I recently added a third computer to my account. Near the time I did that, I noticed my main computer has quit connecting. Since Jan.1, I have gotten the "no scheduler responded" error when I try to upload my data. I re-installed BOINC after uninstalling it and the folder it was in, and now can't attach.

My other two computers, one which is connected to my home network where the main one that doesn't work, all continue to work just fine.

I can ping setiboinc.ssl.berkeley.edu and get the appropriate IP address returned, 128.32.18.173 with an average time of 77ms and no packets lost.

I am somehow limited in the number of computers I can use? This is very strange. I've been working on this for the past week and can not find an answer. I see many threads about folks getting the "scheduler not responding" (paraphrase) but why do my other two computers continue to work just find, but my main one has quit connecting? I have tried to manually update it also with no luck. Very weird...

Any ideas?? Thanks!!

..........Bob

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You are not limited to any amount of computers to use.

Some have hundreds of computers running on their account.

Is this the computer you are talking about? Host 1803557

Ok, I can see it's running Windows.
Do you use the BoincManager, or some third party program to control it?

If it is the standard BoincManager, try a right click on the icon in the system tray and see if "suspended" or "Network activity suspended" is checked.
If so, set it to another option you want to use (always, or based on preferences)

AndyK

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Want to know your pending credit?


The biggest bug is sitting 10 inch in front of the screen.

I have the preferences set to "run always" and "network activity always available. "

Here are the messages I am getting:

1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Scheduler request to http://setiboinc.ssl.berkeley.edu/sah_cgi/cgi failed with a return value of 500
1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|No schedulers responded
1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Couldn't connect to URL http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/.Please check URL.
1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Resetting project
1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM||request_reschedule_cpus: exit_tasks
1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Detaching from project
1/9/2006 9:34:55 PM||Fetching config info from http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/get_project_config.php
1/9/2006 9:35:23 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Master file download succeeded
1/9/2006 9:35:23 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Sending scheduler request to http://setiboinc.ssl.berkeley.edu/sah_cgi/cgi
1/9/2006 9:35:23 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Reason: Requested by user
1/9/2006 9:35:23 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Requesting 8640 seconds of new work

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If it is the standard BoincManager, try a right click on the icon in the system tray and see if "suspended" or "Network activity suspended" is checked.
If so, set it to another option you want to use (always, or based on preferences)

AndyK

HAHA! I did that once. It was really irritating until I figured out what it was.

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TEAM
LL

I have the preferences set to "run always" and "network activity always available. "

Here are the messages I am getting:

1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Scheduler request to http://setiboinc.ssl.berkeley.edu/sah_cgi/cgi failed with a return value of 500
1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|No schedulers responded
1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Couldn't connect to URL http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/.Please check URL.
1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Resetting project
1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM||request_reschedule_cpus: exit_tasks
1/9/2006 9:34:41 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Detaching from project
1/9/2006 9:34:55 PM||Fetching config info from http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/get_project_config.php
1/9/2006 9:35:23 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Master file download succeeded
1/9/2006 9:35:23 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Sending scheduler request to http://setiboinc.ssl.berkeley.edu/sah_cgi/cgi
1/9/2006 9:35:23 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Reason: Requested by user
1/9/2006 9:35:23 PM|http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/|Requesting 8640 seconds of new work

I would try detaching from the project and re-attaching.
Maybe, you got a bit error in the address at some point.

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TEAM
LL

You have to make those settings on the BOINC Manager.

BUt, you may have some other networking issue. At times, adding computers to a network can cause odd things to happen. If you are using a DHCP "Server", like I do with a Linksys "Router" it can get confused and so can the computers attached.

Since this happened when you attached new computers, I would try this. Turn off all compters, the router, and the cable/dsl modem. Turn on the router, then the modem, then the computers one at a time. Let them complete boot-up and test the connection to the internet before starting the next one up.

If two computers are trying to use the same IP address you can see errors like this....

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I have the exact same problem. I have 5 operational computers. 4 are not reporting results. Those four happen to be the ones I installed Crunch3r's optimized client on. I am sure I must have done something wrong with the install. My computer at work that does not have the optomized client is running normally. All 5 of my computers are running BOINC version 5.2.13.

On my computer http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/show_host_detail.php?hostid=2010375, I made a back up of the BOINC folder then uninstalled BOINC. I reinstalled the official version and I was able to connect just fine. I tried updating to the optimized client again and agaain, I was unable to connect. This happened on January 7th and I have not connected since.

I have tried changing the preferences to connect more often but that has not helped. Any suggestions?

(edit)

All of my computers that can not connect to seti can connect to the internet.

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Paul:

Thanks for the idea. I have had problems with my Linksys router changing the internal IP addresses of my networked computers at home causing problems with programs . . . most notably a ham radio program called Echolink. I shut everything down and then re-started the router, then the computer. Internet works fine, but BOINC will not attach to the SET project using my main computer. BOINC continues to work fine on my wife's computer, which is the other computer on my home network. I may try bypassing the router all-together just to rule that out as a problem. I will keep trying . . .

..........Bob

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Well, that was it!!

I connected my computer directly to the cable modem, bypassing the router and was able to attach without any problem. Of course, now that I have the router back on line, and both computers at home going through it, I wonder whether either will now be able to connect since the IP addresses will have changed. We will see!

One thing I noted is that I upgraded to XP SP2 recently on the main computer. SETI was still showing that computer as SP1, but now correctly ID'd it as having SP2. I don't know if that has anything to do with this at all, but just mention it. My computer stopped connecting before I upgraded to SP2, however.

At any rate, it is *definitely* a network problem here at home.

..........Bob

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I will keep trying . . .

[edit] (This was written before your response was seen.)

Do you have a software Firewall installed also, in addition to your Linksys router?

Some of the software Firewalls "finger print" the EXE programs that are allowed to connect to the Internet. If the program's finger print changes, as if it were modified or infected with a virus, and there is not an operating system indication of an install of a different version of the program, then the Firewall will block Internet access by that program.

In your case, you installed one version, but you replaced that module manually with a different one. This may be causing a software Firewall to block that program from accessing the Internet.

A second thing that might happen, if the URL for the server resolves to an IP address the Firewall will become trained to expect that IP address to respond to that URL's requests. However, most of the BOINC/Seti servers will resolve to two different IP addresses. If trained to expect one and the other responds, a firewall might just block the response.

If you have a software Firewall installed on the machine having a problem, try disabling it and see if BOINC can connect. If it does, you may have to set your Firewall to allow both 128.32.18.173 and 128.32.18.174 to be used.

If you have a software Firewall, what program and what version?

I connected my computer directly to the cable modem, bypassing the router and was able to attach without any problem. Of course, now that I have the router back on line, and both computers at home going through it, I wonder whether either will now be able to connect since the IP addresses will have changed. We will see!

The DHCP local IP address of a system changing should not effect anything. Even if resetting your modem caused your public IP address to change, everything should still work.

One thing I noted is that I upgraded to XP SP2 recently on the main computer. SETI was still showing that computer as SP1, but now correctly ID'd it as having SP2. I don't know if that has anything to do with this at all, but just mention it. My computer stopped connecting before I upgraded to SP2, however.

Every little bit of information helps. As a number of different people are having the same type of problem. There are security differences and changes with SP2. One that could be effecting you, is that SP2 enables XP's built in software Firewall by default. There could be some sort of conflict with this or other security changes that conflict with the router.

If you have trouble connecting from behind the router, then go into XP and try disabling its software Firewall and see if that makes a difference. Would be interesting if that made a difference.

If it still does not connect, go into the Linksys router and note what its setting for Filter IDENT(port113): is set to. If it is Enabled, try setting it to Disabled (the default setting). This setting could explain why Linksys routers seem to be involved in this problem. This new feature is not in older routers, and older software Firewalls.

It would be even more interesting to find out that once able to update by connecting directly with the modem only, you are now able to connect with the router in place. That would indicate a BOINC problem! One that needs more investigation. A few ideas of where to start looking if that is the case.....

Jack:

Excellent information! I disabled XP's firewall when I installed SP2. I have Zonealarm as a software firewall. I had previously disabled that, but still couldn't connect.

Now that I have re-attached, I'm anxiously waiting to see if BOINC keeps connecting or not, as I now have the router back online and the home network back up and running.

If I have problems, I will check the Filter IDENT setting as you suggested and let you know what happens.

Thanks again!

..........Bob

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I have been haveing a similar problem W/XP Pro and zonealarm.
I either have to temporarily disable zonealarm or re-boot.
I have also tried the earlier suggestions but the problems persist.
Am I missing somthing or should I be looking for another firewall.Because it only seems to affect my XP box.
U.S.Robotics router / with Gigafast switch. 6 boxes on the network/ 4 running boinc with no problems with any but the XP machine. Win 2K Pro and Linux crunchin right along.

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I Desire Peace and Justice, Jim Scott (Mod-Ret.)

I have Zonealarm as a software firewall.

Actually, Zonealarm software Firewall shoots down one of my ideas of what might be happening. Zonealarm for many versions back had implemented the Port 113 blocking. But it opens up a different version of the idea. Just not clear yet if or how it could be causing the problems seen.

To explain. Port 113 is the TCP/IP IDENT port. It was an early idea for security checking in TCP/IP connections. The idea was, when a request is received by a server, the server could verify that it was coming from a valid system by using the source IP address and request the System ID with a Port 113 request. There were quickly security issues with returning a computers ID in response to these request, so few did it, but they did respond with a port Closed indication. It became standard for servers to make this request, and then accept the port Closed response as an indication that there is a system at that IP address. In fact, some servers require this response or they will just drop the request. There were problems found with this whole process, so its importance as a security measure went away.

When Firewall, both hardware and software, became popular and it became popular to "stealth" your ports (make them invisible), not just respond with Closed, but Port 113 caused a problem. If it did not respond to a request some servers would drop your request. So all firewalls responded closed. Those that did not respond at all caused a problem for servers that made the request. The solution became, if there was no response, then after a timeout continue with the original request. Quit a mess that prevented stealthing your system as Port 113 had to respond as Closed or it caused delays making requests to many servers.

A solution was offered and used by the makers of ZoneAlarm. Don't respond to Port 113 requests (stealth the port) unless the system had recently sent something to that servers IP address that would cause the Port 113 request, otherwise respond with Close. This worked well for ZoneAlarm.

Early 2004, Linksys started adding a version of this to their routers and in mid 2004 did a firmware update that included it and an option for enabling this ability to stealth port 113. But because it can not work as well as the method used by software firewall like ZoneAlarm, and because it can cause some servers to respond slow, it was not enable by default.

So most Linksys routers will not have this feature Enabled. But some will if the user has set it up and enabled this feature.

Not sure if this even plays into the problem you and others are having. (My Linksys router was smoked this summer when a wire broke to the air conditioner while I was away and caused the whole house to get too hot for the Linksys Modem and caused it to fail, which overheated the router setting on to of it.)

But, if any part of the BOINC communications requires a response from Port 113, then having this option enabled could cause the problem. We need to at least explore it as a possibility and prove it one way or another.

If normal operations required this, lots of people would have problems and it would have been changed long ago. So if Port 113 blocking has anything to do with it, it must be some sort of special case. Your case might just be one of those.

Directly hooking to the modem would bypass this filter and allow you to connect. And connecting might just solve the problem and allow you to connect through the router. There might be a way to explain that case.

But if you still can not connect behind the router, it gets difficult to come up with any theory as to what is happening. (And you have to have some sort of theory to either prove or disprove.)

My thinking is that in the case of your preferences being updated, for security reasons, the server requires some sort of response from Port 113. A system or most software firewalls would allow this response. But a Linksys router with its Filter IDENT(port113): option enabled, would not respond at all and cause the preferences not to be updated. With out the preferences updated and valid, request from that system would just be ignored for security reasons.

For this to just suddenly start, something else has to be involved, such as a change in the way the server software works? Maybe a change in the scrips that no one thought would effect anything. Or a new version of the client or applications software? The common elements where this problem is showing up are a change in the Host and/or application software and Linksys routers. A change that effects BOINC security and the unique way this new feature works if enabled in Linksys routers.

Need more details, tests and information on BOINC security checking to see if this has anything to do with the problem.

When you installed the new system, do you recall making any changes to your Preferences and exactly what all the changes were?

One thing you can try, is first see if you can connect and upload results and or download. If that does not work, check the setting in the Linksys router. If it does work, then use another system to go in and change your preferences for those systems and see if an Update request allows the changes to be downloaded. This shows up in the Messages. Then try the same thing on the first system and see if it gets the update.

I have been haveing a similar problem W/XP Pro and zonealarm.
I either have to temporarily disable zonealarm or re-boot.
I have also tried the earlier suggestions but the problems persist.
Am I missing somthing or should I be looking for another firewall.Because it only seems to affect my XP box.
U.S.Robotics router / with Gigafast switch. 6 boxes on the network/ 4 running boinc with no problems with any but the XP machine. Win 2K Pro and Linux crunchin right along.

Maybe your XP firewall is turned on.

To check go to control panel/network connections/Local area connection/ right click and select "properties". Under the advanced tab push the button that says "Settings".

That should show you if it is turned on or not.

P.S. It will also show a little lock symbol on the Local area connection icon.

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No it,s not on. Gonna try to figure it out "with a little help from my friends"
any further Ideas would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance. ;-}

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I Desire Peace and Justice, Jim Scott (Mod-Ret.)

No it's not on. Gonna try to figure it out "with a little help from my friends",
any further ideas would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance. ;-}

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I Desire Peace and Justice, Jim Scott (Mod-Ret.)

U.S.Robotics router.

That makes a chain of "protection" that may be causing problems.
If your router has a firewall (it my offer stealthing of port 113).
ZoneAlarm has its own Port 113 logic.
Windows XP has its own software firewall that can be enabled.
Windows XP has additional security filters in place.
By chance have you manually replace the BOINC Manager and/or the Seti application with a optimized version.

Something is not getting through.
Too bad my Linksys router died and I can not try to reproduce the problem. But then I don't use XP, XP SP2, or ZoneAlarm either.

ZoneAlarm is not the problem, there is something going on that no one yet understands.

See if your U.S.Robotics router has an option regarding port 113. If it does, change it and see if it makes a difference.

Thanks much, I'll check out all ideas in the A.M.
Time for nite nite here and its raining here so might get some good sleep.
Thanks again,

Jim Scott

Edit, "Not optimized meant to mention that."

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I Desire Peace and Justice, Jim Scott (Mod-Ret.)

Will, I thought of a way to do a little testing with Ethereal. Never saw a Port 113 request from the servers. So that looks like a dead end, unless changing that setting in a router effects the problem. We are back to the option, that taking the router out of the Internet connection seems to solve the problem with being able to connect.

Would help if an Ethereal capture was made of a connection attempt on a failing system. There might be a few clues as to what is going on.