Resolutions: 1) If this is XP, obtain the latest service pack for Windows XP.
2) Use the Network Diagnostics tool to identify any failed settings. To do this, go to Help and Support>Use Tools to view your computer information and diagnose problems>Network Diagnostics>Scan your system. When the process finishes, check for any items marked "FAILED" in red, expand those categories, and view the additional details about what the testing showed.
3) Assign a static ip on the client and ping the DHCP server. If you can't  ping the DHCP server, check the connection and hardware.
4) If you can ping the DHCP after assigning static ip, check the DHCP settings.
5) Make sure no firewall is running on your LAN.
6) Run Repair this connection if it is XP. Or use netsh to reset TCP/IP configuration.
7) If it is win98/w2k, remove and reinstall TCP/IP.
8) Try to upgrade the new NIC driver.
9) Make sure you don't run out of IPs in the DHCP scope.
10) If you use a router as DHCP, you may want to upgrade the firmware.
11) Modify hardware settings such as speed and duplex.
12) Make sure hardware Mac control enable.

Host is unreachable

Q: When I ping the server using one of the clients it says the host is unreachable. Why?

A: 1) Make sure all machines are on the same local subnet and no routers in between.
2) Check the lmhosts file to make sure that you do not have an outdated file.

RESOLUTION:
1. If you click Yes, you see the TCP/IP properties where you can change the IP address. Then assign the different IP.
2.  If you click No, the IP address is assigned to the network adapter. To resolve this problem, uninstall the ghosted network adapter from the registry: At command prompt, type set devmgr_show_nonpresent_devices=1, and then press ENTER. Type Start DEVMGMT.MSC, and then press ENTER. Click View, and then click Show Hidden Devices. Expand the Network Adapters tree and right-click the dimmed network adapter, and then click Uninstall.

No IP while the network cable is disconnected

Symptoms: your computer has a static IP. However, the ipconfig shows no IP (Media State - Cable Disconnected) while the network cable is disconnected.

Cause: this is by design. If you have some software using TCP/IP whiteout connecting to a network, you may setup it manually.

No operation can be performed on the adapter

Symptoms: when attempting to use ipconfig /release or renew command, you get "No operation can be performed on the adapter <xxxxx...> as this connection has its media/cable disconnected.

Causes: 1. The network is up-plugged or no NIC. 2. You are using static IP.

One-way ping only

If you can ping other computers and other computers can't ping your computer, this is often caused by an improperly configured firewall
on you computer. For example, ICF should not be enabled on LAN NIC.

Multiple IPs or subnets on one NIC

Q: Can I setup two IPs that belong to different subnets?

.A: Yes, but you must use static IPs instead of DHCP and they must be in the same subnet. To do this, open the Properties of TCP/IP>Advanced, click Add to add IP addresses.

Some Win9x obtain different subnet mask

Symptoms: In your domain network, some computers (most are win9x) obtain mask 255.255.255.0 instead of 255.0.0.0 randomly and they can't logon to the Domain. IPCONFIG /renew doesn't fix the problem. If you assign static ip and correct mask, the computer will be able to logon without any problem. If you check the WINS, you may find many bad records.

Possible reasons: you may have another network device (possible a router) except main DHCP functions as a DHCP.

The DHCP client has obtained an IP address that is already in use on the network

Symptom: When trying to renew IP, you may get this error "An error occurred while renewing the interface Local Area Connection:  The
DHCP client has obtained an IP address that is already in use on the network. The local interface will be disabled until the DHCP client can obtain a new address."

Resolution: 1. Release and the renew it.
2. Clean the internal DNS and WINS records.
Refer to case 083104LR

Unexpected network failure or insufficient access or access is denied

Symptoms: when trying to use ipconfig /release or renew, you may receive the following message "The following error occurred when releasing adapter Local Area Connection: Unexpected network failure or insufficient access or access is denied"

Cause: You don't have permission to release or renew the IP.

Using the netsh command to change TCP/IP settings

With Windows 2000/XP/2003, you can use the netsh command to script the process of changing a computer TCP/IP setting withoutrebooting the computer.

Using the netsh command to prevent traffic from being passed by the network adapter

You can use netsh command to prevent traffic from being passed by the network adapter. To do that, you can use the Netsh to re-set a different IP address or default gateway , for example, netshell interface ip set address interface_name static ip_address subnet_mask default_gateway metric.

Why do I get 169.254.x.x IP?

Symptom: The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) has reserved 169.254.0.0-169.254.255.255 for Automatic Private IP Addressing. If the computer can't get ip from DHCP, APIPA provides an address that is guaranteed not to conflict with routable addresses.

Resolutions: 1) Make sure you have good connection.
2) Check the hardware and settings.
3) Make sure the DHCP is working.
4) For the test, you can assign static ip. If static ip works, it is possible DHCP issue. If static ip doesn't work, check the hardware or connection.
5) WinSock2 stack may be corrupted and need to repair.