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An error occurs when using Windows Internet Explorer 8 or Windows Internet Explorer 7 to view a Web site: �Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage�.


View products that this article applies to.

Symptoms

When you use Windows Internet Explorer 8 or Windows Internet Explorer 7 to access a Web site, you may receive an error message similar to the following in the web browser:

Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage.

This problem may occur when you access a Web site that uses both IPv4 and IPv6 as the Internet Protocol version.

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Cause

When Internet Explorer connects to a Web server and the IP address list returned from the DNS servers contains multiple IP addresses, Internet Explorer tries to make a TCP connection using these IP addresses in the order in which they were received. Once a TCP connection is successfully established, Internet Explorer uses that IP address to send the HTTP request to.

However, by default Internet Explorer only attempts to use the first five IP addresses it receives from DNS when it tries to establish a TCP connection. If it fails to make a connection to all five IP addresses, the problem outlined in the Symptoms section can occur.


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Resolution

To have us fix this problem for you, go to the "Fix it for me" section. If you prefer to fix this problem yourself, go to the "Let me fix it myself" section.

Fix it for me


To fix this problem automatically, click the Fix it button or link. In the File Download dialog box, click Run and then follow the steps in the Fix it Wizard.


Fix this problem
Microsoft Fix it 50672

Notes:
  • This Fix it solution sets the�ConnectRetries value to 10for your first use.
  • This wizard may be in English only. However, the automatic fix also works for other language versions of Windows.
  • If you are not on the computer that has the problem, save the Fix it solution to a flash drive or a CD and then run it on the computer that has the problem.

Then, go to the "Did this fix the problem?" section.



Let me fix it myself

To resolve this problem, add the following registry key to the registry to adjust the number of connection attempts made by Internet Explorer.

Important This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry. However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
How to back up and restore the registry in Windows


Note: Modifying these values affects the connection attempts made by all applications that use WinInet.dll.

1. Click Start, and type regedit in the Search Programs and files text box.

2. If you are prompted by a User Account Control (UAC) dialog box, click Yes.

3. In the left pane of the Registry Editor window, navigate to either of the following registry keys:


For x86-based computers:

To change the machine-wide connection attempts:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings
To change the user-specific connection attempts:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings

For x64-based computers:

To change the machine-wide connection attempts for Internet Explorer 32-bit:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings
To change the user-specific connection attempts for Internet Explorer 32-bit:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings

To change the machine-wide connection attempts for Internet Explorer 64-bit:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings

To change the user-specific connection attempts for Internet Explorer 64-bit::

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings

4. Right click on the Internet Settings key, point to New and then click DWORD (32-bit) Value.

5. In the New Value box, type ConnectRetries, and then press ENTER.

6. Click on ConnectRetries, and then click Modify.

7. Click Decimal in the Base area. In the Value data box, type 10, and then click OK.

Note Setting 10 may not take effect depending on the network environment you use. If this is the case, increase the value until the error is eliminated.

8. On the File menu, click Exit to exit Registry Editor.

9. To apply the change, restart Internet Explorer.


Important:�Depending on your network environment, setting the ConnectRetries value to a very large number may negatively affect performance.

Did this fix the problem?

  • Check whether the problem is fixed. If the problem is fixed, you are finished with this section. If the problem is not fixed, you can contact support.
  • We would appreciate your feedback. To provide feedback or to report any issues with this solution, please leave a comment on the "Fix it for me" blog or send us an email message.

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More information

To work around this behavior, refresh the Web page in Internet Explorer.

If the steps in this article did not resolve the issue, see additional steps in the following KB article:

956196 Error "Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage" when viewing a website in Internet Explorer


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Keywords: kbfixme, kbmsifixme, KB2293762

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Article Info
Article ID : 2293762
Revision : 15
Created on : 2/8/2012
Published on : 2/8/2012
Exists online : False
Views : 505