Dial-up modem doesnt exist after installation

[dov100]

Hi!
After installing sp2 my pctel modem ceased to be recognized by xp. I've tried installing a tested usr modem instead but at best it installs and says the hardware is ready for use but isnt recognized anywhere in the system.
I reinstalled sp2, did a repair on my xp installation, disabled my two comm ports in bios setup and tried a motorola modem ( the previous two are conexant chips), all to no avail.
I desperatley need the modem working for faxing.
Help!

[Jiggy]

Hello and welcome to PC Guide,

Here you can get a uni-driver for PCTEL Modem (http://www.softwarepatch.com/utilities/pctel.html) using WinXP, also have you installed the required motherboard drivers ?
Does the modem show in Device Manager ?
Make sure it`s seated firmly.

[dov100]

Hi
I'll try that driver-ive tried about 6 already.
How do I check if I have the right motherboard drivers?
The modem doesnt show in device manager-even as a hidden device.

[Jiggy]

Make sure your COM ports are enabled in the BIOS - save then exit.

"How do I check if I have the right motherboard drivers?"

If it`s a motherboard you bought, a driver cd came with it, have you install that cd ?

if it`s a shop bought pc, do you still have the driver cd that came with it, have you install that cd ?

What make of motherboard do you have (and chip set if you know) ?
So we can give you a link to the web site for the latest drivers.

Also make sure it`s sitting firm in the PCI slot.

Also try a different PCI slot.

[dov100]

Interesting you say to enable the comm ports.

This is the info aida gives me:
Motherboard Name Gigabyte GA-7VX
Motherboard Chipset ApolloKX133
Chipset Properties
Motherboard Chipset VIA VT8371 Apollo KX133
Chipset Manufacturer
Company Name VIA Technologies, Inc.

Ive tried all the slots.

[Jiggy]

Give thses a read, hope they help.

http://www.modemsite.com/56k/trouble.asp

http://www.modemsite.com/56k/pci.asp

Windows XP, 2000, ME & XP Support -
http://www.modemsite.com/56k/pctel.asp

[Paul Komski]

Presumably all the modems you have tried are pci modems??

Boot to Safe Mode and see if any ghost modems appear there. Open Device Manger in Safe Mode (F8 during boot up) and then delete any modems that might be there. Reboot normally and have the correct drivers for the installed modem at the ready.

If that doesnt work then consider repairing your winsock by running
netsh winsock reset
as per http://winhlp.com/WxSP2.htm

[dov100]

Read all the threads in modemsite.

No ghost modest appear in safemode.

[Jiggy]

Serial ports, also called communication (COM) ports...

All tried modems are known working modems ?

Are all the modems PCI ?

Are you using any serial devices ?

Tried a range of modem drivers.

[dov100]

Yeh i realise about the comm ports but i was under the impression it was better to have them disabled.

All the modems are tried working modems, and they are all pci.

Im not using any serial devices (except for a printer on lpt1-im not sure if thats serial but it keeps reinstalling every time i able/disable the com ports)

Ive tried quite a few drivers-it sometimes even says the install was successfull but after that is not shown anywhere in windows.

[Jiggy]

pctel modem threads (http://forums.windrivers.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?s=&f=265&page=1&pp=25&sort=lastpost&order=desc&daysprune=-1) from the WinDriver Co - forum.

Other will help.

[Paul Komski]

The modem doesnt show in device manager-even as a hidden device.
If no modem shows there in both normal and safe modes then unless it is being recognised in Device Manager as something like "Unknown Communication Device" it looks as if no pci cards can be detected (since you've tried three different modems) by your system. However it would seem unlikely that installing SP2 would change the BIOS settings to disable such PCI devices and yet if Device Manager shows no devices with yellow punctuation marks I cant for the moment think of anything not yet covered. I also agree that disabling the COM ports is unnecessary and only adds another layer of complexity.

[dov100]

The thing is that my graphics card and network card are both pci cards and detected fine.
When i try a fresh install none of the modems are detected automatically at startup. However some are detected after i start the add hardware wizard.
Iwould have thought they should be detected automatically or not at all?

[Paul Komski]

Are there any devices with yellow exclamation or question marks in Device Manager??

However some are detected after i start the add hardware wizard
Detecting them is only the first part; installing the correct drivers comes next. If the device is plug-n-play it will detectable by the system by in absence of the correct drivers will appear as a "problem device" of one sort or another in Device Manager.

[dov100]

no
but there are some 'non plug and play drivers' which i think are connected to a modem installation.
ie k56, mdmxsdk, softfax etc
ive removed them several times sometimes without success.

Apart from that there is no sign of any modem installations on my system.

[Paul Komski]

Can you give us any further details of your pctel modem - any distinguishng marks to indicate the model etc. Seems unlikely but are you quite sure that this is not an ISA modem which would not be a plug-n-play device.

I've tried installing a tested usr modem instead but at best it installs and says the hardware is ready for use but isnt recognized anywhere in the system.

You've got me beat - nothing bar hardware or software corruptions would appear to prevent all your modems from being detetcted.

You could try resetting the BIOS to its defaults and then you could try a parallel installation of WinXP (just install WinXP normally but leave the current installation where it is) by simply adding a new installation into something like a Windows2 directory. Remove all modems before you do this so you can carefully watch proceedings when you add it in later on. Do this as a diagnostic manouvre because it should tell you whether or not your current Windows installation is the primary cause of your problems.

[Paul Komski]

ive removed them several times sometimes without success
Sorry but does this mean there ARE devices with yellow exclamation marks in DM?

[dov100]

My modems are as follows:
pctel1789
usr263095-oem
motorola ws-5614psl

It seems to be a known issue with these conexant chip modems but usual there is a bad installation at least listed-here i have nothing.
I
can try a parallel installation but i did a repair on this installation and added the modem after reinstalling sp2.
Is it still worth adding an installation?

[dov100]

No there are no devices with exclamation marks on DM.

[Paul Komski]

The reason for suggesting a parallel installation is to remove all possible references to previously installed modems that could exist somewhere in the registry or elsewhere a;nd indeed to any malware that could possibly be lurking somewhere. The repair installation setsup the hardware "de novo" but cant correct any other intrinsic problems with the system's software. This approach would give you a dual boot menu and would still allow you to access your current system so it avoids doing a totally clean installation at this time, which is the only other thing I would recommend.

[dov100]

Is there no software around that can sniff out all traces of a modem installation?

I dont believe malware is the problem.