Win7 Fresh Install - No Internet/Network Connection

Ok, I'm going to give a small amount of back story here as it may be relevant to the current problem. Yesterday I formatted my Win XP PC and tried to install Win7 on it. 3/4 of the way through the installation my PC would restart, and upon loading back into windows I would receive this error message:

“The computer restarted unexpectedly or encountered an unexpected error. Windows installation cannot proceed. To install Windows, click “OK” to restart the computer, and then restart the installation.”

There were a number of possible fixes to this problem detailed here. I eventually got the installation to complete properly by removing my Sound Card and my Network Card.



Ok, now onto the current problem. As stated, I have a new, clean install of Windows 7 32 which seems unable to connect to our BT Home Hub router. I have an ethernet connection to the router (lights: check, and cables are secure etc) and also a Wireless Network Card which may or may not be in a functioning state. By which I mean, I have had problems with it in the past but I can't remember exactly what is wrong with it. However, as I did with my XP install I want to connect via the ethernet cable.

In the Network and Sharing Center there are no networks listed.

I have attempted to update the drivers for my MB and the Network Card, neither of which seemed to do anything.

If I try to ping google or anywhere else it fails.

This could end up being a very simple issue, but I'm completely new to Win7 (and skipped Vista) so I don't really no where to go from here, and am kind of burned out after spending 8 hours yesterday just installing windows.

My PC specs:

Custom Built
OS: Windows 7 32bit
MOBO: ASUS M2N4-SLI
CPU: AMD Dual Core 3 GHz
Gfx Card: GeForce GTS 250
Network Card: Realtek 8185

The first thing you need to do is go to device manager and check whether the network cards are detected and correctly installed. A yellow exclamation mark is a bad sign.

Welcome to Windows Seven Forums.

In addition to Bill2's good advice, download and run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor.

Download Details - Microsoft Download Center - Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor

It will flag up any compatibility issues with your hardware and software. Before you run it make sure you've connected any peripherals you're likely to use i.e. keyboard, mouse, printer, scanner etc.

Bill2 said:

The first thing you need to do is go to device manager and check whether the network cards are detected and correctly installed. A yellow exclamation mark is a bad sign.

Yeah ok, we have a yellow exclamation mark. Under Properties > Device Status it says:

This device is not working properly because Windows cannot load the drivers required for this device. (Code 31)

But, do I need my wireless card to connect to my router via Ethernet cable?

If the ethernet card is correctly detected, then you need to check the network settings. To start with, is there a tray icon for the ethernet connection? Does it have a red cross or yellow asterisk on it?

seavixen32 said:

Welcome to Windows Seven Forums.

In addition to Bill2's good advice, download and run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor.

Download Details - Microsoft Download Center - Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor

It will flag up any compatibility issues with your hardware and software. Before you run it make sure you've connected any peripherals you're likely to use i.e. keyboard, mouse, printer, scanner etc.

Apparently I need an internet connection for it to work.

Bill2 said:

If the ethernet card is correctly detected, then you need to check the network settings. To start with, is there a tray icon for the ethernet connection? Does it have a red cross or yellow asterisk on it?

Not sure what you mean by ethernet card? My ethernet port is on my motherboard I believe.

There is a tray icon for the Network and Sharing Center which has a red cross through it and if I mouse-over it says "Not connected - No connections are available."

WebCole said:

Ok, I'm going to give a small amount of back story here as it may be relevant to the current problem. Yesterday I formatted my Win XP PC and tried to install Win7 on it. 3/4 of the way through the installation my PC would restart, and upon loading back into windows I would receive this error message:

“The computer restarted unexpectedly or encountered an unexpected error. Windows installation cannot proceed. To install Windows, click “OK” to restart the computer, and then restart the installation.”

There were a number of possible fixes to this problem detailed here. I eventually got the installation to complete properly by removing my Sound Card and my Network Card.



Ok, now onto the current problem. As stated, I have a new, clean install of Windows 7 32 which seems unable to connect to our BT Home Hub router. I have an ethernet connection to the router (lights: check, and cables are secure etc) and also a Wireless Network Card which may or may not be in a functioning state. By which I mean, I have had problems with it in the past but I can't remember exactly what is wrong with it. However, as I did with my XP install I want to connect via the ethernet cable.

In the Network and Sharing Center there are no networks listed.

I have attempted to update the drivers for my MB and the Network Card, neither of which seemed to do anything.

If I try to ping google or anywhere else it fails.

This could end up being a very simple issue, but I'm completely new to Win7 (and skipped Vista) so I don't really no where to go from here, and am kind of burned out after spending 8 hours yesterday just installing windows.

My PC specs:

Custom Built
OS: Windows 7 32bit
MOBO: ASUS M2N4-SLI
CPU: AMD Dual Core 3 GHz
Gfx Card: GeForce GTS 250
Network Card: Realtek 8185

Please upload the output of ipconif /all to us here
(start>cmd>ipconfig /all)

zigzag3143 said:

Please upload the output of ipconif /all to us here
(start>cmd>ipconfig /all)

ipconfig /all gives the following:

Host Name: WebCole
Primary Dns Suffix:
Node Type: Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled: No
WINS Proxy Enabled: No

WebCole said:

zigzag3143 said:

Please upload the output of ipconif /all to us here
(start>cmd>ipconfig /all)

ipconfig /all gives the following:

Host Name: WebCole
Primary Dns Suffix:
Node Type: Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled: No
WINS Proxy Enabled: No

Um we need the actual output.