Cannot go to some websites but ok in safe mode

I have a fairly new Asus G74S i7 laptop running Win 7 64. I cannot go to some websites - but they can be browsed ok in safe mode. For example - I can't go to CNN.com or Zone Alarm - but I can go to MSNBC, Avast, etc.

I've tried going to the numeric IP to bypass DNS, but that doesn't work either.

One thing that seems a bit strange (as if this wasn't strange enough already) - If I try to ping a site that is known not to exist - like xylaseighjlag.com - I get a timeout, as one would expect.

BUT if I ping a site I can't go to, such as Crestron.com, I get "General Failure".

It seems to be getting worse, as I was able to go to Zone Alarm last week, but not this week.

It does the same thing on different ISP's, and three different browsers - IE, Firefox, and Chrome. I even tried tethering off my tablet using Bluetooth and WiFi - same results.

I've tried all the usual fixes - Checking the hosts file, resetting IE, looking at Whats' Running, trying various Registry fixes - CCleaner, Glary, System Mechanic, etc. I've tried every malware client I can find, including MB, Avast, MS, etc.

MB did find a couple of dubious things, which were removed, but this had no effect.

I've researched/tried every fix online I could find - no effect.

If I do a clean boot of Win 7 without actually going into safe mode it still doesn't work.

I tried doing a System Restore, but for some reason all of the earlier restore points vanished.

Short of re-installing Windows, does anyone have any brilliant ideas?

Hi ICit

Yeah, I tried that already - no useful restore points were listed. I did have some at one point that went back a few months, and tried those, but the system came back and said something to the effect that an error had occurred, and that no files were changed. When I looked today, it only goes back a few days at most. All earlier points are gone.

I may have to bite the bullet and just re-install Win 7. Not the way I was planning on spending the next couple of days...

Thanks guys. I'll try these.

Did find this though - Has anyone tried reimage dot com? If it does what they claim, it looks like the answer. They claim to be able completely repair windows installations (drivers, files, registry screwups, virus damage, etc.) back to OEM condition without losing any programs or data. For about $40 - with a 60 day money back guarantee. And it's reversible.

Worth a try - certainly beats re-installing windows...

My thoughts too... But they offer a free scan-only option that might give me some insights as to what's going on.

OBTW - I tried creating a new user account - IT WORKS! I can visit all the previously 'unvisitable' sites! Now all I have to do is figure out how to move all the crap from the old account to the new one. Not sure if that's even possible. Not quite as bad as re-installing everything, but not far off. I can't even find IE or Firefox. Only Chrome shows up. Gad.

Found the procedure to copy user accounts. Not entirely convinced it will work, as I seem to remember trying this in the past, but we shall see... Thanks for all your help, guys.