I cannot update websites hosted at Webmasters.com from my RCN cable ISP service. We have been updating these websites from RCN since we started RCN service about six months ago. Other combinations of ISP’s and hosting services work just fine. Any techie detectives like a challenge or have ideas?
Starting at approximately 9 pm Saturday, automated FTP uploads of weather data from one of our PCs to www.ozdachs.com/weather started failing. The IP address for Ozdachs.com is 207.142.128.62, primary DNS is 207.142.128.62, and FTP address is 207.142.128.61.
We discovered this failure by looking at the weather server error logs. The first I knew of a problem was Sunday morning when I attempted to publish a graphic using FrontPage 2003. The publishing hung when the message “Listing files is http://www.ozdachs.com…” was on the screen.
I tested publishing using FrontPage on other sites I host at Webmasters.com: www.faithfulfools.org (IP 207.142.134.42), www.sun-valley-vacation-rental.com (IP 207.142.134.140), and www.ashland-vacation-rental.com (IP 207.142.134.82). All of the publishing attempts hung and failed to complete.
At first I thought the problem was with the hosting service. But, my fault isolation included these findings:
· Using a dial-up account via EarthLink (after disconnecting the cable connection), the FTP and FrontPage publishing works without a problem.
· On the other hand, FTP and FrontPage publishing works to sites I host at other hosting services (www.ozdachs.biz (IP 209.216.205.41) and www.san-francisco-website-design.com (208.56.110.242).
· The FTP/Front Page problem exits on three different computers within our home network. We have not updated any software on two of the computers. The third computer had an updated version of Norton Antivirus installed over the weekend – but there are no other communications problems on this computer and the other two computers have not been touched.
· I have disconnected our D-LINK router and hooked the cable modem directly to one computer. FTP and FrontPage still fail to www.ozdachs.com .
· I disabled Windows firewall while the computer was directly connected to the RCN cable modem. There are no other firewalls on the system. The FTP and FrontPage publishing still failed.
· Read access to www.ozdachs.com and other sites hosted at Webmasters.com do not have problems. Tracert results:
C:\Documents and Settings\Galen>tracert www.ozdachs.com
Tracing route to www.ozdachs.com [207.142.128.62]
over a maximum of 30 hops:
1 <1 ms <1 ms <1 ms 192.168.0.1
2 6 ms 5 ms 6 ms 10.21.144.1
3 9 ms 6 ms 7 ms vl4.aggr1.sfrn.ca.rcn.net [208.59.211.1]
4 5 ms 7 ms 6 ms ge5-0.border1.sfrn.ca.rcn.net [208.59.255.22]
5 8 ms 8 ms 9 ms webusenet.needs.to.reg.ptr.info.with.paix [198.3
2.176.164]
6 89 ms 90 ms 90 ms 63.223.20.109
7 90 ms 88 ms 91 ms sjc-c00-pos-1-27-1.OC48-chi-c00-pos-1-15-1.wvfib
er.net [63.223.20.54]
8 89 ms 90 ms 87 ms cin-l3-c00-pos-4-0.OC48-chi-c00-pos-1-7-1.wvfibe
r.net [63.223.16.54]
9 90 ms 96 ms 90 ms nsh-l3-c00-pos-2-0.OC48-cin-l3-c00-pos-5-0.wvfib
er.net [63.223.8.102]
10 90 ms 88 ms 91 ms atl-c00.pos-1-16-1.OC48-atl-nshl3-pos2.wvfiber.n
et [63.223.8.77]
11 91 ms 88 ms 88 ms atl-a00.pos-10-0.lan-atl-c00.pos-1-36-1.wvfiber.
net [63.223.8.58]
12 89 ms 89 ms 90 ms cpp-hostway.wvfiber.net [63.223.8.26]
13 101 ms 101 ms 100 ms g11-0.co1.tpax.hostway.net [64.156.25.105]
14 104 ms 101 ms 102 ms 207.142.128.62
Trace complete.
- FTP updates seem to hang on a second block. So, a small or incomplete file may make it to www.ozdachs.com . See http://www.ozdachs.com/weather/screenID001.jpg . The image on the website is one which has been automatically sent from our weather server to the Internet for several years. The current version is incomplete.
When I tried to manually send a file (index.htm) to
www.ozdachs.com/weather yesterday, the FTP transfer hung at 62% complete. The FTP log is below:
PASV
227 Entering Passive Mode (207,142,128,62,195,149).
connecting data channel to 207.142.128.62:195,149(50069)
data channel connected to 207.142.128.62:195,149(50069)
STOR index.htm
150 Opening ASCII mode data connection for index.htm
Error reading response from server.
transferred 16384 bytes in 65.531 seconds, 1.953 Kbps ( 250.018 Bps), transfer cancelled.
I also had a problem re-connecting my FTP session to Ozdachs.com FTP log:
Finding Host ozdachs.com …
Connecting to 207.142.128.62:21
Connected to 207.142.128.62:21 in 0.109375 seconds, Waiting for Server Response
Failed to receive response after connect
Host type (1): Automatic detect
The only thing I see is that somehow the exchange of information from RCN to Webmasters.com is failing. Other combinations of ISP and hosting service work.
I will be happy to have the truth revealed to me!
It’s possible that RCN or one of the interim peering sites between you and Webmasters has placed an FTP packet filter on their router.
I had a similar problem with SBC DSL and a single website belonging to one of my customers. Anyone could access the website (which was the customer’s webmail system) from anywhere in the world … except from an SBC DSL connection. After escalating the problem three levels up, SBC admitted that maybe there could possibly be a chance that someone had mistakenly blocked certain IP address blocks on a certain SBC router for no apparent reason. The problem mysteriously solved itself within 24 hours of that particular conversation.
I would call RCN and ask them to try FTP’ing to webmasters.com, and see if they have a similar issue. Keep in mind that there could be an issue at the peering site that links the RCN and webmaster.com networks.
Thanks… the RCN tech goes home at 12 noon Pacific time, but I’ve loaded up his email and will call him tomorrow. I think the only thing I can do is be persistent, ’cause everyone is sure it’s not their fault.
The line started working about 8 pm Tuesday night. No one changed anything, of course. But now is all sweetness and light.
Another “I love computers” moment.