net work

[libby]

we have 3 pc s linked by a hub on wedseday the 2 upstairs stopped working properly mo internet connection or printer
pc world checked the hub was ok
have used repair bit in net work part and it keeps saying cant repair ip adress
please help

[will174]

If Hub is ok and no network settings been changed and both PCs dropped off at the same time.

Wheres the hub? and is it possible the cable feeding the upstairs computers could be faulty? Hows the network set up? i.e. is the hub down stairs with 2 cables being fed up stairs or vice versa.

If both PCs stopped working at the same time it sounds more like a network supply problem, so you want to check all the network units, cables which supply the connectivty to both PCs. Also check the network settings on both PCs see if the subnet, gateways etc are all the same as your working one. (Unless its set to Obtain IP address automatically).

P.S. PC World are a bunch of idiots! Take what they tell you with a pinch of salt!

[libby]

[monosodium]

Unless you changed the settings for your internet connection sharing (which given you don't know where it is, says you probably haven't) your machines are probably still set up correctly.

I've seen issues where the network hardware on some machines can go a bit 'wonky' and the machine needs to be powered off from the mains (for 10 secs or so and no, shutting it down is not enough ). Make sure the network cable is properly connected, reconnect the power & test. If it doesn't work then odds are that your cable connecting the pc with internet to the hub is still duff (see geeky bit below for more info).

Getting to the connection stuff depends on what you've got, but taking a guess on Windows XP, if you go to "Start - Connect To - Show all connections" then you should see a window with the connection to the other machines in the house and to the outside world. You'll find the connection sharing by right-clicking the internet connection and choosing properties, and if you don't know what something means then leave it alone as it's probably right.

The PC World staff I know have trouble pouring water out of a bucket with instructions on the bottom.

* geeky bits that some IT pro's don't know but should *
1- If I remember rightly. The normal network cable (RJ45) used for up to 100mbit lan has 8 "cores", for various technical reasons only 4 of them are actually used. The light on a hub only says a connection exists, it doesn't tell you if the connection is any good. For example if 1 core is damaged then the hub will say all is well because the particular pair of wires it tests shows this to be the case.

2- When you power off the machine using "shut down" some components remain active, like the power button and more importantly any network components built onto the main board (this is set up this way for something called wake on lan, which allows machines to be started up remotely). If the network hardware gets upset then it will not be able to reset properly.
* end of geeky bit *