Since updating to Windows 6.2.19 i've been unable to download new work:
"BOINC can't access Internet - check network connection or proxy configuration."

Upload is no problem (but now i've run out of anything to upload)

It seems related to protected install since i was able to run 6.2.18 in compatibility mode but changed that when upgrading to 6.2.19

I used to run boinc as a service using local system account as logon in 5.x

HELP!

Did you try the http_1_0 trick as proposed by Ageless in this thread (second message)?

Yes!

No help there...

Anyway, it is not clear to me why that should make a difference when WCG have no problems and other projects do?

Yes!

No help there...

Anyway, it is not clear to me why that should make a difference when WCG have no problems and other projects do?

Well, WCG is the only project that does communications using HTTPS (not HTTP).

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Kathryn :o)

Well, WCG is the only project that does communications using HTTPS (not HTTP).

Adding to that, WCG uses TCP port 443 (secure HTTP) while all the other projects use TCP port 80. So make sure that BOINC can communicate on port 80.

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Unless you can come up with how exactly to ensure that Boinc has access to ports 80 and 443 then it is not helping much... I do not have a clue


I just installed an approved and recommended "upgrade" after which it stopped working.

A downgrade seems the best option

Unless you can come up with how exactly to ensure that Boinc has access to ports 80 and 443 then it is not helping much... I do not have a clue

In Windows firewall you can set what ports a program can use. I'm not clairvoyant, so I don't know what extra software you use, whether it's the Windows firewall only or perhaps another maker's firewall. But in all programs you should be able to set for boinc.exe what TCP and UDP port numbers it can use.

---

For the record!

It turned out to be "Microsoft Windows Live OneCare Family Safety" - ment to protect kids from accessing places their parents don't approve of :-)


I haven't found a way other than uninstalling the mentioned program to solve this issue

I too am having this issue.. Did Charlie ever respond?

I got a response back from Charlie.

Charlie Fenton wrote:

Hi Jord,

Sorry, I do not have any ideas. Looking through the checkin_notes files, version 6.1.0 was released 28 August, 2007 and the next version was 6.1.5 on 14 December 2007.

One difference is that we upgraded from cURL 7.16.4 to cURL 7.17.1 at that time. The current release version BOINC 6.2.18 uses cURL 7.18.1. cURL is the library we use for Internet access.

But it looks like the next release of BOINC for the Mac was 6.1.10 on 11 March 2008, using cURL 7.18.1.

Also, starting with BOINC 6.1.8 on the Mac, we are configuring cURL to do asynchronous DNS lookups on the Internet, which eliminated certain situations where the Client would become unresponsive.

Of course, there have been numerous other changes along the way.

When Koordinator says that no version after 6.1.0 works for him, it is not clear which versions he has actually tried. He can find all released versions of BOINC (and some that were never actually released) at http://boinc.berkeley.edu/dl/

But even if we identify the exact release at which it stops working for him, that really won't help him. The bottom line is that it is accessing the Internet properly for just about everyone else using a Mac.

Sorry I can't offer more help.

Cheers,
--Charlie

---

Hi!

I have tried several versions. from /dl but I cannot recall which. Maybe we can test a new compile with old curl?
It is really unclear to me why no one else has troubles with this?!
Is there any log output that would help you guys to identify the problem?

cheers,

Koordinator

ok, I just now tried something and it worked. I selected to connect via a proxy. et voila, 6.2.18 works like a charm with internet and everything.

FYI: 204.60.65.36:8080 is the proxy that use(d).

Thanks a lot for pondering my problem!

Koordinator

Is there any log output that would help you guys to identify the problem?

I know you got it fixed through use of a proxy, but am still willing to let you try some debug flags to see what your BOINC is actually trying to do.

If you don't mind testing that, at least.

Exit BOINC.
Make a cc_config.xml file in your BOINC Data directory (default at /Library/Applications Support/BOINC/ ).. Put in it:

<cc_config>
<log_flags> 
<file_xfer_debug>1</file_xfer_debug> 
<http_debug>1</http_debug> 
<http_xfer_debug>1</http_xfer_debug>
</log_flags>
</cc_config>

Restart BOINC.
Set BOINC not to use a proxy and let it contact one or two projects.
Now post the output of those contacts here. It may tell us a whole lot more.

---

This is my config file:

<cc_config>
<log_flags>
<http_debug>1</http_debug>
<http_xfer_debug>1</http_xfer_debug>
<file_xfer_debug>1</file_xfer_debug>
</log_flags>
<options>
<http_1_0>1</http_1_0>
</options>
</cc_config>

and here the output of BOINC 6.2.18 (OS X 10.5.5):

...
11-Oct-2008 11:28:56 [World Community Grid] Restarting task lz580_00004_0 using hpf2 version 603
11-Oct-2008 11:29:12 [rosetta@home] Sending scheduler request: Requested by user. Requesting 0 seconds of work, reporting 1 completed tasks
11-Oct-2008 11:29:12 [---] [http_debug] HTTP_OP::init_post(): http://boinc.bakerlab.org/rosetta_cgi/cgi
11-Oct-2008 11:29:17 [---] [http_debug] [ID#0] info: Expire cleared
11-Oct-2008 11:29:37 [---] [http_debug] [ID#0] info: Expire cleared
11-Oct-2008 11:29:37 [---] [http_debug] [ID#0] info: Could not resolve host: boinc.bakerlab.org (Timeout while contacting DNS servers)
11-Oct-2008 11:29:37 [---] [http_debug] [ID#0] info: Closing connection #0
11-Oct-2008 11:29:37 [---] [http_debug] HTTP error: Couldn't resolve host name
11-Oct-2008 11:29:38 [---] Project communication failed: attempting access to reference site
11-Oct-2008 11:29:38 [---] [http_debug] HTTP_OP::init_get(): http://www.google.com
11-Oct-2008 11:29:38 [rosetta@home] Scheduler request failed: Couldn't resolve host name
11-Oct-2008 11:29:43 [malariacontrol.net] Sending scheduler request: Requested by user. Requesting 0 seconds of work, reporting 1 completed tasks
11-Oct-2008 11:29:43 [---] [http_debug] HTTP_OP::init_post(): http://www.malariacontrol.net/malariacontrol_cgi/cgi
11-Oct-2008 11:29:43 [---] [http_debug] [ID#1] info: Expire cleared
11-Oct-2008 11:30:03 [---] [http_debug] [ID#1] info: Expire cleared
11-Oct-2008 11:30:03 [---] [http_debug] [ID#1] info: Could not resolve host: www.google.com (Timeout while contacting DNS servers)
11-Oct-2008 11:30:03 [---] [http_debug] [ID#1] info: Closing connection #0
11-Oct-2008 11:30:03 [---] [http_debug] HTTP error: Couldn't resolve host name
11-Oct-2008 11:30:03 [---] BOINC can't access Internet - check network connection or proxy configuration.
11-Oct-2008 11:30:08 [---] [http_debug] [ID#2] info: Expire cleared
11-Oct-2008 11:30:08 [---] [http_debug] [ID#2] info: Could not resolve host: www.malariacontrol.net (Timeout while contacting DNS servers)
11-Oct-2008 11:30:08 [---] [http_debug] [ID#2] info: Closing connection #1
11-Oct-2008 11:30:08 [---] [http_debug] HTTP error: Couldn't resolve host name
11-Oct-2008 11:30:09 [malariacontrol.net] Scheduler request failed: Couldn't resolve host name
11-Oct-2008 11:30:39 [rosetta@home] Sending scheduler request: Requested by user. Requesting 0 seconds of work, reporting 1 completed tasks

...

I hope you can get something from this. My guess is that the DNS does not work. but what do I know :)

Cheer,

Koordinator

Seeing that the reference site, www.google.com, can't be pinged either, shows that BOINC isn't allowed to make an internet connection. You didn't allow BOINC through the firewall, or you are using a proxy but neglected to tell BOINC about that.

BOINC need to be allowed through any firewall on ports 80 and 443.
If you use a proxy, make sure you set it up through BOINC Manager->Advanced View->Advanced->Options.

---

hmm...

When I use the proxy, I set it, it works. BOINC might be denied access by the firewall. But this is OS X - how in the world to change things here? It says that is open to everything?! Suggestions. BOINC cannot access internet (without proxy, which means that it can access the (inter)net) on its own.

One thing I can try is to run BOINC in Parallels in OS X and see whether it works there.
I still believe it is a DNS problem.

Any other suggestions?

K

Same issue here. Four machines side-by-side on the same network. They were all working at 5.10.45. I upgraded one to 6.2.19 and it now can't update any projects or BAM. Just for laughs, I upgraded a second one and the upgrade broke that as well. I downgraded and it worked again.

They're all running XP SP3 (one 64-bit, the others 32). ICS and Firewall disabled on all machines. 80 & 443 passed through the router. All running Kaspersky AV 7.0.1 (disabling it makes no difference).

Same issue here. Four machines side-by-side on the same network. They were all working at 5.10.45. I upgraded one to 6.2.19 and it now can't update any projects or BAM. Just for laughs, I upgraded a second one and the upgrade broke that as well. I downgraded and it worked again.

They're all running XP SP3 (one 64-bit, the others 32). ICS and Firewall disabled on all machines. 80 & 443 passed through the router. All running Kaspersky AV 7.0.1 (disabling it makes no difference).

Sounds like a firewall or router misconfiguration issue. It's really hard to diagnose these things through back and forth forum postings; easiest would be to have a tech-savvy friend (besides yourself) come and have a look at your network setup. There are also the BOINC volunteer helpers, who can give one-on-one help via Skype.

Things to check for:

1. Are you able to surf the Internet without issue from these PCs? If so, port 80 is fine.

2. Is there any firewall software installed on these PCs? If so, make sure it allows BOINC access on all ports, or disable it (at least for testing).

3. You shouldn't have to configure your router to allow ports 80 and 443, unless you've specifically blocked all ports and need to open (stealth) them. I use a router at home, and didn't have to touch anything after installing BOINC. You might have not configured those ports correctly.

4. Does your Internet connection use a proxy configuration? (you can check this by looking at your web browser's connection settings)

5. If all the above fails, you can try the "debug" settings that Ageless detailed above, and give us some debug messages to work with.

GlobalCitizen