PC network oddness

[gyro_gearloose]

I've been given a Showcad system to have a look at as it isn't ouputting any DMX. The system consists of a Windoze 10 PC, a Netgear hub, and two Pathport r-series nodes. The nodes and the PC are on the same network address range of 192.168.1.x, and I can ping the Pathport nodes from the PC. The problem I've got is that Showcad can't see the nodes, and therefore no DMX is being output.

 

I've tried accessing the nodes via the Pathport manager software on the PC, but it can't see the nodes either! I suspect that Windows is getting on the way of things, but I've no idea where to start looking. I have turned off the firewall as the pc is not online. Has anybody else had this kind of problem before?

[timsabre]

Ping uses a lower networking level than TCP or UDP, so if ports are being blocked by firewall ping might get through where TCP or UDP packets can't.

Are you sure you have turned off the right bit of the firewall as W10 has different versions for "Domain", "Private" and "Public" which are independently turned on and off, you need to check what type of network it thinks you are running.

Also if you have multiple network adapters (e.g. ethernet and wifi) make sure you are configuring the right one...

Try losing the netgear switch temporarily and linking the PC direct to the node.

 

[Tomo]

As Tim said, first check the firewall settings.

 

It is not possible to disable the firewall in Windows 10.

- Cannot be done. It's always active, and this is a good thing. (It can only be replaced, not removed.)

 

Instead you must allow the application through.

 

Small networks will get classified as "public" by default, and the default firewall behaviour is to block everything from "public" networks.

 

The firewall only asks the first time, so accepting defaults will block the application.

 

If that doesn't work, a few more esoteric possibilities:

 

Win10 has native support for IPv6 and prefers it by default.

A lot of (esp. older) applications get very confused by this and try to send their IPv4 communication over the the IPv6 stack, which of course doesn't work.

You can disable IPv6 in the adapter settings.

 

I've also seen some laptops where USB/external network cards have the same MAC address as (one of) the built-in network cards (a "feature", apparently).

Many applications use the MAC to identify which network card you want to use (because it's specified as being a unique ID), so will pick the first one with the right MAC.

[timsabre]

It is not possible to disable the firewall in Windows 10.

- Cannot be done. It's always active, and this is a good thing. (It can only be replaced, not removed.)

 

I'm not sure this is correct - my w10 pc's have an option "Turn Windows Defender firewall on or off" which does appear to disable it. Though it is possible to set up a policy which prevents you from turning it off. I have had to turn it off a couple of times when debugging software.

[gyro_gearloose]

After a bit of digging, it seems to be possible to turn Windows firewall off in 'services'msc'. I'll try all of these suggestions next time I'm near the PC in question.

[timsabre]

After a bit of digging, it seems to be possible to turn Windows firewall off in 'services'msc'. I'll try all of these suggestions next time I'm near the PC in question.

 

If you just put "Windows firewall" into the annoying searchy box thing it should come up with "Windows defender firewall" which gives you a dialog where you can turn it on and off, or at least it does on my computers.

[david.elsbury]

Yeah, no need to share blatantly incorrect information Tomo. A quick google before you post should you be unsure is all you need to do: and a quick google will confirm it’s possible to disable the Win10 firewall :-)

 

Of course should you be referring to ETC consoles running Windows 10 that might be a rather different story, if that’s the case you should clarify.

[Tomo]

I find your faith in GUI elements endearing.

 

The switch exists to make some people feel better. It's very nearly a DFA.

 

When you flip that switch to the "off" position, the firewall is still running.

You've only turned off the UI and changed the rules it applies. In theory it's supposed to become "allow all", however in practice, it isn't.

 

Yes, there probably are ways to remove or bypass all the kernel-mode hooks.

That's not a simple thing (and looks like a virus). I wouldn't be surprised if Windows Update tried to fix that - and probably break something, it's good at that :(

 

Aside from that, there's genuinely no reason to even try.

So far I've only ever seen that setting break things.

 

Just use the tool the way it's designed to be used.

[alistermorton]

Yeah, no need to share blatantly incorrect information Tomo. A quick google before you post should you be unsure is all you need to do: and a quick google will confirm it's possible to disable the Win10 firewall :-)

 

Of course should you be referring to ETC consoles running Windows 10 that might be a rather different story, if that's the case you should clarify.

 

Not sure what ETC products are running on Windows 10 currently. 7 perhaps, in the consoles, but 10?

[timsabre]

I find your faith in GUI elements endearing.

The switch exists to make some people feel better. It's very nearly a DFA.

When you flip that switch to the "off" position, the firewall is still running.

You've only turned off the UI and changed the rules it applies. In theory it's supposed to become "allow all", however in practice, it isn't.

 

Hmmm, well if I switch it to "off" and the things that were blocked stop being blocked, then I would count that as being "off", regardless of whether the service is still running. What does it still block when turned off then?

 

[IRW]

If you turn the Windows Defender Firewall service off in services.msc, it certainly appears to turn it off enough to make things work that didn't when it was on...!