a few ways you can see what IP addresses are being assigned. But generally for:Win9x - Start / Run / command Windows2000/XP/Vista - Start / Run / cmd Windows7 - Start / CMD The run IPCONFIG /ALL. A sample where a router is used is in the following graphic.
3.	IP Address: If you have a router, common examples would be: 192.168.0.x, 192.168.1.x or 10.0.0.x If you are directly connect to your DSL or Cable Modem, you should have an IP address that would correspond to something from your ISP. What you don't want to have is something like 169.254.x.x. This means you are not getting and IP address assigned and needs to be resolved first.
4.	Subnet Mask: Also make sure you have the correct Subnet Mask. Most commonly this would be 255.255.255.0 but might vary if you are not using a router.
5.	Default Gateway: Make sure you have the correct Default Gateway IP address. With a router, this is typically the IP address of your router.
6.	DNS Servers: Make sure you have the correct DNS Servers. Sometimes this is the IP address of your router, so it would be the same as the Gateway IP. Sometimes (as in this example), it is the actual DNS servers used by the ISP.
7.	Possible causes for not getting an IP address assigned are:1. Defective cable, network card or port on the router. Make sure you are using all known working components. 2. Your router is not configured for DHCP (which would automatically be assigning IP addresses). But you need to have this working before proceeding.