i had the oddest thing happen tonight, and i thought i'd share what i found for it may help someone in the future.
boot up after work, no network connection. lights not even blinking on network card.
first thought network card took a dump. had an identical, never used, but 2 years old, put it in. (linksys LNE100Tx)
same problem. so now im worrying, is it the MB, did something over heat, get dirty, short out, get old?
in my motherboard (MSI K7T266) i have 5 PCI slots, below the AGP slot. AGP is video, 3rd is SB live card, bottom is network card. i forget exactly why they are wyhere they are, something with the IRQ sharing on the MB i found out. all other slots are empty.
put the old network card (because if the other one didn't work i thought it might be something other than the network card malfunctioning) into the 4th slot (right below the sound card.
still no-go. no lights, and this time, when i was making sure the card was seated properly my PC shut off.
WHOA WTF?!??! i did full shut down's and power disconnected to move and swap cards, i barley nudged the card just to make sure proper seating.
now the PC would do nothing. power connected, LED on mouse was lit, but nothing worked.
i noticed the cables for the power switch and stuff were right at the bottom of the MB, near the bottom PCI slot. i touched them and ZOOM PC comes to life.
now i am really worried about heat / dust damage to the MB. (i dont keep the PC as clean as i should since i smoke).
this whole time, the DLink router is showing the cable internet connection light, but no connection from the PC.
getting worried and desperate, i try different cables, and move the network card up to the top slot rigght up against the video card. i dont intend on keeping it there, just trouble shooting to see where the problem is.
in that position i get an intermittent connection. by intermittent i mean 1/2 second "on" then 2-4 seconds nothing. this is with both network cards.
now i am thinking a few things. either i have 2 bad network cards, a bad MB, or bad PCI slots. these slots have never had anything in them, and i thought build up of dust might be hosing the slot connection.
just for kicks i go straight from the modem to the network card.
full up, and good in every slot, every card, every cable.
LMAO the router took a dump. it had nothing to do with my card or MB.
drove the 1/2 hour to best buy, got a new router and im smooth as silk.
i never thought to check the connection straight up (yes im a dumbarse)
in closing, might want to keep tabs on those power switch cables, when you are putzing around, if there is dust they can not function properly. i cleand then and reconnected, and i can now bumb them all i want (to a reasonable degree) and no problems.
sorry for the long post, just thought i'd give an idea on where NOT to start the troubleshooting LOL
