IE 10 / 11 Problems

[BillTIZ]

Last week IE10 started choosing which web sites it would connect to.
I can connect to banks, and some other web sites, not to my local flying club, not to Facebook, not to MSN and not even to Microsoft!!

Kept getting server would not respond messages.

I upgraded to IE11 thinking it would solve the problem. NOT!!

Safari on PC runs fine, Google Chrome runs fine. IE does not. Loaded FireFox, same issues as MS IE.

Ran MS malicious software tool, found one WebCake that norton had quarantined. Did not solve the problem. Uninstalled IE 11 and IE 10 is active again. Cannot find IE10 in "Programs and files" to uninstall. Attempt to install IE9 and get response that IE9 is already installed, but I cannot use it.

Any ideas? MS web pages are of no help.

Running Win7 SP2 64bit.

 

[RJM62]

Have you tried the IE "Reset" function?

-Rich

 

[BillTIZ]

Have you tried the IE "Reset" function?

-Rich

Yes thanks, I tried that one right after the malware scan. No change.
Spent an hour this morning researching MS web for ideas.

I've checked all the SSL and TSL security settings.

 

[RJM62]

Are all the sites you can open secure (https)?

Have you checked your LAN settings in Control Panel / Internet Options / Connections tab for remnants of a rogue proxy?

Does IE work properly with extensions disabled ( iexplore -extoff )?

-Rich

 

[wsuffa]

Have you checked to see if your DNS server has been redirected?

If so, it may be going to rogue sites.

Have you tried another browser?

 

[Clark1961]

Last week IE10 started choosing which web sites it would connect to.
I can connect to banks, and some other web sites, not to my local flying club, not to Facebook, not to MSN and not even to Microsoft!!

Kept getting server would not respond messages.

I upgraded to IE11 thinking it would solve the problem. NOT!!

Safari on PC runs fine, Google Chrome runs fine. IE does not. Loaded FireFox, same issues as MS IE.

Ran MS malicious software tool, found one WebCake that norton had quarantined. Did not solve the problem. Uninstalled IE 11 and IE 10 is active again. Cannot find IE10 in "Programs and files" to uninstall. Attempt to install IE9 and get response that IE9 is already installed, but I cannot use it.

Any ideas? MS web pages are of no help.

Running Win7 SP2 64bit.

Check the Hosts file

 

[BillTIZ]

Are all the sites you can open secure (https)?

Have you checked your LAN settings in Control Panel / Internet Options / Connections tab for remnants of a rogue proxy?

Does IE work properly with extensions disabled ( iexplore -extoff )?

-Rich

I checked the connections tab and saw nothing of a proxy being setup. Nothing was checked and none of the port selections were available, always dim.

I tried IE with -extoff and it made no difference.

it does appear that web sites that do work are https:

Malwarebytes reports nothing found on a recheck. I had it clean up some stuff last night but it made no difference in how IE responds.

I am back to IE9 now with no changes in performance. Still can't get to sites.

 

[BillTIZ]

Check the Hosts file

how to? edit.. found it.. looks clean

# Copyright (c) 1993-2009 Microsoft Corp.
#
# This is a sample HOSTS file used by Microsoft TCP/IP for Windows.
#
# This file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. Each
# entry should be kept on an individual line. The IP address should
# be placed in the first column followed by the corresponding host name.
# The IP address and the host name should be separated by at least one
# space.
#
# Additionally, comments (such as these) may be inserted on individual
# lines or following the machine name denoted by a '#' symbol.
#
# For example:
#
# 102.54.94.97 rhino.acme.com # source server
# 38.25.63.10 x.acme.com # x client host

# localhost name resolution is handled within DNS itself.
# 127.0.0.1 localhost
# ::1 localhost

 

[BillTIZ]

Ran:
Malware Bytes, Clean
MS Defender, Clean
Symantec, Power Eraser, Clean
MS RIES, did not change anything.

Would bypassing my router/wifi box be an help? Go direct from Cable modem to computer? I'll try that this weekend. Of course that knocks out my wireless printer during the test.

 

[denverpilot]

 

[wsuffa]

Have you tried Firefox or Chrome?

 

[BillTIZ]

Have you tried Firefox or Chrome?

FireFox had the same issues, installed after the issues began with IE. So it probably picked up the same problem.

Google Chrome and Safari were loaded before the issue began and have no problems.

It's also been tested that the web browser internal to AOL software does not have any problems. again, AOL was loaded before the problems began.

I've seemed to isolate that the IE can go to https: sites, but not to http sites.

 

[RJM62]

Restart the computer into Safe Mode with Networking, and see if you still have the same problem with IE / FF.

-Rich

 

[RJM62]

Ran:
Malware Bytes, Clean
MS Defender, Clean
Symantec, Power Eraser, Clean
MS RIES, did not change anything.

Would bypassing my router/wifi box be an help? Go direct from Cable modem to computer? I'll try that this weekend. Of course that knocks out my wireless printer during the test.

Yes. I stupidly assumed that you'd tried that already, but only because it's one of the things I would have ruled out early. Doh.

-Rich

 

[BillTIZ]

Restart the computer into Safe Mode with Networking, and see if you still have the same problem with IE / FF.

-Rich

Started in safe mode with networking, and there was zero Internet connection.
Something else to chase down.

 

[Bob Noel]

Last week IE10 started choosing which web sites it would connect to.
I can connect to banks, and some other web sites, not to my local flying club, not to Facebook, not to MSN and not even to Microsoft!!

Kept getting server would not respond messages.

I upgraded to IE11 thinking it would solve the problem. NOT!!

Safari on PC runs fine, Google Chrome runs fine. IE does not. Loaded FireFox, same issues as MS IE.

Ran MS malicious software tool, found one WebCake that norton had quarantined. Did not solve the problem. Uninstalled IE 11 and IE 10 is active again. Cannot find IE10 in "Programs and files" to uninstall. Attempt to install IE9 and get response that IE9 is already installed, but I cannot use it.

Any ideas? MS web pages are of no help.

Running Win7 SP2 64bit.

I know of a couple of sites that are having problems with Firefox and IE 10/11.

For those sites you are having problems with, do you know if anyone else can successfully connect using IE 10/11?

IOW - it might not be your computer at all.

 

[RJM62]

Started in safe mode with networking, and there was zero Internet connection.
Something else to chase down.

Probably just the NIC driver not being able to start in Safe Mode.

The only diagnostic value is that if you have normal connectivity in Safe Mode w/ Networking, but not in normal mode, it *suggests* some service that is starting in normal mode (which may or may not be malicious) which isn't starting in Safe Mode.

Nonetheless, if the regular malware scans didn't pick anything up, having good connectivity in Safe Mode but problems in Normal mode would be where I'd start thinking about a rootkit or some other sort of cloaked malware (although there would be other possibilities) if I were doing the job for a client. Maybe you can get connectivity in Safe Mode if you connect to the router by wired Ethernet?

If you do want to snoop around for rootkits, ComboFix has a pretty decent rootkit scanner built in, and is free. I suggest a full backup before using it, though. It sometimes breaks stuff, sometimes badly. Also, it should only be downloaded here. There are malicious imposters elsewhere on the Interwebz.

The downloaded file is only good for ten minutes after download, and should be run with any resident anti-malware software disabled.

-Rich

 

[BillTIZ]

Yes. I stupidly assumed that you'd tried that already, but only because it's one of the things I would have ruled out early. Doh.

-Rich

Taking the router out of the path had no change on the problem.
Read your comments and will look to ComboFix after I run a full back up.

I have copied my entire Data folder and Win7 Libraries to another drive on the computer for backup. I'll burn/copy them to a stand alone drive before I run ComboFix.

 

[BillTIZ]

Ok, MS Techie just spent 2 hours on the problem and he's no closer to a solution than I was. Ran a couple of high powered anti virus malware detection programs, found some stuff. But they apparently are not the culprit.

 

[baboss]

For kicks create a new user on the computer, log in under the new account and try to hit the websites that don't currently work.

 

[flyingcheesehead]

Safari on PC runs fine, Google Chrome runs fine. IE does not. Loaded FireFox, same issues as MS IE.

Any ideas? MS web pages are of no help.

Use Chrome!

I can't imagine why anyone willingly uses IE. It's crap, and it breaks a ton of things every time there's a new release. I absolutely cannot stand it. I use Safari, Firefox, and Chrome. Never IE, except for one client that has a VPN that runs through IE only.

 

[Warrior]

My IE stopped working a month or so ago so thankfully I am able to do what I need with Chrome and Firefox. It would be nice to have Explorer also so when and if I feel like it I may try some of those things. I have used Explorer for a long time so it is wierd that Microsoft is having problems with it, at least with the OP and me.

 

[Norman]

For kicks create a new user on the computer, log in under the mew account and try to hit the websites that don't currently work.

Had that happen to me. Couldn't watch video on some sites. Turned out that my user profile had become corrupted. New user profile cured the problem.

 

[BillTIZ]

Microsoft tech support spent 5 hrs in two days. Isolated the problem to Norton 360. IE worked when Norton was uninstalled, worked when reinstalled. But when updated to latest definitions and patches, then Norton blocked IE.

Norton tech did everything MS did in about 30 minutes, yes I clued him in. Then with Norton uninstalled started searching installed "couponing software" in Contol Panel Programs. Uninstalled a few, uninstalled Google Hangout program.

Reinstalled Norton and all patches and virus definitions. Everything worked. Reinstalled Hangout, everything worked. Spent a total of about 2 hrs on the system.

Everything including IE11 has been fine for the last 3 days.

 

[BillTIZ]

For kicks create a new user on the computer, log in under the new account and try to hit the websites that don't currently work.

Did that with MS tech support, problem remained.

 

[RJM62]

Microsoft tech support spent 5 hrs in two days. Isolated the problem to Norton 360. IE worked when Norton was uninstalled, worked when reinstalled. But when updated to latest definitions and patches, then Norton blocked IE.

Norton tech did everything MS did in about 30 minutes, yes I clued him in. Then with Norton uninstalled started searching installed "couponing software" in Contol Panel Programs. Uninstalled a few, uninstalled Google Hangout program.

Reinstalled Norton and all patches and virus definitions. Everything worked. Reinstalled Hangout, everything worked. Spent a total of about 2 hrs on the system.

Everything including IE11 has been fine for the last 3 days.

Frankly, I'm not very surprised. I figured it had to be something along those lines. I'd be curious to know exactly what the problem was, but I doubt the tech went into detail. Did he mention anything about the "Winsock Catalog" or "LSPs" ("layered service providers")?

Back in the days before WinXP SP2, Winsock Catalog problems were common after malicious LSPs were removed, especially if their registry entries weren't also removed. Fixing broken Winsocks was a common and easy job back then. But XP SP-2 introduced Winsock self-healing ability, so that's become a bit of an unusual problem. I'd be curious to know the details, if you have any.

Glad you finally got it fixed, though.

-Rich

 

[BillTIZ]

Frankly, I'm not very surprised. I figured it had to be something along those lines. I'd be curious to know exactly what the problem was, but I doubt the tech went into detail. Did he mention anything about the "Winsock Catalog" or "LSPs" ("layered service providers")?

Back in the days before WinXP SP2, Winsock Catalog problems were common after malicious LSPs were removed, especially if their registry entries weren't also removed. Fixing broken Winsocks was a common and easy job back then. But XP SP-2 introduced Winsock self-healing ability, so that's become a bit of an unusual problem. I'd be curious to know the details, if you have any.

Glad you finally got it fixed, though.

-Rich

No mention of Winsock or LSP. I am running Win7 with current Service Pack. I watched all that was cleared/removed. He did mention that one of the programs removed is installed with some online vendors to make it easier to search their online catalogs. Such programs should not be installed without the users approval.