URL response Fail!

It's not only you ... I'm having trouble too. I suspect they probably have an issue with their server, routing or DNS.

- Gough

The problem in my tracing seems to be an NXDOMAIN returned for avnetagent.iotconnect.io

It seems that some servers can still resolve it, whereas others cannot.

Result is:

13.77.82.141

173.201.188.161

Perhaps shoving it into your HOSTS file could temporarily overcome the issue.

EDIT: Confirmed, adding the binding of 13.77.82.141 avnetagent.iotconnect.io into my HOSTS file, flushing DNS resolver cache (ipconfig /flushdns) and restarting the app allowed it to submit correctly.

- Gough

danzima - any chance you guys can look into why your DNS servers aren't reliably propagating?

- Gough

I added 13.77.82.141 avnetagent.iotconnect.io into hosts, flushed the DNS resolver cache and restarted the app. The url is resolving correctly but can't be reached. I also tried 173.201.188.161. It seems I have a different problem.

I don't believe that you can ping the address - the server at 13.77.82.141 there doesn't seem to respond to pings, but the one at 173.201.188.161 does.

I suspect perhaps a firewall or un-cooperative ISP/router? Perhaps worth trying a tracert to each server and seeing where the trail ends. For me, it seems that my traffic (from AU) arrives at LAX then gets sent through SN, AT, BN (all MSN) before being "lost" in a sea of non-responding routers for 13.77.82.141. For the other, my traffic arrives at LAX, then goes through ASH, EQIX (GoDaddy) before ending up at one of their shared hosting/VPSes.

Have you also tried restarting your router? Else if you have a VPN, you could try going through that.

- Gough

It was working when I just changed the host file.

But after running ipconfig /flush dns . it has stopped working, the url response fail is back.

Flushing DNS Cache is necessary in case there is a NXDOMAIN response cached, which will result in it failing (quickly) for a while until the entry expires. HOSTS entry should override the need to actually resolve it. Try clicking the 'Send to Server' button more than once. I suspect there may be another name which it tries to resolve that is not the one we have singled out which might explain the failure ...

- Gough

I just tried again and for me, it seems to hang for a while and then fail. It might be a problem with Microsoft's servers as well. Oh well ...

Doing more digging - it looks like avnetagent.iotconnect.io is actually corresponding to a CNAME record pointing to:

• poc-iotconnect-app-agent-eu.azurewebsites.net.iotconnect.io (with a TTL of 4 hours, which comes up NX)

Most nameservers queried at dnslookup.online show that it's NX.

There is one with a record still existent is OpenDNS at 2620:0:ccd::2 which states that it is a rather long CNAME chain:

avnetagent.iotconnect.io -> poc-iotconnect-app-agent-eu.azurewebsites.net -> waws-prod-bn1-045.sip.azurewebsites.windows.net -> waws-prod-bn1-045.cloudapp.net -> 13.77.82.141

There is another which is okay which is Comodo Secure DNS at 8.26.56.26/8.20.247.20 which goes:

avnetagent.iotconnect.io -> poc-iotconnect-app-agent-eu.azurewebsites.net.iotconnect.io -> iotconnect.io -> 173.201.188.161

The fact it is down is a big let-down for the current "raffle" competition.

- Gough

With tracert 13.77.82.141 I get as far as:

ae163-0.icr02.bn6.ntwk.msn.net [104.44.20.134]

then it times out.

With tracert 173.201.188.161, I end up at:

ip-173-201-188-161.ip.secureserver.net [173.201.188.161]

but the "sync app" still gives me an error.

I tried using my iPad as a 4G hotspot (bypassing my router) and I have the same problem so I don't think the problem is at my end.

With tracert 13.77.82.141 I get as far as:

ae163-0.icr02.bn6.ntwk.msn.net [104.44.20.134]

then it times out.

With tracert 173.201.188.161, I end up at:

ip-173-201-188-161.ip.secureserver.net [173.201.188.161]

but the "sync app" still gives me an error.

I tried using my iPad as a 4G hotspot (bypassing my router) and I have the same problem so I don't think the problem is at my end.

I suspect your connection to the iotconnect.io is actually succeeding but something else has gone wrong on Microsoft's end. I say this because I succeeded post hosts/flushDNS but instead, now the reporting app stalls for a bit before reporting error (rather than reporting error immediately).

- Gough