Vista - Browser ethernet/wifi detection problem

Hi everyone, HELP!

I have a strange problem with my browsers, (Fire Fox, and IE). I have had excellent connection via my wireless laptop HP Pavillion to my Linksys wireless router for the last year.

The problem began when I tried to connect to a flat screen TV via... first an HDMI cable, (no sound)...and then an ethernet cable (no detection).

Attempting this was evidently a big mistake and scrwed up some subtle detection on my laptop!

Because, since then, when I try to go back to my home wifi network, (the one that worked so well over the past year), although the wireless status clearly states "detected and connected", my browsers will not connect to the internet with the infamous notification of a failed internet connection of "page not found blah blah blah".

The bizarre thing is that if I pull out an ethernet cable then plug the laptop directly into my wifi linksys the browsers work just fine.

It appears as if my laptop browsers no longer recognize the wifi, even though the laptop wifi networking seems intact and functional and states it is detected.

I know the linksys wifi itself is working fine because my wife's laptop still functions over the home wifi network.

I have tried disabling the LAN on my laptop, but that still does not work, nor will it allow me to delete the LAN network (it is greyed out).

Has anyone ever had this problem? or knows how to go about solving it? or what else to try?


Many thanks,
-rs-

Well, after spending hours on a fruitless search for answers, but discovering a myriad of horrible things that can go wrong with Vista!?... I finally spent more hours figuring it out. As with most things with "Messysoft" OS...it was by accident!

First off, I am not a computer geek, just a normal user, so bear with me if certain terminology is wrong.

Evidently Vista "hard codes" an IP address when you connect your laptop to a router with an ethernet cable. It does this subtly and with no obvious changes or notifications.

Therefore when you unplug your ethenet cable and want it to look for wifi, it can't because the IP is hardcoded still to the previous ethernet cable IP address.

However, the system still DETECTS and CONNECTS to the wifi, but does not recognize it as something to use due to the IP issue above.

OK, so how to fix:
Go to Network and Internet, Net work connections, Local area connection properties and there under networking you will see a bunch of boxes that are checked.

Go to the internet protocol version 6 (TCP /IPv6) and then version 4 (TCP /IPv4) and click on it and then select their properties.

The bottom line here is that both v6 and v4 must have under their properties the boxes "obtain an IPv6 (or 4) address automatically".

This blows away the previous hardcoded IP address and ..., my problem was fixed and things start to work again.

Ahh Vista...gotta love it, what a silly system defaulted logic!!