When Trouble Shoots at you, Be Ready to Shoot Back

When Trouble Shoots at you, Be Ready to Shoot Back!

You've navigated the maze of potential address conflicts and have set your NIC to the correct settings. The software is installed, so everything should work, right? Well, it usually does (loud cheers and high fives) but sometimes it doesn't (serious grinding and gnashing of teeth). You learn that things aren't working in one of four ways:

• Your PC doesn't boot: This one is obvious. When you can't boot, it's time to undo what you just did. First, restore the system to its state before you started messing around (that is, remove any newly installed hardware or connection cables). If that works, you know that the new hardware (the NIC) is the problem. If your system doesn't work when you return to square one, you have bigger problems. Time to visit the repair shop!

• Your PC boots but doesn't load the drivers: The most common reasons that drivers fail to load are as follows :
  
  

  • Loose connections: Make sure that the wire is tight and properly seated on the NIC and that it's plugged into something on the other end.

  • Installation problems: Make sure that the drivers are in the right directory, and that this directory is referenced in your bootup file or defined in your PATH statement. Because Windows 2003 actively searches your hard drive for drivers (as long as your NIC is on the HCL), this normally isn't a problem for Windows 2003 machines.

  • Conflict: You may have missed something and introduced a conflict. Try all your other stuff; it's a dead giveaway if something else has quit working, too. Time to return to square one and recheck all system settings. Something somewhere is squirrelly, so be extra careful!

  The good news is that such a problem is most likely to result from a loose connection or a configuration boo-boo. If it's not one of those, it may be time for a visit to the repair shop!

• Your PC boots partway but hangs on a blue screen: Sometimes, Windows 2003 starts booting but hangs up on a solid-blue screen filled with white text that starts with an error code. This condition is known as the blue screen of death (also known as BSOD) to Windows aficionados.

  If a BSOD appears during installation, it's usually related to some type of hardware driver problem. If it happens right after you install a NIC but Windows 2003 has booted before, guess what? The NIC driver you just installed isn't working properly and will have to be replaced with one that works. Make sure you have the latest and greatest driver. If in doubt, send the vendor an e-mail or call tech support. If this problem occurs during an initial installation of Windows 2003, it may not be clear what's causing the problem. If that's the case, consult Chapter 22, which covers installation and configuration tips.

• You try to use the network and it fails to respond: This is a subtle variant on NIC driver problems and usually results from one or more of the same causes. You're treated to an extra layer of mystery here because a conflict may result from an application rather than a driver. Or the network may be stymied by an incorrect NIC setting, an incorrect network configuration, or an invalid login sequence (that is, the software works okay but you're telling it to do the wrong stuff). You must work your way through a careful process of elimination to find an answer. Good luck, and take lots of breaks. Remember that it's okay to ask for help!

After you've made it over any humps and can communicate with the network, you're ready to get to work. Or, if you're a fledgling network administrator, you'll have the pleasure of helping someone else get to work for the first time. Either way, you'll have pushed the networking wave another machine ahead!