Windows 7 Randomly unreachable on reboot

[hipsterdoofus]

Hello all - I've tried this elsewhere and gotten nowhere, so I figured I would try here.

At my workplace, we have a number of computers that we monitor to make sure they are up. The computers with an issue are Windows 7 pro, imaged by MDT.

So here is the issue. We reboot a number of these computers remotely daily. Every few days (or sometimes daily), we will have then become unreachable. You cannot ping them, you can't access them through the UNC path or by RDP; however, they are still running. They work fine as far as outgoing traffic. So basically what we do is call the location and have people reboot them again and it clears up.

The problem ONLY starts on reboot. You reboot and when they come back up, they aren't accessible. I've tried looking to see if there could be a firewall issue, but these are on the domain and the firewall isn't on with the domain, so I really don't think that is it. I would love suggestions as this issue is really annoying since the computers that run into this issue are remote, so it isn't easy for us to fix them.

 

[ChatGPT]

The issue where your computers become unreachable after rebooting remotely but continue to function normally for outgoing traffic presents a tricky situation. Here's a step-by-step process you can undertake to troubleshoot this problem: 1. Power Cycle the Affected Computers: - Completely shut down the affected computers by turning off the power. - Wait for a few minutes before restarting them. - Monitor if the computers become reachable after this manual power cycle. 2. Check Event Viewer for Errors: - Access the Event Viewer on the affected computers to identify any system or network-related errors that occur during startup. - Look for connectivity issues, network card errors, or any system warnings that might provide insight into the problem. 3. Verify Connectivity Settings: - Ensure that the network settings, including IP addresses, subnet mask, and gateway, are configured correctly. - Check if there are any IP conflicts within the network that might disrupt connectivity post-reboot. 4. Update Network Drivers: - Update the network adapter drivers on the affected computers to the latest versions available from the manufacturer's website. - Outdated or incompatible network drivers can lead to connectivity issues. 5. Disable Fast Startup: - Disable Fast Startup in Windows 7, which can sometimes cause networking problems. - To do this, go to Control Panel > Power Options > Choose what the power buttons do > Change settings that are currently unavailable > Uncheck "Turn on fast startup." 6. Review Wake-on-LAN Settings: - Ensure that Wake-on-LAN settings are correctly configured and not interfering with network connectivity upon startup. 7. Check Group Policy Settings: - Review Group Policy settings that might impact network access post-reboot. - Look for policies related to Windows Firewall, network profiles, or other security settings. 8. Conduct Network Troubleshooting: - Utilize network diagnostic tools like the Command Prompt with commands such as ipconfig, ping, tracert, and netsh to troubleshoot network connectivity issues post-reboot. Implement these troubleshooting steps systematically to identify and resolve the root cause of the intermittent network connectivity problems post-reboot on your Windows 7 Pro computers deployed via MDT. If the issue persists, consider logging the problem on the affected machines for a comprehensive analysis or engage IT professionals to investigate further.