INTERACT FORUM

Networks and Remotes => Media Network => Topic started by: daveman on September 09, 2015, 04:29:29 am

Title: scritp to automatically reset network connection
Post by: daveman on September 09, 2015, 04:29:29 am
I am having an intermittent problem with my home network connection on my Windows 7 server

it will intermittently get "lost".

I then have to run to the computer and so the following

    Right-click the network adapter icon, and then click Disable.
    Right-click the adapter icon again, and then click Enable.

Everything then works again.  I have played with numerous settings to no avail.

I am now looking for a script which will check if the network is active.  If not it will simply re-enable it.

Any suggestions? 

thanks

dave
Title: Re: scritp to automatically reset network connection
Post by: RoderickGI on September 09, 2015, 05:10:39 am
Are you sure that it isn't just Windows 7 turning the network adapter off?
Check the network adapter Configuration, Power Management tab, "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" setting.

If your server is always on, then you can untick this setting, and the problem may go away. (I assume it is always on, since you want to run a script that will reactivate the network adapter, and that can only be run on the server if the network isn't working.)

If you allow your server to sleep, then this setting must be ticked, or Wake On LAN will stop working. In which case, you may just be able to send a Magic Packet to the server to wake it, or open a MC Client which will also send a Magic Packet. So if the MC Client is running, you will need to close it and reopen it.

Either way, the first thing I would do is check that the network driver I am using is the latest Windows 7 driver from the manufacturer, not from Microsoft. The Microsoft drivers are often a little behind in fixes, or are actually generic drivers and not specific to the adapter or adapter family.

If none of the above helps, tell us more about your set up. Server always on? Always use MC Clients and not the server to play media? Media Network set up in MC? Using DLNA or MC Media Network?
Title: Re: scritp to automatically reset network connection
Post by: daveman on September 09, 2015, 06:26:27 am
My server is always on and never sleeps. 

Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power is not selected.

I have a gigabit network adapter (Intel 82566DM)

What i think may be happening is that if there is too much bandwidth going to the server (i.e., copying multiple files simultaneously / dloading multiple files to  the server), the network connection simply shuts off.  I then go to the server and re-enable the local area connection and it is back up.

dave
Title: Re: scritp to automatically reset network connection
Post by: RoderickGI on September 09, 2015, 08:30:58 pm
In that case, what is happening to you just shouldn't be happening.

You would have to be producing a level of activity equivalent to a Denial Of Service attack, or probably more, for a network card to simply stop working due to load. Particularly an Intel adapter, as they are usually extremely robust, as are their drivers. Did you check you had the latest drivers for it? The Intel® Driver Update Utility (http://www.intel.com/p/en_US/support/detect) should find the latest, which seems to be version 20.2 (https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/25242/Network-Adapter-Driver-for-Windows-7-), released in July. There are a bunch of utilities (https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/25245/Administrative-Tools-for-Intel-Network-Adapters) for it as well. The DIAGS utility may tell you if there is a problem.

Of course if that adapter is on-board on a motherboard, then the motherboard's drivers may be better, if they changed something. But I have always found the Intel drivers downloaded directly or using their Intel® Driver Update Utility have been better.

It is far more likely that an antivirus or firewall product on the server decided that an attack was under way, and blocked the connection. If you have those on your server, perhaps check the logs and see if anything has been reported.