Digital Divas: September 12, 2005


The information contained in this article is only valid at the time of publication and will not be updated. Please search the Resnet site if you have questions.

Dear Digital Diva,

I can't connect to the Internet! I got back to school this semester and now I can't go online or check my email. My computer was fine at home. What happened?!

Sincerely, Would B. Websurfer

Dear Would B.,

There are a few things that might be preventing you from connecting to the Internet. These problems break down into two groups: configuration problems and physical problems.

Physical problems include broken jacks and faulty Ethernet cords. The easiest things to test for are broken jacks and bad Ethernet cords. If you have an Ethernet card in your computer but can't connect to the Internet in your room, try using a different cord and connecting in another location. However, remember that if you live in a single, only one jack is active, and in both singles and doubles, your network jack is orange (the phone jack is black). So try both jacks, and try more than one Ethernet cord if you can't connect.

If you have a configuration problem, it is most likely because your IP address isn't set to Configure Automatically through DHCP or your Network Connections aren't set up.

To set your IP Address to Configure Automatically:

  1. Go to the Control Panel.
  2. Go to Network Connections. If you can't see Network Connections, go to Network and Internet Connections and then go to Network Connections from there.
  3. Right-click on Local Area Connection and choose to Properties.
  4. Scroll down the "This connection uses the following items" list and select Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) and click Properties.
  5. Make sure that TCP/IP is configured to "obtain IP Address" and "obtain DNS server" automatically.
  6. Restart the computer.

To check that your Network Connections are set up properly:

  1. Follow steps 1 and 2 above.
  2. If there is a red "X" through Local Area Connection, right-click the icon and choose "enable."

It is also important that you connect to the Internet safely, otherwise you might not stay online very long! Sometimes viruses will prevent you from connecting to the Internet normally, and adware and spyware will definitely slow your web-surfing down. To protect your computer from viruses and other malware, follow the Mandatory Computer Setup and check out the Six Steps to Secure and Safe Surfing.

If you've tested your computer in more than one location, used more than one Ethernet cord, configured your IP Address to configure automatically, checked that your Local Area Connection is enabled, and you still can't connect to the Internet, just come into one of the computer lab to get help during office hours or call the help desk at 4-7172.