Hello all,
Limewire pro is stuck at "starting connection" in the connections tab there are usually about 10 connections that it is trying to connect to. Have tried rebooting and looking through the stickys without any luck. Please help.

1. OS version? (eg: Windows 98) XP Pro Srvcpak 2
2. What firewalls you have? Panda Platinum 2007
3. How much ram? 2gigs
4. Hard Disk space available? 200 gigs (50gigs on primary drive)
5. Connection type? (eg: dialup, broadband, cable, etc.) cable
6. Modem & router brand name & model numbers? Motorola sb5101, no router
7. Where are you trying to connect from (house, appartment complex, school, student accomodation, work, etc.)? apartment
8. What version of LimeWire (LW) & Java do you have? (Go to LW's menu Help>About LW...) Will show both LW & Java version. LM 4.12.3pro / Java 1.6.0_01
9. Who is your ISP (Internet Service Provider)? Comcast
10. Do this simple test for us. Using your browser go here: http://www3.limewire.com:6346/ The page should say 'Your test worked!'. What happens when you go there? Your test worked!
11. Are you sharing the connection with other computers or p2p sharing programs? If yes, please give details of set up. No
12. Is this a your 1st try at LW or is this a new problem with an experienced user. New problem, has worked fine for a long time.
13. Do you see a brick wall in front of the blue world icon at the bottom of LW's interface? Yes
http://www.gnutellaforums.com/attach...1&d=1158099342
14. For those using a modem/router, how is your modem/router set up...are you port forwarding or is UPnP enabled?
15. What security programs are you using (antivirus etc)? Some people might not be aware that their security suite includes a firewall Panda Platinum 2007
16. What country are you living in? Sometimes there are ISPs with the same name in more than one country (eg Clearwire in the USA & also in Ireland). USA

Double check that the XP firewall's turned off & your Panda firewall's allowing LW.
PortForward.com - Free Help Setting up Your Router or Firewall

Try this version of Java. Use the JRE offline installer & remove your current Java version(s) before you install this one.
Archive: Download Java 2 Platform Standard Edition (J2SE) 5.0 Update 11

If that doesn't help, delete LW's preferences folder when LW's properly closed. See point 3 here & also point 2 if you've used older versions of LW in the past (there could be a folder in either location).
Fixes for LimeWire
This will kill all of your settings within options, you'll have to go back through afterwards & reset things. If you're not sure of your settings, go through LW's tools > options & write them all down, so that you can reset things later.

Thanks for help. I have tried everything you mentioned, but it still will not connect. XP firewall is turned off and panda is set to allow all. Any other suggestions?

Are you sure that you deleted the preferences folder correctly? Were all of your settings within options changed after deleting that folder?

You could try the latest LW version (4.14.0) & see if that behaves any differently! If you don't have the 4.12 3 Pro installer saved, you will lose that version completely if you install another version of LW.

Is there any chance that your apartment complex has added a firewall or changed it's internet connection in some way?

Just did it again, brought me back to the setup dialog steps (country, connection type, etc) The complex does not provide internet. I have cable internet through comcast using a motorola surfboard modem. Thanks for continuing to help. Any more suggestions?

Try changing LW's listening port. Tools > options > advanced > firewall config. change LW's listening port to 64049 (or try others in the range of 49152 - 65535) > Apply > ok.

Also try File > disconnect. Leave it for 5 minutes. Then File > connect.

Do you have the installer for your Pro saved, so that you can try another LW version?

thanks again for the suggestions. Changing the port did not do it. I will let it sit disconnected for 5-10 mins and let you know. Ever used Shareaza?

oh I almost forgot. I do have the pro installer saved. So I could try another version. Is the pro version even worth it?

I tried Shareaza years ago & didn't like it. But some people love it. If you want to try it, go for it.

Download the latest basic LW & just see how it goes, every version behaves differently for different users. When you get to the download page, click to download & then once the dialogue box pops up...cancel that. Now choose the option to downoad the offline installer. There's less chance of installation problems (eg corrupt installation)

Personally, I think Pro's worth the payment. It does connect you to a couple of extra ultrapeers (that's handy if you're searching for rarer files) & connects you to a couple of extra hosts for download. Plus it's a donation to LW's development. But it's up to everyone whether they want to buy Pro. If you're happy with basic then there's no need to buy Pro