Access problems to BR.net - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Access problems to BR.net

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
irdeggman
Oct 29, 2004 17:13:56 How many are still having troubles with their access to Birthright.net?

I haven't been able to get on since early in the week and then that quick remedy stopped working.

I'm trying to help capture how widespread this effect is. (Maybe its just me )

If you are having difficulty post where located - it might help.

I live in Virginia Beach, VA - USA
#2
zombiegleemax
Oct 29, 2004 23:31:25 I have had some trouble with it to. I can't access it tonight. Nor could I last week. But either yesterday, or the day before (I can't remember which, lol,) I could get on it fine. Wierd, eh?
#3
zombiegleemax
Nov 01, 2004 16:32:56 www.birthright.net is currently accessible for me, but it still has blackouts here and there. To fix the accesibility for yourself add this line to the hosts. file found in your system directory (if there is none create it).

217.116.83.29 www.birthright.net

save the file and open a new browser window.
Delete the line from your hosts. file in 3-4 weeks to see whether it works even without the patch, if not, put it back.
#4
zombiegleemax
Nov 02, 2004 5:05:59 Uhm, how do I get to that system directory? I'm afraid that I'm not the most computer adept person in the world.
#5
irdeggman
Nov 02, 2004 9:00:08 Same here.

I'm running Windows XP pro at home and Windows NT at work.

I can't find any hosts. file on my home PC. So maybe I'm not looking correctly.
#6
zombiegleemax
Nov 02, 2004 9:37:22 Okay, I have borrowed those lines from somewhere :

Locate the file "Hosts" on your computer:

Windows 95/98/Me c:\windows\hosts
Windows NT/2000/XP Pro c:\winnt\system32\drivers\etc\hosts
Windows XP Home c:\windows\system32\drivers\etc\hosts

(you may need administrator access for Windows NT/2000/XP)

NOTE: Hosts is the name of the hosts file and not another directory name. It does not have an extension (extensions are the .exe, .txt, .doc, etc. endings to filenames) and so appears to be another directory in the example above.

You may have a file called "Hosts.sam". This file is a sample Hosts file (the .sam stands for sample) and can be used by removing the .sam extension so the name is just "Hosts". This file should be edited with a text editor, such as Notepad, and not a word processor, such as Microsoft Word.

Add this line to the Hosts file:

217.116.83.29 www.birthright.net

Save your changes.

Open a new browser window (some say Reboot your computer)
#7
irdeggman
Nov 02, 2004 18:43:17 Thank you a bunch. That "patch" and the instructions seem to work and I'm back on the BR.net. :D
#8
zombiegleemax
Nov 02, 2004 21:14:28 I'm there too. Thanks.
#9
Raesene_Andu
Nov 03, 2004 5:59:15 Seems to work at the moment, although I imagine there are a lot of people who normally access br.net who don't know about this way of getting past whatever the problem is. Hopefully it is fixed soon.
#10
zombiegleemax
Nov 17, 2004 1:29:45 Does anyone know whether the responsible fellows are taking steps to fix the birthright.net access once and for all ? Its quite easy to repair it, so I am just wondering why it takes so long ....
#11
arjan
Nov 30, 2004 12:48:08 Hi all,
since i am only the webmaster and not the server admin i didnt have any control in this matter.

Eventually it was the OLD DNS server that somehow spitted out the old IP address every now and then (the server was moved physically).
Thats why now and then the server was unreachable.

but since a week or so everything should be ok again. unfortunately there are still some of you that are unable to get there.

So i would like to know if there are more still encountering the same problems.

cheers.

Arjan
#12
irdeggman
Dec 01, 2004 4:42:48 Still can't access it from work. I tried using the link from the WotC boards and wiped out my temp internet files, cookies and favorite setting.

It is a networked computer running windows NT for which I don't have administrator access.

Everythiing works just fine from home though.
#13
arjan
Dec 01, 2004 4:54:48
Still can't access it from work. I tried using the link from the WotC boards and wiped out my temp internet files, cookies and favorite setting.

It is a networked computer running windows NT for which I don't have administrator access.

Everythiing works just fine from home though.

Hey Irdeggman,
I know about your problem at work.
I found a good explanation on this matter... and its solution (there is none )

http://support.vitalstream.com/sub-category.asp?cSEQ=6&scSEQ=41

since the URi doesnt work, i will paste the info below
When a domain name is moved from one server to another, it takes a while for the rest of the Internet to catch up. This is referred to as "Propagation". This is because the Domain Name System (DNS) servers "cache" (or remember) the addresses they've already looked up.

When your PC needs to find the machine associated with a domain name, it asks its DNS server. The server is a specific machine that your PC asks to translate the human-friendly names we use into the machine friendly numbers known as IP addresses. In order for your PC to communicate with other machines on the Internet, it must have the IP address.

Your PC is configured to ask a specific machine for this translation. When you signed up for Internet access, one of the things you did was set up your access software to use your ISP's name server.

Each domain name is assigned a primary name server. This machine is the authority on what IP number belongs to that specific name.

However, once your DNS server has looked up an address, the assumption is that it will not change for a while. It caches or remembers the address and the domain name that it belongs to. On subsequent requests for the same domain name, it will respond with the IP address in the cache, rather than asking the primary again. This is referred to as a non-authoritative answer. This saves a considerable amount of time on frequently used domain names.

But what if the address is changed? Or, in the case of a moved domain, what if the primary name server changes? The root name server's records of primary name servers are housed in their root servers. When a domain name is moved, the root server record is changed to show the new primary. Any new requests for the primary name server will immediately be directed to the correct name server and they will receive the new IP number.

But what about all those thousands of DNS servers out there that still have the old address cached? The answer is that they will be serving the wrong IP address. They have no way of knowing if the IP number has been changed.

So how does this fix itself? Whenever the primary name server delivers the IP address for a domain, it also sends the time-to-live (TTL). This tells the DNS server how long it should keep the IP number cached. When this time expires, the DNS server will stop serving the IP address in its cache and actually ask the primary name server for the IP again. It then caches the new answer until the TTL expires again.

So when you move your domain name, access to your site by domain name will not be possible until the TTL expires on all the DNS servers on the Internet. The TTL value itself was set up by your previous host. We set our TTL to 1 hour, but your former provider may have had it set to a week! In that case, some DNS servers that looked up the IP address right before the switch will not have the right IP address until next week. In the meantime, everyone using that DNS server will not be able to reach your site.

What can you do about it? Absolutely nothing. That's just the way DNS was built. For your own convenience, you could ask your ISP to "flush" their DNS cache. They probably won't want to, though, because that means they have to spend a lot of CPU time and network bandwidth to look all those names up again. And that doesn't do anything about all those other DNS servers out there.

cheers
Arjan
#14
irdeggman
Dec 02, 2004 12:16:43 Thanks Arjan,

So pretty much I have to wait and hope that it resets itself (it must be set to real long time though if it still ahsn't done it).

It looks like I'll only be accessing from home for the forseeable future.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 irdeggman Oct 29, 2004 17:13:56	How many are still having troubles with their access to Birthright.net? I haven't been able to get on since early in the week and then that quick remedy stopped working. I'm trying to help capture how widespread this effect is. (Maybe its just me ) If you are having difficulty post where located - it might help. I live in Virginia Beach, VA - USA
#2 zombiegleemax Oct 29, 2004 23:31:25	I have had some trouble with it to. I can't access it tonight. Nor could I last week. But either yesterday, or the day before (I can't remember which, lol,) I could get on it fine. Wierd, eh?
#3 zombiegleemax Nov 01, 2004 16:32:56	www.birthright.net is currently accessible for me, but it still has blackouts here and there. To fix the accesibility for yourself add this line to the hosts. file found in your system directory (if there is none create it). 217.116.83.29 www.birthright.net save the file and open a new browser window. Delete the line from your hosts. file in 3-4 weeks to see whether it works even without the patch, if not, put it back.
#4 zombiegleemax Nov 02, 2004 5:05:59	Uhm, how do I get to that system directory? I'm afraid that I'm not the most computer adept person in the world.
#5 irdeggman Nov 02, 2004 9:00:08	Same here. I'm running Windows XP pro at home and Windows NT at work. I can't find any hosts. file on my home PC. So maybe I'm not looking correctly.
#6 zombiegleemax Nov 02, 2004 9:37:22	Okay, I have borrowed those lines from somewhere : Locate the file "Hosts" on your computer: Windows 95/98/Me c:\windows\hosts Windows NT/2000/XP Pro c:\winnt\system32\drivers\etc\hosts Windows XP Home c:\windows\system32\drivers\etc\hosts (you may need administrator access for Windows NT/2000/XP) NOTE: Hosts is the name of the hosts file and not another directory name. It does not have an extension (extensions are the .exe, .txt, .doc, etc. endings to filenames) and so appears to be another directory in the example above. You may have a file called "Hosts.sam". This file is a sample Hosts file (the .sam stands for sample) and can be used by removing the .sam extension so the name is just "Hosts". This file should be edited with a text editor, such as Notepad, and not a word processor, such as Microsoft Word. Add this line to the Hosts file: 217.116.83.29 www.birthright.net Save your changes. Open a new browser window (some say Reboot your computer)
#7 irdeggman Nov 02, 2004 18:43:17	Thank you a bunch. That "patch" and the instructions seem to work and I'm back on the BR.net. :D
#8 zombiegleemax Nov 02, 2004 21:14:28	I'm there too. Thanks.
#9 Raesene_Andu Nov 03, 2004 5:59:15	Seems to work at the moment, although I imagine there are a lot of people who normally access br.net who don't know about this way of getting past whatever the problem is. Hopefully it is fixed soon.
#10 zombiegleemax Nov 17, 2004 1:29:45	Does anyone know whether the responsible fellows are taking steps to fix the birthright.net access once and for all ? Its quite easy to repair it, so I am just wondering why it takes so long ....
#11 arjan Nov 30, 2004 12:48:08	Hi all, since i am only the webmaster and not the server admin i didnt have any control in this matter. Eventually it was the OLD DNS server that somehow spitted out the old IP address every now and then (the server was moved physically). Thats why now and then the server was unreachable. but since a week or so everything should be ok again. unfortunately there are still some of you that are unable to get there. So i would like to know if there are more still encountering the same problems. cheers. Arjan
#12 irdeggman Dec 01, 2004 4:42:48	Still can't access it from work. I tried using the link from the WotC boards and wiped out my temp internet files, cookies and favorite setting. It is a networked computer running windows NT for which I don't have administrator access. Everythiing works just fine from home though.
#13 arjan Dec 01, 2004 4:54:48	Still can't access it from work. I tried using the link from the WotC boards and wiped out my temp internet files, cookies and favorite setting. It is a networked computer running windows NT for which I don't have administrator access. Everythiing works just fine from home though. Hey Irdeggman, I know about your problem at work. I found a good explanation on this matter... and its solution (there is none ) http://support.vitalstream.com/sub-category.asp?cSEQ=6&scSEQ=41 since the URi doesnt work, i will paste the info below When a domain name is moved from one server to another, it takes a while for the rest of the Internet to catch up. This is referred to as "Propagation". This is because the Domain Name System (DNS) servers "cache" (or remember) the addresses they've already looked up. When your PC needs to find the machine associated with a domain name, it asks its DNS server. The server is a specific machine that your PC asks to translate the human-friendly names we use into the machine friendly numbers known as IP addresses. In order for your PC to communicate with other machines on the Internet, it must have the IP address. Your PC is configured to ask a specific machine for this translation. When you signed up for Internet access, one of the things you did was set up your access software to use your ISP's name server. Each domain name is assigned a primary name server. This machine is the authority on what IP number belongs to that specific name. However, once your DNS server has looked up an address, the assumption is that it will not change for a while. It caches or remembers the address and the domain name that it belongs to. On subsequent requests for the same domain name, it will respond with the IP address in the cache, rather than asking the primary again. This is referred to as a non-authoritative answer. This saves a considerable amount of time on frequently used domain names. But what if the address is changed? Or, in the case of a moved domain, what if the primary name server changes? The root name server's records of primary name servers are housed in their root servers. When a domain name is moved, the root server record is changed to show the new primary. Any new requests for the primary name server will immediately be directed to the correct name server and they will receive the new IP number. But what about all those thousands of DNS servers out there that still have the old address cached? The answer is that they will be serving the wrong IP address. They have no way of knowing if the IP number has been changed. So how does this fix itself? Whenever the primary name server delivers the IP address for a domain, it also sends the time-to-live (TTL). This tells the DNS server how long it should keep the IP number cached. When this time expires, the DNS server will stop serving the IP address in its cache and actually ask the primary name server for the IP again. It then caches the new answer until the TTL expires again. So when you move your domain name, access to your site by domain name will not be possible until the TTL expires on all the DNS servers on the Internet. The TTL value itself was set up by your previous host. We set our TTL to 1 hour, but your former provider may have had it set to a week! In that case, some DNS servers that looked up the IP address right before the switch will not have the right IP address until next week. In the meantime, everyone using that DNS server will not be able to reach your site. What can you do about it? Absolutely nothing. That's just the way DNS was built. For your own convenience, you could ask your ISP to "flush" their DNS cache. They probably won't want to, though, because that means they have to spend a lot of CPU time and network bandwidth to look all those names up again. And that doesn't do anything about all those other DNS servers out there. cheers Arjan
#14 irdeggman Dec 02, 2004 12:16:43	Thanks Arjan, So pretty much I have to wait and hope that it resets itself (it must be set to real long time though if it still ahsn't done it). It looks like I'll only be accessing from home for the forseeable future.