Vista won't renew IP address at home, works fine at work

[Scouzer]

When I plug my cable modem to the router, it renews the IP fine and I can connect my laptop wirelessly to the router and everything works fine.

However, if I plug my cable modem directly into my laptop, it won't get an IP. I have tried "diagnose and repair", rebooting, and disabling/enabling the ethernet adapter. It's a Motorola Surfboard modem.

To further muddy the situation, my laptop gets an IP automatically without a hitch with my work internet.

What the heck?

 

[mcmilljb]

Are you using the same cable that was between the cable modem and router when you plug the laptop into the cable modem?

I ask because I see some people saying you need to use a crossover cable for connecting a cable modem directly to a PC. So I would try a crossover cable if you have one.

 

[spidey07]

This smells of Vista not adhering to DHCP standards. Vista doesn't play nice with standards based routers and decided to do something stupid.

google "vista dhcp broadcast flag"

 

[Scouzer]

Originally posted by: mcmilljb
Are you using the same cable that was between the cable modem and router when you plug the laptop into the cable modem?

Yes.

Thanks spidey, I'll read into that.

 

[mcmilljb]

Originally posted by: spidey07
This smells of Vista not adhering to DHCP standards. Vista doesn't play nice with standards based routers and decided to do something stupid.

google "vista dhcp broadcast flag"

Interesting read. They have a "fix".

Also try using a crossover cable, if available.

 

[JackMDS]

Does your cable service authenticate by MAC address?

If yes it uses the MAC of the Router as a password and thus would not work with the Laptop that has a different MAC address.

 

[Scouzer]

Tried the Microsoft fix, no go.

The router has a hard time getting DHCP info as well. It sometimes takes 2-3 reboots on the router and 1-2 reboots on the modem to get an IP address.

JackMDS: I don't know, but I doubt it. I was on the same provider at my old apartment no problem, but I moved across town and just got rehooked up.

The speeds have been quite slow tonight, but I don't know if that's because I can only use wireless. There's a lot of frequency congestion in my apartment here. A DSLReports line monitor test shows 4% packet loss at one of my hops, and 2% at another with 66ms ping.

 

[Scouzer]

What I've tried beyond what I previously posted:

Disabled IPv6
Disabled IP Helper
Turned broadcast flag off and on

 

[mcmilljb]

Don't have a crossover cable?

 

[Scouzer]

Nope.

tried a second network cable too

 

[mcmilljb]

I guess you can always go buy one to try and just return it if it doesn't work. BestBuy and CircuitCity are pricey on cables, so you could use it if it works until your cheaper monoprice cable comes . I know the price of copper has gone up but damn lol. For ~$4 you can have one mailed to you compared to Geek Squad's $21 cable.

 

[her209]

Originally posted by: JackMDS
Does your cable service authenticate by MAC address?

If yes it uses the MAC of the Router as a password and thus would not work with the Laptop that has a different MAC address.

This!

 

[Scouzer]

Originally posted by: her209

Originally posted by: JackMDS
Does your cable service authenticate by MAC address?

If yes it uses the MAC of the Router as a password and thus would not work with the Laptop that has a different MAC address.

This!

afraid not

 

[Genx87]

Sounds to me like a wiring issue somewhere down the line if you are getting that high of packet loss. Have you called the provider? I would also inquire about how they authenticate users on their network. The two cable companies I have used in my life(Mediacom, Charter) both require you register your nic's mac address to get on the network.