Internet disconnects & system / browser locks up

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StymiedMike

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Sep 25, 2016
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I’m using Windows 7 and Firefox on a desktop using Ethernet to a Comcast modem/router.

Internet is working all day & then stops. Rebooting the PC usually gets it going but I have to do this several times daily. My other wired PC works OK & so do wireless devices.

This problem starting happening after I tried a USB wireless adapter & installed its driver & 3 other Cisco programs that installed along with the driver. All this has since been uninstalled.

When I lose the internet, Firefox stops working & just hangs there. I try to end Firefox in Task Manager but there is always once instance that cannot be ended.

I tried to restore Windows to an earlier date several times but always get the message it was not successful.

I’ve run “sfc /scannow” and Malwarebytes and no problems are found.

I tried to use the command “taskkill /im /firefox.exe /f” in order to stop Firefox but get the message “The process ‘/firefox.exe’ not found”. Yet Task Manager shows Firefox because I cannot end it.

One time I looked in Control Panel at the Network Connection and the Local Area Connection was stuck on "identifying".

Any help & suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
 
I'm on a wireless device right now.
Internet was working on the desktop PC when I sent the previous message but not now. I try to access a website & a message says it can't be found.

I try to look at the Network & Sharing Center but get stuck on blank white page with a spinning circle and can't close out of it.

Task Manager shows 6 Firefox processes running. I end the largest one & they all disappear. But I still can't close out of the Network & Sharing window, but now the spinning circle is gone.

I can open Firefox again & it overlays the Network & Sharing window and it still has trouble finding a website & times out.

Any suggestions?
 
The monitor went to sleep & said no signal, & the PC would not respond to anything to wake up. Since Windows was not available to do a proper restart I had to turn off the power & restart.
 
As I think back it seems FF does not work when the PC wakes up from sleep mode. I can open FF but it will not access any website. Maybe something in the network controller or similar is not waking up when the PC wakes up?

Last night I changed the Power Options so the PC would never go to sleep. Every few hours I’d check & Firefox always worked. I realize that’s a short term test but is there something I can check that controls waking up a network connection?

Could that USB wireless adapter I tried have disabled some wired network setting?
 
I tried a USB wireless adapter & installed its driver & 3 other Cisco programs that installed along with the driver. All this has since been uninstalled.
Click to expand...
My feeling is that not everything has been removed and it might be interfering with your internet connection.
I have 4 Windows 7 computers. Two of them use FF ESR; the other two use Palemoon. Of the two that use FF, one is hardwired and the other uses wifi. Comcast is my ISP but I have never used one of their modems. I buy my own modem and separate router from the list of approved modems.
I've never had the issue that you are experiencing.

The fact that only one PC has a problem, lets us rule out the modem/router as the cause. So it boils down to something on your PC that is causing the problem.

Since a restore to an earlier time did not work, we'll try something different.

Download Revo Uninstaller. Run the program to install it. I always use this to remove programs rather than Windows built-in one.
Revo Uninstaller Free

Then do something weird: install the wireless USB adapter with its driver and Cisco programs.

Now open Revo and Uninstall the Cisco programs, one at a time, allowing the program to also scan the registry. When the list for removal appears, check the items in black below the red items. Do not remove any red items. If you are scared just do a few for removal then have it scan again and remove a few more. I've never had a problem with Revo but then I am very careful about what I select for removal. If I'm not sure, I let it there.
 
plodr said:
My feeling is that not everything has been removed and it might be interfering with your internet connection.
I have 4 Windows 7 computers. Two of them use FF ESR; the other two use Palemoon. Of the two that use FF, one is hardwired and the other uses wifi. Comcast is my ISP but I have never used one of their modems. I buy my own modem and separate router from the list of approved modems.
I've never had the issue that you are experiencing.

The fact that only one PC has a problem, lets us rule out the modem/router as the cause. So it boils down to something on your PC that is causing the problem.

Since a restore to an earlier time did not work, we'll try something different.

Download Revo Uninstaller. Run the program to install it. I always use this to remove programs rather than Windows built-in one.
Revo Uninstaller Free

Then do something weird: install the wireless USB adapter with its driver and Cisco programs.

Now open Revo and Uninstall the Cisco programs, one at a time, allowing the program to also scan the registry. When the list for removal appears, check the items in black below the red items. Do not remove any red items. If you are scared just do a few for removal then have it scan again and remove a few more. I've never had a problem with Revo but then I am very careful about what I select for removal. If I'm not sure, I let it there.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I'll give it a try.
 
I was going to try Revo but found some articles that said to go into Device Manager > Network adapters. Select your controller & look at Properties > Power Management.

There are 3 boxes & supposedly the default is having the first 2 checked.
1) Allow computer to turn off this device to save power.
2) Allow this device to wake computer.
3) Only allow a magic packet to wake the computer.

My PC had the first 2 checked. My other PC had all 3 checked. Some troubleshooting tips say to check all 3, others mentioned different combinations.

This article appears to favor unchecking everything, and so I did. I double checked the registry & it had the value they suggested. So far everything works OK. I don’t know why the default settings didn’t work, especially since my other PC has those enable along with #3.

Power management setting on a network adapter - Windows Client
 
Just as a reference, my desktop (32 bit Win 7 Home) has all 3 checked.

Whatever works: all checked or none checked. You already know with just the first 2 checked, it is not working correctly.
 

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