Win 2003 Web Server loses network connection, restores on unplug/plug or restart Best answer on the web
I have a Windows 2003 Web Server edition, running IIS 6 and Argosoft Mail Server Pro. Let us call it SERVER2. No other software was ever installed. This box is one of the 2 boxes connected behind SonicWall TZ170 firewall. The other box has Windows 2000 server and never has any problems, stays online for months, let us call it SERVER1. Both servers have internal (private) IP addresses ? 10.0.0.1 and 10.0.0.2, firewall has one-to-one NAT.
*** Problem: ***
Every few days SERVER2 loses network connection. It cannot be reached (or reach out) neither by ping nor any other protocol, like HTTP, SMTP, POP3, PPPT, Tem Services etc from the inside of the LAN (from another server before the firewall) as well as from WAN (through the firewall). The server itself remains operational, no errors, no messages, does not slow down, just no connection. Connection gets restored if I unplug the Ethernet cable and plug it back again or if I restart the server. Restarting the firewall does not make any difference, it does not restore connection.
*** Other Facts:***
1. I tried to connect SERVER2 to different physical ports of the firewall, still the same. 2. I had both servers connected to a switch, so even if the firewall was bad, if I could log in SERVER1 through Terminal services, even if firewall caused me connection problem to SERVER2, if the SERVER2 was OK, I could still ping it, but it shows no connection. 3. Event log shows no errors whatsoever around the time when the server2 loses connection. 4. Server2 has only one network card, which was replaced, but the problem remains the same. 5. NIC has only one static IP address (10.0.0.2)
6. Local Area Connection properties show only 3 items ? ?Client for Microsoft Networks?, ?File and Printer sharing for Microsoft Networks? and ?Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)?. 7. I need file sharing because I do a backup from one server to another using NTBackup. Connection is getting lost not close to the time of the backup start or finish and it is not happening during the backup. 8. I do not see any pattern of times when connection is getting lost.
9. Firewall does not show any attacks before the connection gets lost.
10. Server is not frozen when connection gets lost, it responds to the keyboard and everything works fine except that there is no connection 11. When connection is lost, the lights on the network card are still on and blinking. 12. The same version of Argosoft Mail Server Pro is running on 2 more servers that never have any problems with anything at all. 13. When connection gets lost, the event log does not show that, although if I unplug Ethernet cable, event log shows that the connection is lost, then when I plug it back, it shows that connection is restored and the server works after that for the next few days. 14. Server1 always remain fully operational when Server2 has no connection. Also the firewall is fully controllable from bot WAN and LAN.
THANK YOU ALL AGAIN, I MUCH APPRECIATE YOUR CONTRIBUTION!
although I have the webserver on SERVER1 (which uses MS ICS to share my bradband connection) and have no server2..... every few says i am usable to access the net from ANY of the PCs connected to SERVER1 and I am unable to access the webserver running on SERVER1 from any external computer (over the net as oppose to LAN). Someone did suggest that I using win2k3 as a dchp server and using ICS on it at the same time might cause a conflict but i am away from the computer for a week and so cant test this theory atm. I just wanted to know if you had managed to resolve this issue? When the internet is down from the client machines I am still able to access shared files and on SERVER1 and other clients and can PING all computer including SERVER1.
#If you have any other info about this subject , Please add it free.# |