A Network cable is Unplugged... XP w/SP3!!!

[AstaLaVista]

Error Getting... A network cable is Unplugged

OK so, Brand new Office built, everything went smooth as a coffee tabel , well, except the network issue that is.

Biostar A880G+ Mobo
AMD PH II X4 955 Black Edition 3.2Ghz
4GB GSKILL F3-10666 RAM
WD WD3000BLFS Velociraptor HDD
PSU ANTEC EA-380D GREEN RT

Again, all the wires and cables are plugged where they should go (AFAIK), pc boots perfectly, Bios is at DEFAULT (Optimal Settings). Installation of windows XP w/SP 3 also went well. Now it was time to install the Motherboard CD drivers and that also went well but after restarting I found myself dumbfounded when I couldn't get to the internet.

After the immediate panic, I uninstalled the driver and installed it again... nothing

Went to the Biostar site (on my own PC ) and downloaded their latest drivers... nothing.

Uninstall the NIC drivers and shut down the PC, plugged in an old Gigabit PCI NIC Card I had working on my old office PC, downloaded newest driver for it, start the pc, installed drivers, restart, plugged the Network Cable to the PCI Nic... nothing.

Tried having both Network ports installed so I could switch the cable between them (onboard and PCI)... nothing

Google search for some answers, Change Speed & Duplex from "Auto" to Full Gigabit Duplex"... nothing

Cable, Router and Hubs are good, checked them all against my own PC..

Throw me a bone people, I am at my wit ends here ... I can not believe this is souring the good taste I had in my mouse because I had built the PC with no outside help whatsoever!

 

[Dave Atkin]

Hello,

Re-install the Chipset drivers if you havent already.

Have you tried updating the Firmware of the BIOS? Have you changed the patch lead to see if it is faulty? Changed the port on the switch?



Dave

 

[Dave Atkin]

Ohh also, check the Onboard LAN Configuration in the BIOS to see if its enabled

BIOS Manual can be found here:
A880G+ :: Motherboard :: BIOSTAR

 

[AstaLaVista]

Hello,

Re-install the Chipset drivers if you havent already.

Have you tried updating the Firmware of the BIOS? Have you changed the patch lead to see if it is faulty? Changed the port on the switch?

Ohh also, check the Onboard LAN Configuration in the BIOS to see if its enabled

BIOS Manual can be found here:
A880G+ :: Motherboard :: BIOSTAR

Chipset drivers have been uninstalled/installed/updated/uninstalled/installed multiple times with no positive outcome.

I am always very skeptical Updating the Firmware of the Bios but I will try... DONE, it did not do much of anything.

I don't understand what you mean by "Change the Patch lead to see if its Faulty" or "Change the Port on the Switch"... care to enlighten me?

Yes, the Onboard LAN is enable in the Bios.


Update:

It seems I have a Faulty Motherboard or something but I need you guys to tell me whether I have the basis for an RMA here... although, I much prefer they would ship me a PCI card and be done with it.

I was playing with the properties of the Onboard LAN in Device Manager (Speed & Duplex) to be Specific... like I had said before, I had already gone from "Auto" to "Full Gigabit Duplex" to no avail.

Well, just for Laughs and Giggles I changed it to 100 Mbps Duplex and BAM... acquiring address and Network/LAN working perfectly.

What does this mean? The board is capable of 10/100/1000 according to the specs... does this mean the Board is faulty or can I fix this with software?

 

[Dave Atkin]

Hi,

I meant change the network cable connecting the PC to the switch/wall? What is it connected to? Is it gigabit?

As for the RMA, even if you do send it back they wont supply you with a PCI Card for free . Ring the person/company who you bought it from and ask if you can return it.



Dave

 

[Corazon]

Well, just for Laughs and Giggles I changed it to 100 Mbps Duplex and BAM... acquiring address and Network/LAN working perfectly.

What does this mean? The board is capable of 10/100/1000 according to the specs... does this mean the Board is faulty or can I fix this with software?

That's good news! And no, it just means that whatever's connected to your Ethernet port isn't capable of gigabit speeds. 100Mbps is the most common speed between PCs and routers.

This should have worked fine when your Ethernet driver was set to auto-negotiate, but it seems it and the router were just "talking past each other" and not getting their speed agreed upon.

 

[AstaLaVista]

The linksys Hub is capable of 10/100/1000 and so is the D-Link router but the Hub ports are full, could this be why is not giving me the full Gigabit and only 100 Mbps?

And you are correct, the Auto Negotiate should have done its job but it didn't.

At this moment, I left the PC downloading and installing all the latest MS updates (more than 100 updates) so I will know more tomorrow.

Dumb Question, the setup as it stands right now is: Comcast Modem to D-Link router to Linksys Hub, if I were to buy another Gigabit Hub and free some ports on the first Hub... could that solve the issue I am having?

 

[Dave Atkin]

Hello,

When you say hub, do you mean switch? There is a difference. Please can you give us th model number.

Are any of the other PC's having problems getting gigabit?

At the moment I think that its more likely a problem with the PC rather than the switch/Hub.



Dave

 

[Tae Song]

The ethernet device on the motherboard is gigabit capable but whatever your connecting it to isn't. So it won't be able to connect hub or router which only supports up to 100Mbps, except at 100Mbps or 10Mbps, but not 1Gbps.

 

[AstaLaVista]

Hello,

When you say hub, do you mean switch? There is a difference. Please can you give us th model number.

Are any of the other PC's having problems getting gigabit?

At the moment I think that its more likely a problem with the PC rather than the switch/Hub.
Dave

The ethernet device on the motherboard is gigabit capable but whatever your connecting it to isn't. So it won't be able to connect hub or router which only supports up to 100Mbps, except at 100Mbps or 10Mbps, but not 1Gbps.

Yes "Switch" sorry, technical names always escape me... the model is LinkSys EG8008W Ver 3 (Gigabit 8 Port Workgroup Switch)... the router is a D-Link DIR-655

My officeand the 2 other PCs along with the Server have a Status of 1.0 Gbps (verbatim) and they are all connected to the same Switch... this new build has a status of only 100.0 Mbps

 

[Dave Atkin]

If you have tried different LAN drivers, BIOS firmware and cables then I would try and return it then. If it cant do 1Gbps as advertised then you can say its not adiquate for your needs.

Dave

 

[AstaLaVista]

Yeah, I had thought of that and eventually I will have to do that... its just a pisser really since everything else is working perfectly fine, it is the first time everything goes well in the build, cables are tucked in pretty neat, clean install, everything and the thought of disassembling and putting another board back together is just a pita... but it must be done I guess.


Thanks everyone for the help and the time.