TOOLS

Short for Windows Socket, an API for developing Windows programs that can communicate with other machines via the TCP/IP protocol. Windows 95 and Windows NT comes with Dynamic Link Library (DLL) called winsock.dll that implements the API and acts as the "glue" between Windows programs and TCP/IP connections.

Reset winsock if you have an error on the FTP test or

When you try to release and renew the IP address by using the Ipconfig program (Ipconfig.exe), you may receive one of the following error messages.
Message 1
An error occurred while renewing interface 'Internet': An operation was attempted on something that is not a socket.
Message 2
An error occurred while renewing interface Local Area Connection: the requested service provider could not be loaded or initialized.

When you start Internet Explorer, you may receive the following error message:
The page cannot be displayed

When you use your computer, you may receive the following error message:
Initialization function INITHELPERDLL in IPMONTR.DLL failed to start with error code 10107

Additionally, you may have no IP address or no Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA) address, and you may be receiving IP packets but not sending them.

When you use the ipconfig /renew command, you may receive the following error messages.

Message 1
An error occurred while renewing interface local area connection: an operation was attempted on something that is not a socket. Unable to contact driver Error code 2.
Message 2
The operation failed since no adapter is in the state permissible for this operation.
Message 3
The attempted operation is not supported for the type of object referenced.

In Device Manager, when you click Show Hidden Devices, the TCP/IP Protocol Driver is listed as disabled under Non-Plug and Play drivers, and you receive error code 24.

When you create a dial-up connection, you may receive the following error message:
Error 720: No PPP Control Protocols Configured

...from microsoft kb article

Use to Reset Winsock - Winsock Utility

for Windows XP SP 2 - netsh winsock reset catalog

For Windows XPsp1 you can manually do reset by REGEDIT ( for experienced users only, pls back up registry before atempting reset)

Click Start >Run >regedit {enter}
Navigate to
+HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
+SYSTEM
+CurrentControlSet
+Services
+Winsock (delete the folder)
+Winsock2 (delete the folder)
Exit and reboot.

Note Restart the computer after you delete the Winsock keys. Doing so causes the Windows XP operating system to create new shell entries for those two keys.

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TCP/IP - definition from Webopedia

Abbreviation of Transmission Control Protocol, and pronounced as separate letters. TCP is one of the main protocols in TCP/IP networks. Whereas the IP protocol deals only with packets, TCP enables two hosts to establish a connection and exchange streams of data. TCP guarantees delivery of data and also guarantees that packets will be delivered in the same order in which they were sent.

You may want to remove and reinstall TCP/IP to help resolve the following issues:

Bindings that are improperly configured on a server.
Dial-up clients that are unable to connect to a RAS server.
Network adapter drivers that do not properly bind to the protocol.