Jump to content
Charles of Tours

LAN / Ethernet troubles

Recommended Posts

Hello.

 

At home I sometimes like to play computer games with family members (LAN parties for the win). However I seem to have trouble when it comes to getting my computers to communicate with each other. Since I've upgraded my Acer (see below) to Windows 10, it is unable to ping other devices on my network, yet other devices are able to ping it.

 

AFAIK the two desktops are in separate HomeGroups (can't figure out how to alter that because of weird issues between Windows 7 and 10 though I can't tell if that's the problem). I've upgraded the firmware of my router (probably shouldn't list the model). I've also updated the software drivers of my Acer's Network Adapter (Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller ... it was a Realtek PCIe FE Family Controller but I downloaded the latest driver from Realtek's site directly and I know for sure that it installed correctly).

 

Also: My Acer is unable to connect to the other computers in LAN games which is my main issue. It is not able to connect to the Laptop and the Laptop is not able to connect to it when either one is hosting (I tried the game "No More Room in Hell"). The eMachine is unable to connect to the Acer via LAN, and the Acer is *only* able to connect to the eMachine while the eMachine is hosting a game on Game Ranger ("Stronghold Crusader").

 

I am currently using three PCs:

1) an Acer Aspire M3470G desktop which I upgraded from Windows 7 Home Premium to Windows 10 Home (has all of the same parts that came out of the box, except an additional HDD and a second disk drive (I disconnected the first disk drive due to a lack of cords). This is my main rig.

 

Processor: AMD A6-3620 APU with Radeon HD Graphics 2.20GHz

Installed memory (RAM): 4.00 GB (3.39 GB usable)

 

2) an Asus X540SA 64-bit laptop which I bought recently (Windows 10 Home came with it). Haven't done much with it except transfer some files from my main rig and put in a wireless mouse.

 

Processor: Intel® Pentium® CPU N3700 @ 1.60GHz

Installed memory (RAM): 4.00 GB

 

3) an eMachines ET1331G 64-bit desktop running Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (its hardware is too weak to upgrade to Windows 10).

 

Processor: AMD Athlon II X2 250u 1.60GHz

Installed memory (RAM): 4.00 GB (3.75 usable)

 

Thank you for reading and I hope you can help.


Mqb938i.png

Do you crave a life of adventure? Check out our Adventures in the Duchy of Riverborne and apply here to join the action!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I had a very similar issue, only a lot more serious when I downgraded from Windows 10 to Windows 8 on my Acer Aspire E5-773-579L. It appears although you can "explore without limits", you can only do this if you keep the item in exactly the same way it was when you purchased it (from my experience with this).

 

In my case, no supported drivers were available for Windows 8 and I lost all access to the internet. My video driver crashes sporadically, my wireless sometimes now turns on and off at random, and I have received a regular number of BSODs, apparently for random reasons. I always assume that the vast majority of them are because of my graphics driver crashing, though I can't ever prove it.

 

Luckily for me, the Windows 10 drivers for the same product worked, in a fashion, as I explained.

 

Updating the drivers could have caused an issue or maybe more, from my first-hand experience, and from what I've seen, Windows 10 is extremely unstable. It's crashed, corrupted and destroyed the data on someone's SSD who I know, it updates randomly as it chooses, and it sends out thousands of connections to the Microsoft servers even after you disable this in privacy settings.

 

I've also seen cases where even though specific drivers are supported by Windows 10, and are listed as being so, they will not work with the produce, no matter what. Slightly going off topic now from what the original topic was for (and I thought of this because you mentioned SHC), but if you're using Windows 10, you will now lose all access to playing a lot of old games, they will not work on Windows 10. Full stop. Just outright will not work, and there is no fix. This is to blame: https://myonlinesecurity.co.uk/september-2015-windows-updates-kb3086255-breaks-many-games/

 

If you're running another version of Windows which is lower (e.g. 8.1, 8, 7 .etc.), then you can use the fix available in the article. But on Windows 10, it cannot be fixed at all.

 

Here is an interesting question - did it work with the old drivers (after the Windows 10 upgrade), before you updated them to the newer version? Does your computer have any difficulty connecting to the internet at all, or any wireless communication in any format, or is it purely LAN that it will not work on. Also, have you tried

 

In regards to HomeGroups, they usually are in separate HomeGroups, though if you had them in the same before the upgrade, perhaps this has been mishandled by Windows 10, which wouldn't surprise me at all.

 

The eMachine is unable to connect to the Acer via LAN, and the Acer is *only* able to connect to the eMachine while the eMachine is hosting a game on Game Ranger

 

GameRanger does not connect over LAN, and connects over the internet, I believe, in all circumstances. This is very likely why you can connect here.

 

In addition to the checks above, could you also take a look in device manager, and check for missing divers? I think it's highly probable you're either missing a driver of some kind, or Windows 10 has "gone buggy" again, and not recognised a valid driver you have.


Quote

The fields have eyes, and the woods have ears.

⁠— Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales: The Knight's Tale

Useful Articles

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Slightly going off topic now from what the original topic was for (and I thought of this because you mentioned SHC), but if you're using Windows 10, you will now lose all access to playing a lot of old games, they will not work on Windows 10. Full stop. Just outright will not work, and there is no fix.

I've been very fortunate. I can play the old Stronghold games, the old Cossacks games, and even some oldies via DosBox. I haven't tried any games from the 95/98 era (which was hit and miss to work on Windows 7 even) but some of the old Sierra games (the city builder ones like Zeus and Pharoah and the Chinese one I can't think of right now, plus Civil War Generals 2) I got to work on 7.

 

Here is an interesting question - did it work with the old drivers (after the Windows 10 upgrade), before you updated them to the newer version?

As to your question - no. Even with the old drivers (which Windows saw as "up to date" - thus I went on the site to download the 10-friendly version directly) my Acer was unable to connect via LAN to the other computers (and this seems to have become only an issue around the time I upgraded to Windows 10).

 

Does your computer have any difficulty connecting to the internet at all, or any wireless communication in any format, or is it purely LAN that it will not work on. Also, have you tried

Looks like you got cut off there. I can connect to the internet without trouble with my Acer (besides my slow internet speed that all of my computers experience). I have not tried anything wireless with the two desktops, but all three computers (including the laptop, which I have used exclusively with WIFI for an internet connection, so far) can connect to the internet without trouble and are recognized by the router/modem (AFAIK it's a typical 2-in-1).

 

GameRanger does not connect over LAN, and connects over the internet, I believe, in all circumstances. This is very likely why you can connect here.

This is strange, because my Acer connects to my eMachine only when the eMachine hosts on GameRanger, yet when the Acer hosts the eMachine cannot connect. I forgot to mention this yesterday, but I also receive an error whenever I try to host (or sometimes join) a game on GameRanger. Though, I can join internet games and even GameRanger games on the same network without a problem. Here's a screenshot of the error:

BZRHkQq.png

 

In addition to the checks above, could you also take a look in device manager, and check for missing divers? I think it's highly probable you're either missing a driver of some kind, or Windows 10 has "gone buggy" again, and not recognised a valid driver you have.

I'll have a look at this after breakfast. Thanks!

 

EDIT: Just took a look. There is no "Other drivers" category but I clicked to view hidden devices and it came up with a "Other devices" category. I'll try to update these. Time for another screenshot:

rMo8VAv.png

 

EDIT #2: Well, I got this beauty on all three "Other devices" when I tried to update them individually.

wQdPuqK.png

 

EDIT #3: I'm on my laptop putting up this edit because I "kinda" found a fix. Much emphasis on "kinda."

 

I unplugged my Acer from the router (it is completely cut off from the internet) and plugged it directly into my laptop using the same yellow internet cord, yet my laptop still has internet functionality thanks to WIFI. I thought of simply bypassing the router. This is the second router my ISP provided me with, after the first wasn't even able to reach its own gateway settings page (let alone port forward, which I did often 2 years ago), and I figured if the first one was bugged maybe the second one is too - at least with transfering packets from my Acer to the other computers on the network.

 

Anyways, the solution worked after allowing Stronghold and Crusader through my laptop's firewall. The laptop and the Acer can now communicate as long as they are plugged into each other. The downside, of course, is that my Acer can not reach the internet while this is the case. I consider this a temporary solution, though it might be the best I can find, since I imagine it's the luck of the draw if I ask my ISP to transfer my router for another one (especially since the model is 4 to 6 years old) and since I got it when it was new, I think I'll just have to stick with it.

 

If anyone can think of a more permanent solution I'd be open to try it out. Thank you @Lord_Chris for your help so far. :)

Edited by Charles of Tours

Mqb938i.png

Do you crave a life of adventure? Check out our Adventures in the Duchy of Riverborne and apply here to join the action!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I haven't tried any games from the 95/98 era (which was hit and miss to work on Windows 7 even) but some of the old Sierra games (the city builder ones like Zeus and Pharoah and the Chinese one I can't think of right now, plus Civil War Generals 2) I got to work on 7.

 

Those are generally the games I'm referring to, although games like Cossacks, I'm stunned actually work. I couldn't get that to even install on Windows 7.

 

As to your question - no. Even with the old drivers (which Windows saw as "up to date" - thus I went on the site to download the 10-friendly version directly) my Acer was unable to connect via LAN to the other computers (and this seems to have become only an issue around the time I upgraded to Windows 10).

 

Haven't read the rest of your post yet, but from this my guess is that it's a case of the drivers not being recognised.

 

Anyways, the solution worked after allowing Stronghold and Crusader through my laptop's firewall. The laptop and the Acer can now communicate as long as they are plugged into each other. The downside, of course, is that my Acer can not reach the internet while this is the case

 

So your Acer must be plugged in with an Ethernet cable to access the router? If so, this is definitely driver-related, I had the exact same problem. You'll need to get the wireless communication driver if this is the case. If this is not the problem, could you explain what now is happening? I'm a bit confused with all the different explanations :D

 

Also - regarding the GameRanger router error, I have the exact same problem, it's nothing to worry about. All it means is that a very small percentage of players (less than 5% I believe) will not be able to connect with you when you try to play online.

Edited by Lord_Chris

Quote

The fields have eyes, and the woods have ears.

⁠— Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales: The Knight's Tale

Useful Articles

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Not much time to read everything, but only to jump in. Sorry if I miss the point. :)

 

Charles, did you ask your question because of this?

BZRHkQq.png

And are you able to play games at GameRanger even though you get this message?

 

If yes, I'd say to you to ignore the problem, I've been trying a lot of stuff with my router, and nothing helped - I folder some "step by step" tutorials how to do it, but GameRanger keeps saying this message. Also, it gives this message only when there are more computers connected on that network (on that router). True, if there weren't this message I could join a game more quickly, but it still doesn't stop me from playing, and I think that it actually causes no lag. :)

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi @EaglePrince! That's not actually the problem. I think it might be caused my issues with my router / drivers because whichever ports I forward in the step-by-step process you mentioned, that popup still persists.

 

So your Acer must be plugged in with an Ethernet cable to access the router? If so, this is definitely driver-related, I had the exact same problem. You'll need to get the wireless communication driver if this is the case. If this is not the problem, could you explain what now is happening? I'm a bit confused with all the different explanations

Sorry for the confusion. There've been a number of issues that I think are related to whatever is disturbing my LAN connections, and I've been tossing out some "symptoms" as well as possible "disease names." ;)

 

My problem isn't about wireless communications - both of my desktops have always been plugged into the router when I use them on the internet (and I'm not sure if either even have the hardware capability of communicating with the router without the ethernet cable). The thing that annoys me isn't this, but that my Acer desktop doesn't communicate with other computers on my network unless the Acer is plugged into that computer directly.

 

Knowing that, I'm beginning to think it's faulty drivers in my Acer (like you mentioned) but only when sending packets through the router to other computers on the network. I tried having my computers connect again just now. My eMachine can connect to my laptop and vice versa, when either is hosting Stronghold Crusader. This is with the laptop using wifi and the eMachine being plugged into the router - without using Game Ranger.

 

TL;DR @Lord_Chris was right in saying that it's probably an unrecognized driver in my Acer ... now time to figure out which one ... :/


Mqb938i.png

Do you crave a life of adventure? Check out our Adventures in the Duchy of Riverborne and apply here to join the action!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Ah, ok - I understand it now. Yes, it's definitely a driver error.

 

The reason why your computers can't connect even when connected to the router is because the router is purely for internet access, you're assuming by connecting to the router it will automatically give you wireless access around, which it doesn't. For this, you need the specific wireless communication driver which allows your computer to connect and view wireless devices.

 

In other words - the reason you can't get Wi-Fi and the reason you can't connect to those computers is down to a fault in the exact same driver.

 

Here's a quick test. Check if your WiFi is actually enabled or visible - I was using Windows 8, so the accessibility may or may not be there in the same manner. But for me, the option wasn't even visible because the driver wasn't installed. I've just checked, and it appears from this link above, you can get it through the settings app, which is what I used. See under Managing your wireless connections on the page I link to.

 

If the symptoms are exactly the same, you should also have some kind of red icon saying no Wi-Fi is available once you've unplugged your Ethernet cable:

 

wphbf.png


Quote

The fields have eyes, and the woods have ears.

⁠— Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales: The Knight's Tale

Useful Articles

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks Chris! I'll look into it. My Acer does not have a Wifi driver. I'm not sure about the eMachine, but I do know that my laptop does have it. :)

 

I'll post an update once I try it out.

 

EDIT: There is no "Wi-fi" menu under Network & Internet Settings on my Acer (Windows 10) but there is on my laptop (also Windows 10). I take it this is because under Device Manager I have a Realtek ethernet adapter under "Network adapters" yet not a wireless adapter? I have both on my laptop, which I'm guessing is the reason why I can access Wi-fi settings (and even use Wi-fi) on the laptop, but not the Acer desktop.

 

Correct me if I'm wrong.

Edited by Charles of Tours

Mqb938i.png

Do you crave a life of adventure? Check out our Adventures in the Duchy of Riverborne and apply here to join the action!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

You'll have a wireless adapter, I presume, but this is exactly what I thought was wrong - it appears to be a very common problem with both Windows 8 & Windows 10, that people lose their internet connection easily and don't get wireless communication.

 

If I have the right computer, the Acer Aspire you added in your initial post, then from what I've seen it should have a wireless adapter. I certainly would be extremely surprised if it didn't. I would also recommend you check in Device Manager again under "Network Adapters" and let me know if you can see anything.

 

So the problem is that whatever driver you've installed for wireless communication is not working. Unfortunately, you're in the same boat as me; Acer have removed all the drivers for any version of Windows other than Windows 10 in an attempt to force people to upgrade, so if the Windows 10 drivers don't work, basically, wireless is broke on your computer. Luckily in my case, my computer came with Windows 10 pre-built, so it does work in a fashion on Windows 8.

 

But you're using an older driver on a newer system, so I'm not so sure it will. The only other option is to try and somehow get your hands on one of your old wireless drivers, but again, it doesn't really look as if that could work, because it probably isn't compatible with Windows 10 - and where you'd find them, I have no idea.

 

You can download the correct drivers for your device here: http://www.acer.com/ac/en/GB/content/drivers


Quote

The fields have eyes, and the woods have ears.

⁠— Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales: The Knight's Tale

Useful Articles

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Here's a screenshot of my Network Adapters:

F3wSW32.png

 

Thanks for the link! I was just about to try that after I read half of your post. :)

 

EDIT: I see that there's a Lan, Modem, and two Wireless LAN drivers available on the Acer site. Any suggestions as to which I should try (with a "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" mindset), or should I simply go for all of them?

Nq5HyQh.png

Edited by Charles of Tours

Mqb938i.png

Do you crave a life of adventure? Check out our Adventures in the Duchy of Riverborne and apply here to join the action!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Status Update: I haven't installed any of the drivers from the Acer website, because I noticed with the eMachine that it does not have a wireless adapter either. I'm thinking that it isn't missing (that simply neither computer came with one) and that something else is getting in the way of my Acer connecting to other computers on the LAN.

 

I'll keep searching! :)


Mqb938i.png

Do you crave a life of adventure? Check out our Adventures in the Duchy of Riverborne and apply here to join the action!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

  • Similar Topics

    • LAN for stronghold 2 1.4.1

      Is there any modification that adds LAN capabilities to the 1.4.1 vesrion of stronghold 2?(like v1.3.1)

      in Stronghold 2

    • RAM Troubles

      One of the many reasons why your computer could be running slow, is a RAM related issue. You should first do some inspecting on the software side if the lag you are experiencing is not too horrendous. While there are several software approaches to fixing RAM, I'll only talk about a diagnosis to the problem, and a possible (very, very, very cheap) solution.   These next software steps are intended for Windows 7. Click on the Start menu icon, right click on Computer, click on Properties. Look unde

      in Computer Support

×
×
  • Create New...