westell 2100 - pages not loading

we have a westell 2100 adsl modem/router, and two systems - one running 98se, one running xp pro. the system running 98se cannot access certain web servers, most notably ldbauth.lycos.com (the server connected when submitting the login name and password for lycos email) and grc.com. both internet explorer 6 sp1 and opera 7.11 endlessly try to connect to the servers (they are pingable). the system running xp pro, on the other hand, can access them fine. this happens even after nuking the old windows install and reinstalling, and installing applicable patches from windows update. any ideas would be appreciated.

we have a westell 2100 adsl modem/router, and two systems - one running 98se, one running xp pro. the system running 98se cannot access certain web servers, most notably ldbauth.lycos.com (the server connected when submitting the login name and password for lycos email) and grc.com. both internet explorer 6 sp1 and opera 7.11 endlessly try to connect to the servers (they are pingable). the system running xp pro, on the other hand, can access them fine. this happens even after nuking the old windows install and reinstalling, and installing applicable patches from windows update. any ideas would be appreciated.

Since you can ping the site by IP, it really sounds like a DNS issue on the part of your ISP. The Westell modem I use (wirespeed, not sure if it's a 2100 or not) tends to "forget" the DNS servers it's supposed to use, and once or twice I have successfully re-connected just by re-installing the software that came with the modem. If that doesn't work, call your Internet provider.

Go to your IE and the help menu choose about what cipher strength do you have. My 2000 machine is only 56 bit and cannot hit some sites that my XP home lapper can which is 128 bit

thanks for the suggestions.

10ECsoon:
unfortunately it's not a dns issue. the machine can resolve the hostnames to ip addresses correctly. keep in mind that the xp system on the same network has no problems (both use the modem as a dns forwarder). there is no software to reinstall as the computer is connected to the modem via ethernet (the modem handles the pppoe authentication).

Sarrkazztic:
cipher strength is 128-bit.

any other ideas? the problem seems to have started after switching to the westell modem (the previous modem was an old pairgain that ceased to function).

The Firewall capabilities built into the Westell 2100 DSL router are enabled by default and set to "Medium" security. If certain programs (e.g. AOL, ICQ, MSN Messenger, etc.) do not function properly after connecting to the Internet, lower the security settings.

To lower the security settings of the firewall:


Open the Westell interface by opening a web browser and typing 192.168.1.1 into the address bar. Click the Go button or hit the enter key.
On the Configuration menu, select Firewall Configuration. Set the configuration to "Low" or, if necessary, disable the firewall.

Sarrkazztic:
thanks for staying with the thread. the firewall is currently disabled, we've even tried putting the machine in the dmz - still no luck.

Basically I'm wondering if you have taken a look at your Firewall Settings?

thanks for the response. the router's firewall is currently disabled, the machine does not run a software firewall.

there's a similar thread going in the hardware forum.

i've started a similar thread in the windows 98 forum.

Since we do not like double posting here I merged both of your threads together. This will make it much easier for you to collect suggestions.

the reason i "double posted" is because each section of the forums (e.g. 9x vs. hardware) has different regulars answering questions. this problem fits under the hardware and 9x categories simply because i do not know if the problem is the operating system or the router.

problem solved.

the problem appears to have been the network card in the system, a linksys etherpci lan card II (lnepci2). after multiple clean windows installs and configuration changes, what finally fixed the problem was replacing the network card with a 3com 3c905c-tx.

thanks for all the suggestions, hopefully this will help someone else.