Cannot Connect to the Internet During Internet Explorer Setup

• Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 4.0, 4.01 for Windows NT 4.0
• Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 4.0, 4.01 for Windows 95

SYMPTOMS

When you try to install Internet Explorer 4.0, you may receive one or more of the following error messages:

• A connection to the server could not be established.
• Error: The server returned an invalid or unrecognizable response.
• The program could not find the address for <TCP/IP address of proxy server>. The attempt to load the Web page http://www.microsoft.com failed.

CAUSE

This behavior can occur when you are connecting to the Internet using a SOCKS proxy server, and the proxy configuration information is not written to the registry during Setup.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this problem, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, click Control Panel, and then double- click Internet.

2. Click the Connection tab, and then click Advanced.

3. Type the following line in the Socks box, and then click OK

         socks=<server>:<port>
   

   where <server> is the server name or address of the SOCKS proxy server and <port> is the port number assigned to the proxy server (usually 1080). For example:

         Socks=125.115.36.17:1080
   

4. Click OK, and then click Cancel.

5. Start Internet Explorer 4.0 Setup again.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be problem in Internet Explorer 4.0 and will post new information here in the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.

MORE INFORMATION

This behavior is known to occur with SOCKS proxy version 4 or later. SOCKS is an Internet proxy server standard. The IBM Global Network and Advantis are known to use SOCKS proxy servers.

For additional information about this issue, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   ARTICLE-ID : Q139546
   TITLE      : Troubleshooting Internet Explorer and Proxy Servers