TCP/IP Direct Connection Problem

[godofthunder]

I'm having an odd problem with a direct TCP/IP connection between my PC and Laptop, both running XP. (I also have this problem with the Laptop running 2000, so I doubt it is OS specific.) The connection is setup properly on both systems, and works normally most of the time.

If I start up the laptop first, and turn on the PC after a minute or so, it works fine.

If I start up the PC first, and turn on the laptop after a minuter or so, it works fine.

It seems that if I startup both systems at the right moment, at about the same time, the connection doesn't connect properly. If I go into "Network Connections" on either system, the TCP/IP connection to the other is listed and says it is connected. When I ping, the "sent" counter increments. On neither computer does the "received" counter increment. When I send a ping from the laptop, the lights on the network adapter on the PC will light up, so I know it is getting to the PC.

So, for some reason Windows thinks it is connected in "Network Connections" but it doesn't return the ping.

Then, if I restart the Laptop, it still will not ping.

If I restart the PC, it will fully connect and ping will work.

Anyone have any ideas what could be the problem?

Thank you.