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February 28th, 2013 12:00

Intermittent loss of internet connection

I have been having problems with losing internet connection anywhere from 1 to 10 min. at a time. Programs stop responding. Anyone know what the problem might be?

1.1K Posts

February 28th, 2013 12:00

Hi 570thrasher,

Please share the exact system model. Is your system freezing? I will recommend you to run the diagnostics on your system to check the hardware functionality:

  • Restart your system and keep tapping 'F12' as soon as the Dell logo appears.
  • Highlight 'Diagnostics' using up/down arrow keys and press enter.

Please let me know if you get any error code/message.

In case the diagnostics pass, check the system's functionality in 'Safe mode with Networking':

  • Restart the system and keep tapping 'F8' as soon as the Dell logo appears.
  • Highlight 'Safe Mode with Networking' using arrow keys and press enter.

Keep me posted. Please reply for any further questions.

33 Posts

February 28th, 2013 12:00

Any program I am on:

(Not Responding)

1.1K Posts

February 28th, 2013 13:00

Hi 570thrasher,

Thank you for the reply. Please check your system's functionality in Safe mode with networking and share the results. In case you face the same issue in safe mode with networking, try using your system without the Internet access and let me know if you face the same issue.

Awaiting your response.

33 Posts

February 28th, 2013 13:00

Dimension E521

Already ran diagnostics. No problems showed up.

33 Posts

February 28th, 2013 14:00

Still having the problems in Safe mode. I also have since replaced the modem, but still had the same problem.

33 Posts

March 1st, 2013 07:00

Any other suggestions?

33 Posts

March 1st, 2013 07:00

I have been having problems with losing internet connection anywhere from 1 to 10 min. at a time. Programs stop responding. Anyone know what the problem might be?

1.1K Posts

March 1st, 2013 09:00

Hi 570thrasher,

Since you mentioned that the diagnostics passed on your system and also all the programs are not responding, it appears to be an issue with the operating system, but not the internet. I will recommend you to take your system back to its factory state:

Note: All your data including your pictures, documents, music and all the applications installed on your system will be deleted.

  • Restart your system. Press and hold “Ctrl” key on the keyboard and keep tapping “F11” key.
  • The restore process normally takes from 6 to 10 minutes depending on how large the image is. Click on ‘Restore’in the screen below to start a simulation of the restore operation.

  • Click on ‘Confirm’.

  • Click on “Finish”.

  • Click on “Yes”.

  • Read the “Dell End User Software License Agreement” and press any key to continue.

  • Follow the on screen instructions to complete the factory restore.

Keep me posted. Please reply for any questions.

33 Posts

March 5th, 2013 12:00

ctrl/f11 did nothing. I can't enter restore

33 Posts

March 5th, 2013 12:00

I tried several times.

1.1K Posts

March 5th, 2013 19:00

Hi 570thrasher,

If your system was shipped with Windows Vista, try the below steps to take the system back to its factory settings:

Note: PC restore will lead to data (pictures, documents, programs, music) loss. Please perform a data backup prior to this step. Please disconnect any external peripherals (printer, scanner or any USB device) as well. 

Steps for PC restore:

  • Start the computer.
  • Tap the key about 5-6 times on the keyboard during the startup process ( as soon as you see the blue Dell logo) until you see the Windows Advanced Options menu on the screen.
  • Note:  If the Windows Advanced Options menu does not appear, restart the system and try again.
  • Press the key to select Repair Your Computer and press the key.
  • The System Recovery Options window appears.
  • Select your language and click next.
  • Log in as a user with administrative rights and click OK.
  • Click Dell Factory Image Restore.
  • The Dell Factory Image Restore window appears.
  • Click Next.
  • Check Yes, reformat hard drive and restore system software to factory condition. 
  • Click Next.
  • The factory software image is now written to your hard drive.
  • Click Finish to restart the computer.  
For more information on this, you can also refer to link:  http://dell.to/VNR1yv 
 
If your system was shipped with Windows XP, you may re install Windows XP on your system:

Note: All your data including your pictures, documents, music and all the applications installed on your system will be deleted.

•    Remove all external peripherals from your system such as scanner, printer, modem or network cables, USB flash driver or other external Hard Drive etc.
•    Insert the Windows XP CD in your system.
•    Restart your system and keep tapping “F12” as soon as the Dell logo appears.
•    When the ‘Boot Menu’ appears, highlight the CD/DVD drive (listed as "CDROM", "CD/DVD" or "CD/DVD/CD-RW") entry from the list and press .
•    If the message ‘Press any key to boot from the CD...’ appears, press a key to continue booting to the CD.
•    In the windows XP setup screen, press to set up Windows XP.
•    In the ‘Windows XP Licensing Agreement’, read the license agreement, and then press to scroll through the agreement.

  • Press to accept the terms and conditions specified in the license agreement. The partition screen is displayed depending on your computer configuration.
  • Highlight all the partitions and press "D" to delete them.

Note: It will ask you to press 'D' and  a few other characters such as 'enter' or 'L' to delete the partitions.

  • If you are prompted to format the partition, use the up or down arrow keys to highlight ‘Format the partition using the NTFS file system (Quick). Press .

  • The setup will start formatting the files.

  • After the above screen completes the formatting, setup will start copying files.

  • Once the setup completes, your system will restart automatically.

  • You will get “An exciting new look” screen.

  • Click ‘Next on the ‘Regional and Language Options’ window.

  • In the ‘Personalize Your Software’ screen, type your name in the ‘Name’ field and your organization's name in the ‘Organization’ field, if applicable, and click ‘Next’.

  • In the ‘Computer Name screen, type the computer name in the ‘Computer Name’ field if you want to change it from the name provided and click 'Next'.

  • In the ‘Date and Time Settings’ screen, verify that the correct date, time, and time zone appear, and click ‘Next’.

  • In the ‘Networking Settings screen, click to select ‘Typical’, and click ‘Next.’ If available, click ‘Skip to skip the networking setup section.
  • Setup will finalize the installation and should complete within 30 minutes of this point. Once complete, the computer will restart.

Note: If you see the message ‘Press any key to boot from the CD’ when the computer restarts, do not press any keys on the keyboard.

  • After the computer reboots, the newly installed operating system will attempt to configure itself for your detected devices, however many of your device drivers are not yet installed. Use the following to finish the configuration and prepare the computer for driver installation:
  1. If the ‘Display Settings’ message appears, click ‘OK’.
  2. If a ‘Monitor Settings’ message appears, click ‘OK’.
  3. In the ‘Welcome to Microsoft Windows’ window, click ‘Next’.
  4. In the registration screen, click to select ‘No, not at this time’ and click ‘Next’. You will be prompted to register your computer again later.
  5. In the ‘Do you want to set up Internet access now?’ window, click to select ‘No, not at this time’ and click ‘Next’.
  6. In the ‘Who will use this computer?’ window, type the user name of your choice in the ‘Your name’ text box. Type the name of any additional ‘Users’ that will be using the computer in the additional text boxes provided.
  7. Click ‘Next’ to continue.
  8. Click ‘Finish’.
     
Keep me posted. Please reply for any further questions.
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