ip address wont renew, can't connect to intnernet

[Aerosion]

i just reinstalled windows and the driver for its ethernet connection but there's a problem: when i connect to the internet the connection keeps getting stuck at "acquiring network address" phase and then goes to limited or no connectivity

ipconfig /all in the command prompt gives this:


Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : user-6cc2847f59
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Unknown
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Broadcom NetXtreme 57xx Gigabit Cont
roller
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-1E-4F-9B-9A-12
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration IP Address. . . : 169.254.88.160
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.0.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :

also ipconfig /release gives


Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 0.0.0.0
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 0.0.0.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :

and ipconfig /renew gives "an error occured while renewing interface local area connection : unable to contact your DHCP server. request has timed out

i don't know what any of this means

[GroundZero3]

How is your network setup?

Are you plugged direct into a modem or are you using a router?

[Aerosion]

i use a cable modem

i'm pretty sure it's not the ISP because i'm using the same router, wire, everything to power the internet on the laptop that i'm typing on now

plus the internet worked just fine on the affected computer before i reinstalled windows

[osprey4]

Sounds like a firewall problem. What security software or firewall are you using?

Or try resetting winsock: How to reset Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) in Windows XP

[Aerosion]

no i even uninstalled my antivirus software and disabled the windows firewall with no results, resetting the winsocks didn't do it for me either

i downloaded something called winsockfix and tried that as well with no luck

[BipolarBill]

Whenever you move a cable connection from one PC to another, it's best to cycle power on the cable modem. What's happening is that the cable company has given the laptop a "lease" for an IP address that is attached to the MAC address of the laptop's Ethernet adapter. If it doesn't find that MAC address, it's not going to provide an IP for it.

The MAC address is a hardware address.

Try rebooting your cable modem after connecting to the PC.

[Aerosion]

you know i feel silly now -- that's exactly what it was

however here's what's funny, it still wasn't working on internet explorer. only after i installed firefox did both browsers start to work. i guess its a technical thing

anyway thanks for your patience, i'm writing this from my desktop computer now, i apporecite it

[BipolarBill]

If you are going to be switching the cable around to different PCs, it's best to connect a router to the modem and dangle a few Ethernet cables off of the router for occasional use.

Glad to be of help and happy holidays!