Laptop allergic to facebook

[SamJones]

My laptop has suddenly started refusing to connect to the facebook website, using any browser. Just get messages saying the page is not available/cannot connect to the webpage etc etc depending on the browser.

It was fine for half the day, then suddenly NOT. The desktop pc still works fine so its nothing to do with my account as such.

I have tried reinstalling browsers to see if that made any difference to no avail.

I'm wondering if somehow there is something like a firewall setting that is blocking the site but I can't actually find such a thing to check on the AVG antivirus control.

Any ideas what else I can check??

Is there someone 'geeky' who dislikes you using FaceBook ? One possible way of messing with the laptop would be to change a file concerned with looking up the IP address of the site.

If you can get an MS-DOS window (use Start | Run | "cmd" on XP, use Start | All Programs {or maybe 'Search'} and type "command" ) You ought to get a black window with a ">" type prompt (possibly C:> or maybe a bit more text, ending ">")

At this stage you can type ping facebook.com

I get this:

C:>ping facebook.com

Pinging facebook.com [69.63.181.12] with 32 bytes of data:

Reply from 69.63.181.12: bytes=32 time=418ms TTL=240
Reply from 69.63.181.12: bytes=32 time=423ms TTL=240

However 'facebook.com' can give any of the following IP addresses:

Name: facebook.com
Addresses: 69.63.189.11, 69.63.189.16, 69.63.181.11, 69.63.181.12

www.facebook.com gives 66.220.153.23

If you get any other numbers, or an error message, then report back...

If you get the correct numbers, then something else is going on to block access...

I had the same problem this evening. Then got facebook message saying it was their problem and they were working on it.

Networkguy....

Thanks for that. Pinging facebook.com gives a message of 'Destination specified is invalid'

However the first time I tried I only typed in 'ping facebook' and this was returned:

'Pinging facebook.co.uk [216.239.36.21] with 32 bytes of data:

reply from 216.239.36.21: bytes=32 time=45ms TTL=48
reply from 216.239.36.21: bytes=32 time=45ms TTL=48
reply from 216.239.36.21: bytes=32 time=45ms TTL=48
reply from 216.239.36.21: bytes=32 time=45ms TTL=65

Plus various other ping stats which I can give you if they help.

It was only when I saw that it was pinging the '.co.uk' domain that I realised I had missed off the .com from the command and got the error message.

Is that any clearer??

The only other thing that happened between it working and not was shutting the laptop down, during which it installed some windows updates. Not sure if that can impact on the situation.

Yes there is a geek around - who professes to be equally puzzled by it, and not sure he would have much to gain from tinkering in this way but will bear it in mind.

Thanks for your help.

Sam

For it to have .co.uk added seems like there was something 'odd' but sorry, I've no idea quite what.

Will try to find out, but don't hold your breath :)