Okay to put this as simply as possible, here's what happened leading up to my problem:
--- I set my desktop up after it was stored away for some time.
--- I updated everything including OS, apps, and games.
--- Once I booted up one of my games it froze the entire system once the high graphics and animation. I had no choice but to perform a hard shut down.
--- I realized the system froze because I accidentally had the HDMI cable attached to the motherboard instead of the graphics card. (again). So I connected it to the correct port and started the PC.
--- The game worked just fine, but now had issues getting online.
--- Network (ethernet) claims it's connected and the troubleshooter can't find any problems. However, the browser cannot connect to the internet and instead comes back with the classic "this site can't be reached" error. Again, despite the network claiming it's connected without issues. I've tried this on both wifi and ethernet.
What I've tried so far:
-- DNS flush
-- system scan and repair using the command prompt
-- Network reset (multiple times)
-- Updating all files (OS, graphics, and network drives included)
-- Manually setting the DNS
-- Updating firewall and setting browsers as exceptions
-- Downloaded and ran a few 3rd party system repair tools
-- Can't think of any others I've tried, but I've been researching with trial and error for days with absolutely NO luck.
What's worse....I have absolutely no backup/restore point.
Should I just do a clean reinstall of Windows???
--- I set my desktop up after it was stored away for some time.
--- I updated everything including OS, apps, and games.
--- Once I booted up one of my games it froze the entire system once the high graphics and animation. I had no choice but to perform a hard shut down.
--- I realized the system froze because I accidentally had the HDMI cable attached to the motherboard instead of the graphics card. (again). So I connected it to the correct port and started the PC.
--- The game worked just fine, but now had issues getting online.
--- Network (ethernet) claims it's connected and the troubleshooter can't find any problems. However, the browser cannot connect to the internet and instead comes back with the classic "this site can't be reached" error. Again, despite the network claiming it's connected without issues. I've tried this on both wifi and ethernet.
What I've tried so far:
-- DNS flush
-- system scan and repair using the command prompt
-- Network reset (multiple times)
-- Updating all files (OS, graphics, and network drives included)
-- Manually setting the DNS
-- Updating firewall and setting browsers as exceptions
-- Downloaded and ran a few 3rd party system repair tools
-- Can't think of any others I've tried, but I've been researching with trial and error for days with absolutely NO luck.
What's worse....I have absolutely no backup/restore point.
Should I just do a clean reinstall of Windows???