XP/2k network quesion

[junglemike]

Hi everyone. I'm working as a helpdesk. From time to time i encounter some problem with our clients.that i don't know how to solve.
The problem is this:
in Windows 2000/XP there is a modem (cable/dsl) connected to ethernet/usb to computer, and client doesn't receive a correct IP addres, he receives 169.254.x.x or 0.0.0.0. When i try to ipconfig/renew - i receive one of the following XP errors:
1) no operatin can be performed on something which is not a Socket
2) cannot find the file specified.
I understand that this problem is connected to windows registry or maybe even winsock. But does anybody know how to fix it?
TIA.

[SomeJoe]

169.254.x.x IP address indicates that DHCP failed to get an address from the DHCP server. There were certain registry errors or Winsock problems in Win 98/98SE that could cause this error, but those have been largely eliminated in 2000/XP.

Typically this indicates a connectivity issue: bad cable, bad hub/switch, heavy packet loss on the network, bad NIC, or something else at the hardware/network level. I rarely see a driver problem cause this issue, unless the wrong driver is installed for the NIC you're using.