# dial up/dns/net woes

## supreme_geek_overlord

Hey all...

Long story short, I've been trying to bring my linux box up to the function of my windows box (something that inherently shouldn't be too hard to achieve  :Wink: ). My current goal is getting connected to the net.

I've been working on this in spurts for a while now, and after lots of problems getting my winmodem's driver to run, I think I finally have a working modem.

Okay I dial up with kppp...blah, blah, blah...it connects fine. The only problem now is that the connection is totally useless!!!  :Razz:   If I try to surf, chat, -- even ping -- it all fails. When I do ping, even simply my dns server using the raw ip, it comes back as this:

```
PING 206.9.84.2 (206.9.84.2) 56(84) bytes of data.

From 137.192.5.46 icmp_seq=1 Time to live exceeded

From 137.192.5.46 icmp_seq=2 Time to live exceeded

From 137.192.5.46 icmp_seq=3 Time to live exceeded

--- 206.9.84.2 ping statistics ---

3 packets transmitted, 0 received, +3 errors, 100% packet loss, time 2001ms
```

So there is my problem: one I have been working on for a while. In order that I find out what stupid thing I have done wrong, I have attempted piecing together steps from various outdated manuals on tldp.org in vain. I have searched for similar problems on these forums, also in vain. I have pulled my hair out and booted back to windows...in vain: it is still as buggy and counterintuitive as I left it. In all my efforts, my configuration files have undoubtedly become crumpled, redundant chimeras of various "proper" and "functional" configurations and methods...

Now, my question is this: can someone on these vast and respectible forums please either: a) give a linux networking n00b a walkthrough on how to properly set up networking on a box with my specs (which should be somewhere at the bottom of the post, whenever I reach it), or b) find and point out possible stupid mistakes that I have made in my config files (also at somewhere down there...).

As always, any help would be greatly appreciated!

------------------------------------------------------

boring semi-useful stuff follows:

Specs:

My modem is a "Lucent Winmodem" (PCI, 56k), driven by the "ltmodem" package -- straight from the ebuild. Current gcc profile is 2.95.3, due to incompatibilities of later versions with the "ltmodem" driver. My ISP is "Bevcomm" [http://www.bevcomm.net], with DNS servers at 206.9.84.2 and 206.9.64.100. I dial out to 893-4901 (local, no country/area code).

/etc/hostname:

```
cimbul
```

/etc/hosts:

```
127.0.0.1   localhost

0.0.0.0      cimbul
```

/etc/resolv.conf:

```
domain bevcomm.net

search .

nameserver 206.9.84.2

nameserver 206.9.64.100

<nidx>nameserver
```

/etc/networks:

```
# $Header: /home/cvsroot/gentoo-src/rc-scripts/etc/networks,v 1.4 2002/11/18 19:39:22 azarah Exp $

#

# networks   This file describes a number of netname-to-adress

#      mappings for the TCP/IP subsytem. It is mostly

#      used at boot time, when no name servers are running.

loopback   127.0.0.0

localnet   0.0.0.0

# End.
```

----------

## NeddySeagoon

supreme_geek_overlord,

Your config files should not have entries with an IP of 0.0.0.0

Its not a valid IP for a host. Its actually the network address of the whole IP4 address space - the entire internet.

I suspect you have created a circular route where by your box forwards packets to itself unit the Time To Live expires.

The exception to the above in in the output of the

```
route -n 
```

 where the 0.0.0.0 matches any packets and they are routed (sent) to the default gateway. Try route -n and route to see the difference.,

Fix your config files and if its still broken, post the output of route when your PPP link is up.

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## supreme_geek_overlord

It seemed strange to me too, but the zero's came straight from the (decidedly outdated) "ISP-Hookup HOWTO". Perhaps I have misunderstood something, but I thought it was worth a try anyway...there was nothing to lose.

The addition of these addresses was a recent development, and it did not work prior to that either. Nonetheless I will follow your instructions and see what I can find out <crossing fingers>...

P.S: I forgot to mention that I do not have a static IP, which was one of my biggest complications. However, when I dial up it seems to recieve a valid address (as shown by the kppp status window upon connection; I have a screenshot of the info there if it is wanted, but I am not sure where to upload it...).

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## supreme_geek_overlord

Well, I took all the null addresses out...and it doesn't seem to have done anything much. Here's the output from route, in case anyone's still interested:

```
Kernel IP routing table

Destination     Gateway         Genmask         Flags Metric Ref    Use Iface

ip250.bedu.bevc *               255.255.255.255 UH    0      0        0 ppp0

loopback        localhost       255.0.0.0       UG    0      0        0 lo

default         ip250.bedu.bevc 0.0.0.0         UG    0      0        0 ppp0

```

In the meantime, I have done some more forensics, and here's what I can dig up...

I can ping the host that ppp connects to.

I can ping my secondary dns server, but not the primary one: not surprising considering the lack of good equipment at this sorry excuse for an isp.  :Rolling Eyes: 

I cannot ping any other sites (even when addressed with dotted quad) -- still not surprising...

...But here's what is: I have done the same things when in windows (the connection of which seems to be in full working order), and they yield the same results. This includes pinging addresses of servers I know. The joke here is that I can type those ip addresses into firefox and the page comes up just fine...

What is wrong here? Is the timeout to short or something? Does a web browser use a differing method than ping? I'm confused!...  :Confused:  Once again, help would be appreciated. Greatly.

----------

## NeddySeagoon

supreme_geek_overlord,

Your routing table looks good.

Windows and Linux treat dead primary DNS servers differently.

Windows finds out its dead very quickly, and moves on. Linux waits for a timeout - a long time, then moves on. This will ruin you browing experiance on Linux.

I don't do dialup, so some of this is from memeory.

You have a /etc/resolv.conf for your LAN (you may not since you don't have any ethN interfaces) and another /etc/ppp/.... set of files for pppd. Some things in here come and go with your connection, other actually control the connection.

With broken DNS you should be able to browse by IP. You should also be able to traceroute by IP and find where your packets go.

Unfortunately, you will need a working connection to get traceroute.

For testing google.com is 216.239.37.99

Its worth bring up your dialup then finding its resolv.conf and removing the broken nameserver, if you can't ping it. This file will be updated every time you dialup.

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## supreme_geek_overlord

<breaks out into song> Halelujah!

 If you haven't already figured it out, I have got it working. I guess it was just broken DNS servers that were the problem. Without further to do, thanks again Neddy (who actually helped me in my ignorance to figure out how to get my modem to work in the first place, although I doubt you remember it), and I will close.

----------

