Why can't I even PING my computer?

FAQ #100846

 

Symptom
If you boot your computer without having a network connection, the Windows Firewall may block the communication to your computer. As result, even a "Ping" will not be answered by the concerned PC/Laptop.

Procedure for disabling the Windows Firewall
There is a way to disable the automatic Windows Firewall (installed per default for Windows XP) even if you don't have administrator rights.

• Go to the windows "Start" menu and select "Run".
• From there, open "services.msc" and a new window will open.
• On the right side, browse down until you'll find "Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing (ICS)".
• Click on it with right mouse button down and select "Stop".

After having done so, you just disabled the automatic Windows Firewall. Don't forget to enable it again later. SBC does not take any responsability for problems caused by disabling the firewall.