Internet connection problem. Help.

[PeterRaymond]

Ok guys this one's really confusing.
While I'm using Internet Explorer it sometimes cuts out and I'm left with the error page. No matter how many times I refresh, the page doesn't change. It takes about half an hour until the internet reconnects. This usually happens about three times a night with a gap of approximately 2 hours inbetween. I'm also on msn at the time and using limewire but the thing is that they don't cut out when Internet Explorer does. But sometimes instant messages on msn can't be delivered. So I thought it was just a problem with the browser so I downloaded Firefox and the same thing happens. Lately it's been cutting out even more frequently. There's nothing wrong with the connection because otherwise the modem would indicate so. I've tried disabling then enabling the network connection but this doesn't work. So how do I fix this? I'm gonna say thanks guys in advance I'd appreciate any help you could give me.

[Deerpark]

P2P software are notorious for hogging your connection if you let them. Try lowering your max download and upload speed and see if that makes a difference. (Or try shutting down Limewire altogether for a while)

If that doesn't help I think some more info will be needed.
What version of windows are you using?
What  protection software do you have? (antivirus, firewall, etc)
How are you connected to the internet? I.e. are your computer connected directly to the modem or do you have any equipment between the modem and pc?

[Doug Vitale]

So what you are saying is that when you're surfing, Internet Explorer periodically goes into "Page cannot be displayed" mode, and sometimes the IM's you send on MSN Messenger cannot be delivered, but with Limewire you can always download, and people download from you?

I wouldn't be at all surprised if your PC was infected with some sort of malware, probably acquired via Limewire. And as Deerpark said, the bandwidth issue could be relevant, especially when multiple users are downloading files from you.

Try turning off Limewire completely, and surf for a while and see if the problem re-appears. If it doesn't, you know which application is guilty. If Limewire is the culprit, then within Limewire, decrease the amount of simultaneous uploads allowed, and decrease the amount of files that a certain user can download simultaneously from you.

If Limewire is not the problem, update your virus scanner with the latest definitions and run a full scan. Install Ad-Aware and Spybot, update them, and run full anti-spyware scans. Good luck.