Internet fails after working with the PC for 3-4 days straight

brunoais · Apr 17, 2016

I don't know if this is related to anything I'll mention here because I can't pinpoint what is causing my issues.... but here goes:

I've updated to windows 10 in around December.
With it I went on to update my drivers.
Most drivers updated properly and without any issues except both internet drivers.
I could not use my previous internet drivers because they had (I believe) memory leaks incorporated when used on windows 10.
As for the driver updates... It's not going well at all.
My wired internet uses the (1):
Qualcomm Atheros AR8161 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet Controller (v. 2.1.0.21 -> windows 8 drivers. I can't find windows 10 drivers)

My wireless internet uses:
Qualcomm Atheros AR9485 Wireless Network Adapter (v. 10.0.0.329 -> windows 10 drivers)

This is the problem I'm finding (part1):

https://www.sysnative.com/forums/wi...t-shutdown-not-working-well-since-update.html

Part 2:

After ~3-4 days of PC turned on and connected to the internet
New TCP connections start to fail.

After some more hours
Internet is lost.
If it is the wireless connection
1. It cannot connect to any wireless point.
If it is the wired connection
1. It recognizes it is connected.
2. it "thinks" it has internet.
3. No internet access can be made
Solution:
1. Reboot

I've ran sfc /scannow and it found errors it cannot fix. I attached the logs to this post.

This is the PC's hardware:
N56VB | Notebooks | ASUS Global
The CPU is the i7.

(1) Please don't bash on me because of it. I know they are bad. I had no choice value on the matter when the PC was bought.View attachment CBS.log.annonymized.zip

OldGrayGary · Apr 19, 2016

I'm pasting Part 1 in this thread so that both can be viewed together:

(part1):

Every time my PC goes to a low power state, it never comes back. When I try to get it back, it just shuts off.
When it shuts off, in order to be able to use the PC, I have to try powering it on multiple times for it to stay on, the BIOS screen appear and continue.
Think in these steps:

Shutdown the PC normally
when the green power LED turns off
Power on the PC.

(~0.5s after)
the PC turns off.
Repeat step 2.1 and experience step 2.2 for the next 2-15 times.

When it starts
All is working as expected.

brunoais · Apr 19, 2016

Oh! I thought it was supposed to be 1 problem per topic. Are these seen as belonging to the same group? Does it make sense to keep both in the same post, then?

OldGrayGary · Apr 19, 2016

Hi brunoais

Are you still experiencing the same issues? Any resolution yet?

If you still need help, for the power issues, as a quick fix effort, try setting things to defaults for Power Options, and then set things to defaults in the Bios (though I might have you check that no "Intel Smart Connect" options are enabled, as Smart Connect is not supported in Windows 10, and Intel discontinued support for it in the summer of 2015.

Return all power settings to defaults
The next time Windows is running (for the moment)
1) Right-click the Windows 10 Start Menu icon
2) Select Command Prompt (Admin)
3) To the question "Do you want to allow this app to make changes to your PC?", select Yes
4) At the command prompt, type powercfg -restoredefaultschemes
5) When the command has completed, type exit to close the command window.
6) Restart your computer.

Restore Bios settings to Default, and disable Intel Smart Connect options
1) As your computer is first powering on, press the F2 key to show the Bios Setup screen. (if unsuccessful on your first try, restart & try again)
2) From the Main Bios screen, select the Save and Exit tab
3) On the Save and Exit screen, select the item Restore Defaults
...... if your Bios allows you to save & exit at this point, do so.
4) As your computer is powering on after the defaults have been reset, press the F2 key once again to enter Bios Setup.
5) Since we reset everything to defaults, look at the values for time & date, and set these to the current time & date (& timezone, if asked)
6) If the time/date looks OK now, then select the Advanced tab.
7) In the Advanced tab, go to the Intel Smart Connect Technology section, and make sure that nothing in that section is enabled. [We don't want any Intel Smart Connect Technology enabled at all]
8) When done making changes, select the Save and Exit tab
9) From the Save and Exit screen, select Save Changes and Exit
...........
10) Once Windows is running again, visit the Control Panel, and remove any Intel software that relies on Intel Smart Connect Technology. Such programs will likely complain that Intel Smart Connect Technology is not running ... those are the ones that should be uninstalled. It's a dead software. Intel won't even answer the phone for this one.

P.S. ... while you are in the Bios, check it's version: the latest version is version 202, from February 27, 2013. If you have a version older than that, consider updating it. It's very easy to do on your system. 1) Download the latest Bios & save the file onto a blank USB drive. 2) Enter your Bios Setup screen, select the Advanced tab, select Start Easy Flash, and follow the onscreen instructions. Make sure to have your power cord plugged in when updating a laptop Bios (never rely on just the battery for this job). You might want to update the Bios first, in fact, before making the above changes -- then follow those instructions to set defaults, and to disable Intel Smart Connect Technology.
________________________

For the Internet issues:

If you can run an ethernet cable ... you shouldn't have any issues with renewing the lease, yada yada yada. It should just work. If you are keeping a device running for five days straight, it should be a server, not a laptop (pity the poor laptop's cooling system). If you mostly connect wirelessly, as most connections go nowadays ... well, see how things are after the Bios and power changes go, and we'll revisit the options.

Besides, I need to sleep :)

OldGrayGary · Apr 19, 2016

P.S. ..... I'm kidding you just a little, about the "five days straight" .... I assume that you mean that for four or five days you can connect with no problems, and then you do have problems [I thought it would be amusing to picture a tiny laptop chugging along for five days straight]

Since this is the Windows 10 forum, a fairly large and generous topic area, your issues are best kept in one thread. Easier to keep track of.

It's midnight in Southern California ... good night all

brunoais · Apr 20, 2016

Thank you for your help!
OK... So!
I rebooted, I set BIOS to default, looked at the BIOS options and I noticed that I cannot find "Intel Smart Connect" in the multiple sections below the main options and the version is 202.
Given that, I assume it to be off because there's no hardware support for it (or a BIOS update I did ~2 years ago did it).

And... Eh.... It really runs easily 4-5 days straight; no reboots. Even though you were joking... It is actually true.
I have a publicly accessible web development server on my PC. Well... I also use that server to store some files and stuff to share with other people when I want full control on who accesses them and on how long they really last.

brunoais · Apr 20, 2016

I can't find the option to edit the post...

Anyway, after re-reading it, I went unsure if it was understood if it worked or not but nothing actually changed at BIOS boot time after doing all those... I still have to press that button multiple times and it never wakes up from sleeping.
I also forgot to mention that I deactivated Intel's anti-theft feature. I dunno if it was doing anything, though.

I'm still testing the internet, though, so expect updates in some days about it.

pity the poor laptop's cooling system

It is, most of the time, idle or actually shut off, actually. It turns on to idle speed about 10s (if as much) for each minute when I'm not using it's processing speed for gaming, code compiling or the real heavy duty data smash processing I bought it for.

OldGrayGary · Apr 20, 2016

Hi again

It makes sense that you updated the BIOS about two years ago ... that was the last time a new release was available.

Tell you what, have a look in Power Options & make sure that the sleep/hibernation settings look OK in there to you. You can start with the simple settings (such as how long before sleep or hibernation for "with battery" or "plugged in"... (Start Menu - Settings - System - Power and sleep) ... the little blue-highlight link "Additional power settings" will take you directly to the more advanced settings in Control Panel's Power Options section. From those options, look for an item that says "change what the power button does", and on the resulting screen, select "Change settings not currently available"... and choose the settings you'd like to try.
________________

Sounds like that modest little unit has a cool temperament :)

Cheers ....

brunoais · Apr 20, 2016

I find nothing usual in those options.
Power button does a shutdown (in both battery and power).
Closing the lid, when in battery suspends, when plugged does nothing (turns off the screen).

I don't expect that the OS affects my power issues because I'm having them really early in the booting procedure.
The shutdown unexpectedly is happening before the BIOS logo appears!
If the BIOS logo appears, it will boot just fine. The problem is that it can take as much as 15 ties to get it to show up while it auto-powers off in the other situations. I hear no beeps.
In a way, I wish my machine would do the single beep like my old PC did to confirm all is OK while trying to boot. It would help me knowing if it even reaches that stage before powering off.

OldGrayGary said:
Sounds like that modest little unit has a cool temperament :)

I always make sure that the air flow is clear and that it stays clean. I made a full air flow clean right after the warranty ended. It was quite clean already but I did it anyway.
I really take good care of it to make sure it works and lasts. I was expecting to have that pc for, at least, 6 years. ~3 down, ~3 to go.

OldGrayGary · Apr 21, 2016

Hi again

Sleep settings
Seems like your settings looked OK. If your system needs to be accessed 24/7, what happens if you disable sleep and hibernation (you'll probably have to turn "fast startup" off if you want to try this) .... and only have the screen go blank after a determined time? (Not a sleep state, just a screen saver... you could leave the Power Options for sleep and hibernate to "never").

Does the system restart normally if no sleep or hibernation state precedes the restart? And does it only have that difficult--several-tries-before-success startup when it is trying to start up after a sleep/hibernation phase?

Might be a clue there.

Bios
Well, you have the most recent Bios available for your motherboard already (version 202). So that isn't likely an issue (since it's been fine for a few years already). Hmmm... what about the fan speeds? .... If the system runs for long times usually, when you restart it after a short period - and it is still a bit warm, could the fans not be set to spin fast enough in that short time? [Not particularly likely, I expect, because most systems have the fans run at "full speed" at system startup, and then slow down if temperatures are cool enough] ... but you could check in the Bios for any power/speed settings for the fans at startup time.

And, since it seems to be sleep/hibernation issues that could bring on the restart trouble, try searching in your Bios for sleep/hibernation settings, and trying things with sleep/hibernation disabled.

I'm interested to see what happens if we disable sleep/hibernation in Windows & in the Bios.

You've got an interesting problem, that's for sure. I hadn't heard of a laptop with the same issue before. ... we're "going where no troubleshooters have gone before"! ... it's an adventure!

Hopefully this adventure will have a good ending....

OldGrayGary · Apr 21, 2016

Ooops. Me again:

I mentioned "turning off fast startup" for Windows 10, but I didn't give instructions as to how. Here's how:

To Turn off "Fast Startup" in Windows 10:

1) Right-click the Windows 10 Start Menu icon
2) Select Power Options
3) Select Change what the power buttons do
4) Select Change settings that are currently unavailable
5) In the "Shutdown settings" section, make sure to remove the checkmark in the option-box "Turn on fast startup".
6) Select "Save Changes" and exit.

If testing things with Fast Startup disabled doesn't help, you can re-enable it following those same steps, except put a checkmark back in the option box.

brunoais · Apr 21, 2016

Screen turning off has no side-effects. Actually, it had been to turn the screen off after 15 minutes of inactivity.
When I hibernate the PC, it works normally. Aside from having to press the power button multiple times to come out of the hibernation, it works the way it is expected to.
When sleep activates, it sleeps. When I try to wake him up, he shuts off. Then, it's back to the power button retry. The system is unable to resume and it is equivalent to killing it by pressing and keep pressing the power button.

Startup Fans
As weird/interesting as it gets, this computer has a dedicated chip to control the fan speeds which works even before the POST executes! I never got to hear it speeding up when I press the power button.
ATM, it is working on idle speed. According to speedfan, it is @~50ºC.

There are no BIOS settings related to sleep/hibernation.

OldGrayGary said:
You've got an interesting problem, that's for sure. I hadn't heard of a laptop with the same issue before. ... we're "going where no troubleshooters have gone before"! ... it's an adventure!
Hopefully this adventure will have a good ending....

An adventure \o/.

I had tested turning off the Fast Startup previously before asking for help here. If it makes a difference, I can try again with it off now that I had reset the BIOS settings and reset some other settings.

OldGrayGary · Apr 21, 2016

Seems like it's worth a try.

Try turning off all the sleep settings you can find ... you might have to disable certain sleep states in the Bios as well .... it sounds like you might have found them already....

It's especially interesting the hibernation works (though it should work with only one quick press of the power button to resume it), while sleep always fails & causes a restart.

Can you take a look with File Explorer, and see if any files are in a folder C:\Windows\Minidump? I'm curious if something is crashing during the sleep process.

Onwards we go....

.... I'll check in again tomorrow ... time for sleep in California .....

brunoais · Apr 22, 2016

I'll reboot my PC tomorrow and I'll try what you mentioned. So no news today.

brunoais · Apr 24, 2016

Sorry about that. I was supposed to have time yesterday for this but I was quite tight schedule but I was able to do it today.

I tried all you mentioned. Turned off sleep, hibernate and fast boot. I left the screen to turn off after 1 minute.
2 minutes after, I moved the mouse and it worked as anyone expected. The screen just turned on. All normal.
So, rebooted the PC and it happened again. I had to press 4 times this time to get it to boot up.

ATM, I returned all those options to my normal again and rebooted. This time, it was 3 times I had to press the power key to turn it on.
As soon as boot ended, I pressed to "restart" it shutdown normally but it lost the power after all the shutdown procedure. This time, I pressed 6 times the power key to turn it on and get the BIOS logo.

I think hibernation works because it is part of the procedure to cut the power completely. Sleep doesn't work because if the power is cut, all state is lost and resuming is impossible from there.

Minidump is empty, BTW

OldGrayGary · Apr 25, 2016

I think we've both had busy schedules lately!

You know, since the problem can misbehave differently from one instance to the next (even when you haven't made any changes) -- that would suggest either a hardware failure (or conflict), or an operating system/software incompatibility. If the sleep/hibernate states worked fine in Windows 7, it's possible that Windows 7 might be the best solution to the mysterious and unpredictable state of sleep/hibernation on your system in Windows 10.

But, I'll stay tuned....

Any interesting errors listed in the "Summary of Administrative Events" window in Event Viewer?

brunoais · Apr 26, 2016

I have some guess that it might be the Ethernet, the wireless or both with the rest of the Firmware that is not working right.
Specially because I'm using the wrong drivers for the ethernet. This is windows 10 and my drivers are for windows 8.1.

Here's some logs that called my attention. They may be nothing but you may understand them:

Sourceerflib
The Open Procedure for service "WmiApRpl" in DLL "%WINDIR%\system32\wbem\wmiaprpl.dll" failed. Performance data for this service will not be available. The first four bytes (DWORD) of the Data section contains the error code.

Sourceerflib
Windows cannot load the extensible counter DLL rdyboost. The first four bytes (DWORD) of the Data section contains the Windows error code.

Sourceerflib
The Open Procedure for service "MSDTC" in DLL "%WINDIR%\system32\msdtcuiu.DLL" failed. Performance data for this service will not be available. The first four bytes (DWORD) of the Data section contains the error code.

Sourceerflib
The Open Procedure for service "Lsa" in DLL "%WINDIR%\System32\Secur32.dll" failed. Performance data for this service will not be available. The first four bytes (DWORD) of the Data section contains the error code.

Sourceerflib
The Open Procedure for service "BITS" in DLL "%WINDIR%\System32\bitsperf.dll" failed. Performance data for this service will not be available. The first four bytes (DWORD) of the Data section contains the error code.

Sourceerflib
The Open Procedure for service "Lsa" in DLL "%WINDIR%\System32\Secur32.dll" failed. Performance data for this service will not be available. The first four bytes (DWORD) of the Data section contains the error code.

etc...

Only those events called to my attention as I don't know what causes them.

Can wrong drivers cause a wrong firmware to also be running that can cause an issue like this?

How normal is it for the BIOS to refuse to load the full screen logo without beeping and instead simply cutting down the power instead?

OldGrayGary · Apr 26, 2016

Hi again

As far as the system shutting down when it should be restarting, your system is the first I happen to have heard about with this behavior. Especially since you've checked your power option settings, and they appear normal. I believe we've been to the "choose what the power button does" setting already.... And is it true that your system begins to start up again, only to suddenly shutdown without displaying the BIOS screen (or logo)? I'd normally expect that to be a hardware/Bios issue.

The errors from Event Viewer that you show are mentioning trouble opening things. A repair for similar errors that I've seen used in the past is to rebuild the Performance counters. It's easy to do:
1) Right-click the Windows 10 Start Menu icon
2) Select Command Prompt (Admin)
3) At the command prompt, type lodctr /r
4) Press Enter on your keyboard.

I don't think it takes very long to rebuild things. It might help with the Performance errors you are seeing. I don't know that it will have much effect on the shutdown situation.

For the network drivers ... if there aren't any Windows 10 drivers for your gigabit LAN chip ... seems like a Windows 8 or 8.1 driver should behave reasonably decently. The only area I can see it effecting the shutdown issue if is some conflict causes trouble with a boot from LAN source or wake from LAN setting. Those settings in your Bios are usually in some sort of "Advanced" tab or menu.

Mostly firmware is just firmware. Drivers do interact with firmware: but I haven't heard of drivers corrupting firmware (except perhaps when the code is specially written as part of an attack by a hacker).

I'm still curious if none of these problems existed during the time the system was running Windows 7. It just might be that the hardware/driver mix for the job you use your computer for doesn't work well in Windows 10, while it did in Windows 7. Theoretically, if we had unlimited time, and could hire our own programmers/programming analysts, we could make it work.....

I imagine you can continue to explore the Bios wake/sleep settings a bit more. There might be a setting we've missed.

Digerati · Dec 15, 2016

This problem is being revisited and addressed here: https://www.sysnative.com/forums/hardware/21886-laptop-trouble-powering-until-post.html#post172154.

I am closing this thread to avoid further duplication of effort.

Internet fails after working with the PC for 3-4 days straight

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