Word Hyperlink Kills Website in Browser

[dlc41]

I have a client with a very strange problem which I can replicate on several computers other than theirs. IE will open the website. You can close IE reopen and go back to the site. However if you click a link to website within a Word 2010 document or Excel spreadsheet IE gives an error that the page can not be displayed. If you then close IE and Word, reopen IE and try to go to the site it says page can not be displayed. If you wait apporx 30 min and try again IE will display the page. But if you reopen Word or Excel, click the link you get the same error again and IE will not open the page. This issue only happen with this particular site, no others. The other interesting part is once one computer on the network errors out no computer on the same network can access the site either for approx. 30 min.

The same link works fine in Outlook. All computers are using Win7 64.

I have a computer with Office 2003 on it and everything works fine.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated

 

[LuzTeTT]

I would probably have to have a copy of the markup and the file in front of me. It seems like something is cached or a cookie is stored upon attempting to go to that page, because it doesn't make sense that the issue expires after approximately half an hour...wait, what?!

The other interesting part is once one computer on the network errors out no computer on the same network can access the site either for approx. 30 min.

This just blows me away... but I have a thought!
Were all the several computers that you replicate the issue on tied to the same or similar networks as the initial one?

 

[dlc41]

3 of the computers were here in my shop. One was at my house, one was my webmasters at his office and 3 others were at different clients offices or houses. All have a different ISP. All we did was open a Word or Excel document, create a hyperlink and test it.

One suggested issue was a relay router being bad.

The website is www.sandrawalston.com and is hosted by Go Daddy.

 

[LuzTeTT]

Did you confirm that the other two computers in your shop were not able to access the site for approximately thirty minutes after clicking the link in the Office document? Were they on the same network together?
Is this consistent on all of the other networks too? As in, the other computers on the same network as the one that clicked the link from the Office document also somehow caught the illness?

 

[dlc41]

Yes I did. No computer in the shop connected to the network going through my router/firewall would access it. As for the other locations, my webmasters desktop and 2 laptops had the same results on his network. The other locations were single computer sites.

 

[LuzTeTT]

It has to be DNS related.

I can't reproduce it unfortunately. My 2010 key is missing and Office 365 didn't seem to cut it.

 

[dlc41]

I would have to agree but why would it work fine in IE, Firefox and Outlook but not Word or Excel?

 

[LuzTeTT]

I would have to agree but why would it work fine in IE, Firefox and Outlook but not Word or Excel?

Application layer. The DNS is obfuscated or something and IE has a different approach with DNS considerations to Firefox.

I thought you meant that Word or Excel will trigger this behaviour in IE but not the other browsers, and IE is fine without Word or Excel having been in the equation from the beginning.
So, I don't know, maybe because it's all Microsoft software, there's something funky going on with the application layer that makes its way to the transport layer and from there the router doesn't discriminate with Office's chosen resolution or something like that, and so IE stubbornly sticks to what Office decided on and does not request another resolution. The router then assumes that IE knows best when it comes to the resolution and for what ever reason hands out that corrupted/bad resolution to any other networked computer, or the first computer itself shares its table instantly but that doesn't make sense. None of this does.

It seems like if this were correct then the error should happen near instantaneously and not take its time, if that is any supporting indication.

I don't get how this can be possible.
Does flushing DNS or changing DNS server mitigate it?

 

[dlc41]

Sorry, let me refine it a bit. Regardless of what browser you have set as default, they all will go to the website if you type in the address. Same goes for clicking the link within an email in Outlook. Out look opens the browers and it goes to the site. But if you put the hyperlink into Word or Excel and click on it none of the browsers will open the site, they all error out saying can't load the page, and no computer on the same network can access the site for approx. 30 min.

Flushed DNS, cleared and deleted all history files, tried different DNS servers, nothing works so far.

 

[LuzTeTT]

if you put the hyperlink into Word or Excel and click on it none of the browsers will open the site, they all error out saying can't load the page, and no computer on the same network can access the site for approx. 30 min.

I see. I thought you were trying to say that only IE was doing that after having clicked the link in Word or Excel.

Well, if Office doesn't resolve the hyperlink prior to shelling it off to your browser of choice, then I am stumped.
My guess still applies just minus the Firefox and IE stubbornness bit. Theoretically speaking, if the router thinks it has the right (corrupted) resolution in its tables it would not matter what browser or device tries to load the page.

Flushed DNS, cleared and deleted all history files, tried different DNS servers, nothing works so far.

I...see. Has any attempt been made to put the website elsewhere?

 

[Layback Bear]

I'm no expert but I do have a thought.

Do all the computers use the same security programs.
Anti virus, firewall ect.

 

[LuzTeTT]

Another idea!
It could actually be a server side ext nat ban because Office's user agent is being sent just prior to the browser's. Or maybe the headers are not accepted or something, or like a referral from Office is being sent along with the http request.

 

[dlc41]

All the computers are running different AV and security software. Different routers, firewalls and such. I ran a trace to the site

Go Daddy won't move the site cause they say it's not their issue.

 

[LuzTeTT]

All the computers are running different AV and security software. Different routers, firewalls and such. I ran a trace to the site

Go Daddy won't move the site cause they say it's not their issue.

Surely the web designer must have access to the markup so that the site can be hosted elsewhere just for testing purposes.
I mean, if you do that, and the site is identical save for the servers, then that will rule out whether it is GoDaddy or not.

 

[dlc41]

I agree but since I don't control that part I can't force them since it is a large and complex (his words) site.

UPDATE: Using a proxy server that has a different routing, no in this state, seems to have temp solved the error. Working with ISP and Go Daddy to check trace and routers.

 

[dlc41]

It seems even with a proxy server it isn't working all the time. I had a fresh build computer here at the shop I ran the test on and it had the same issue. Once I delivered it to the customer I ran the test at their location and had no problem I'm beginning to believe it is one if the routers within the trace. Any other thoughts?

 

[dlc41]

UPDATE: I did do a clean install of Office 2010 on anther machine. Without applying any updates everything worked the way it should. After applying the updates got the error. Should of done a couple at a time but didn't. Going to try again to see if I can narrow it down as to what update caused the problem.

 

[dlc41]

Guys, thanks for all your input. I have given up on this one. Everything points to the website itself and not Windows or Office. Customer is convinced otherwise but working with web designer. I'll let you know what happens.