Missing network adapter driver after a thunderstorm

[Wolf1975]

Hi there,

I'm inexperienced when it comes to PC's so i apologise in advance.

After a recent thunderstorm my PC won't connect to the internet any more. I keep getting a message on the screen saying there is something wrong with my network adapter and i need to install the drivers. I've done some searching on forums for the last 3 days and have tried lots of solutions but keep drawing a blank.

My motherboard is a Biostar A740G M2+ and the NIC is onboard. I've been running a 64bit version of Windows 7 home premium for 12 months which i upgraded from windows XP. Below is a list of everything i've tried already.

I've checked BIOS to see if NIC is enabled which was o.k.
I've done a loop back test ping 127.0.0.1 which came back 4 packets sent and 4 packets received.
There are 2 lights on the NIC socket on the back of the tower 1green and 1orange.
There is no network adapter tab in device manager. I can get this to appear by showing hidden devices but the onboard NIC isn't showing.
The chipset drivers which came with the motherboard are all for Windows XP so
I've downloaded what i thought was the correct chipset drivers for windows 7 from Boistar Europe and installed them with no change.
I've completely unplugged the tower for 30 minutes and pressed the power on button to fully power down the tower as it as 'awake by LAN' option in the BIOS with still no change.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

 

[pjamme]

Was theNIC protected from lightening by at least a surge protector.
lighting loves telephone modem lines and easy targets like that.
You have LEDs but if it isn't showing up in device manger it is probably gone. Good news is a new NIC is cheap and easy to replace.

 

[Lokalaskurar]

I keep getting a message on the screen saying there is something wrong with my network adapter and i need to install the drivers.

The "install drivers" prompt is usually a result of a failed identification of the unit which requires them. Hence, my first guess would be that the thunderstorm has damaged the NIC.

A quick thought: If the LED's are blinking - flishing and flashing doesn't necessary have anything to do with whether the data is conceived correctly or not - it simply means that data is being sent/received. If they however don't blink idly when your PC is on, that can indicate that the NIC is in fact somehow damaged.

Umm... another suggestion; default NIC drivers are in fact designed to just 'work'. I assume that Windows 7 worked with your NIC, so that's not among the culprits so to speak.

Anyhow: a new NIC is relatively cheap, and in fact a very easy thing to replace.

EDIT:
My personal experience with BIOS loopback diagnosis is a bit funny :suspiciou - I would try connecting to the router using another PC (it might have been damaged too...) and I would check if the LED's are flashing.

Was the PC plugged into the wall-socket during the thunderstorm, btw?

 

[SNGX1275]

NICs are incredibly easy to kill.

I'd just shell out the $2 it will cost for a 10/100 PCI NIC, or if you have a gigabit LAN, then like $8.

 

[Wolf1975]

Thank you all for your advice.

I've just installed a new NIC and i'm up and running again.
I had surge protection on everything apart from the ethernet cable which I will now rectify.
It was the loop back test coming back o.k. that threw me and kept me trying to look for a solution when the NIC had obviously been damaged.

Thanks again.

 

[SNGX1275]

Several years ago, over a span of 2 or 3 years I think I killed 4 Realtek 8139 PCI NICs. I haven't had any die since then, *knock on wood*.

 

[Wolf1975]

Thanks again everyone.

Issue now solved.