Problem: The underlying connection was closed: Unable to connectto the remote server

[Kristof Thys]

Hello,

I'm developing a C# - windows forms application. To get some information
for my application, I'm connecting to an URL, wich gives me XML
generated using php.
With 90% of the users, this code just works fine:

 
WebRequest request = WebRequest.Create(URL);
 
try
{
request.Timeout = 50000;
WebResponse response = request.GetResponse();
}
catch(Exception ex)
{
WriteToLog(LogType.Info,ex.Message.ToString());
response = null;
}
 
 

But with some users, I get an exception saying: The underlying
connection was closed: Unable to connect to the remote server

I'm sure that there is no firewall on, and I've asked the user to
disable any proxy settings...

Is there something that I'm overseeing or that can be improved to this code?
thanks in advance,

Kristof

[Kristof Thys]

Unbelievable,

I just had contact with my Romanian friend... He installed ethereal and
tried it... And the program just worked...
The only thing I did was to save the generated xml in utf-8,
yesterday... That must have been the solution...

Very strange,

But thank you all for trying to help me on this one...
If you are in Belgium sometime, give me a call, I'll buy you a drink :D

ciao
Kristof Thys wrote:

I'm sorry for my stupidity, but I don't know exactly what you are
talking about... I'm not using a http logging proxy, but where can I
download something like that and how can I use it? What does it do exactly?

thx

at wrote:

That makes it rather difficult! But...

Can you have the client person in Romania use a http logging proxy? So
that you can get at the headers being send? Do you run a client
yourself as well by the way? Do you get the headers it sends?
"Kristof Thys" <Kr**********@l uc.ac.be> wrote in message
news:d1******** **@ikaria.belne t.be...

I don't own the server, so running ethereal there is a problem...
Running ethereal on the failing client isn't easy neither, because
the failing client situates in Romania, while I'm from Belgium...

But when I try to change my IE settings, and block all cookies,
everything keeps working... Even browsing to the url with IE...

Tricky problem :S

at wrote:

If you use ethereal on the serverside and run a working client, do
you see any cookie stuff in the received http headers? It looks to
me the client that does not work does not send cookie. It is my
assumption that a cookie should be passed as part of the request.

If you are unable to sit behind the server, check cookie settings on
the client.

Or, use I.E. from the failing client and see what headers get send.

"Kristof Thys" <Kr**********@l uc.ac.be> wrote in message
news:d1******** **@ikaria.belne t.be...
> at wrote:
>
>
>> What is the url? String, uri?
>>
>> What do you get in s?
>>
>> string s;
>> HttpWebRequest request = (HttpWebRequest )WebRequest.Cre ate(url);
>> HttpWebResponse response;
>> try
>> {
>> response = (HttpWebRespons e)request.GetRe sponse();
>> response.Close( );
>> }
>> catch(Exception ex)
>> {
>> s = ex.ToString();
>> WriteToLog(LogT ype.Info, s);
>> }
>> response = null;
>>
>>
>> "Kristof Thys" <Kr**********@l uc.ac.be> wrote in message
>> news:d1******** **@ikaria.belne t.be...
>>
>>
>>
>>> Landi wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> You are not going to catch anything with Ethereal. He is not
>>>> having any
>>>> communication with the server at all and that is why his code is
>>>> throwing an
>>>> exception. Even if there is anything showing up on the log he
>>>> probably wont
>>>> know what to look for.
>>>
>>>
>>> The question remains, why isn't there any communication?
>>> It is possible to use a browser, IE or any other, to go to the
>>> URL from the pc where the program throws an exception at the
>>> exact same moment...
>>> So it seems to me, the server is just doing fine, but the client
>>> pc is blocking the request/response for an unknown reason...
>>>
>>
>>
>>
> The url is
> http://beta.soccerproject.com/man_to...e&pw=newsgroup
>
>
> The exception I'm getting is "The underlying connection was closed:
> Unable to connect to the remote server."
> And right after that: System.NullRefe renceException: Object
> reference not set to an instance of an object.
> I don't see where the second exception comes from...
>
> The exact code is this:
>
> HttpWebRequest request = (HttpWebRequest )WebRequest.Cre ate(url);
> HttpWebResponse response=null;
> try
> {
> response = (HttpWebRespons e)request.GetRe sponse();
> response.Close( );
> }
> catch(Exception ex)
> {
> WriteToLog(LogT ype.Info, ex.ToString());
> }
>
> if(response == null)
> {
> CGlobals.WriteT oLog(LogType.In fo,"Response = NULL");
> //He's not coming here...
> timeOut = true;
> }
>
> XHTML = "";
> if(!timeOut)
> {
> StreamReader reader = new treamReader(res ponse.GetRespon seStream());
> XHTML = reader.ReadToEn d();
> }
>
>
> BTW: Thanks for your patient help...

[at]

As a matter of fact I am going international coming Friday. I will be in
Brussels the whole day, Rue de Hennin.

Anyway, I take it the problem is solved? If so, I don't get it but that does
not matter ;-)

"Kristof Thys" <Kr**********@l uc.ac.be> wrote in message
news:d1******** **@ikaria.belne t.be...

Unbelievable,

I just had contact with my Romanian friend... He installed ethereal and
tried it... And the program just worked...
The only thing I did was to save the generated xml in utf-8, yesterday...
That must have been the solution...

Very strange,

But thank you all for trying to help me on this one...
If you are in Belgium sometime, give me a call, I'll buy you a drink :D

ciao
Kristof Thys wrote:

I'm sorry for my stupidity, but I don't know exactly what you are talking
about... I'm not using a http logging proxy, but where can I download
something like that and how can I use it? What does it do exactly?

thx

at wrote:

That makes it rather difficult! But...

Can you have the client person in Romania use a http logging proxy? So
that you can get at the headers being send? Do you run a client yourself
as well by the way? Do you get the headers it sends?
"Kristof Thys" <Kr**********@l uc.ac.be> wrote in message
news:d1******** **@ikaria.belne t.be...

I don't own the server, so running ethereal there is a problem...
Running ethereal on the failing client isn't easy neither, because the
failing client situates in Romania, while I'm from Belgium...

But when I try to change my IE settings, and block all cookies,
everything keeps working... Even browsing to the url with IE...

Tricky problem :S

at wrote:

> If you use ethereal on the serverside and run a working client, do you
> see any cookie stuff in the received http headers? It looks to me the
> client that does not work does not send cookie. It is my assumption
> that a cookie should be passed as part of the request.
>
> If you are unable to sit behind the server, check cookie settings on
> the client.
>
> Or, use I.E. from the failing client and see what headers get send.
>
> "Kristof Thys" <Kr**********@l uc.ac.be> wrote in message
> news:d1******** **@ikaria.belne t.be...
>
>
>> at wrote:
>>
>>
>>> What is the url? String, uri?
>>>
>>> What do you get in s?
>>>
>>> string s;
>>> HttpWebRequest request = (HttpWebRequest )WebRequest.Cre ate(url);
>>> HttpWebResponse response;
>>> try
>>> {
>>> response = (HttpWebRespons e)request.GetRe sponse();
>>> response.Close( );
>>> }
>>> catch(Exception ex)
>>> {
>>> s = ex.ToString();
>>> WriteToLog(LogT ype.Info, s);
>>> }
>>> response = null;
>>>
>>>
>>> "Kristof Thys" <Kr**********@l uc.ac.be> wrote in message
>>> news:d1******** **@ikaria.belne t.be...
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> Landi wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> You are not going to catch anything with Ethereal. He is not
>>>>> having any
>>>>> communication with the server at all and that is why his code is
>>>>> throwing an
>>>>> exception. Even if there is anything showing up on the log he
>>>>> probably wont
>>>>> know what to look for.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> The question remains, why isn't there any communication?
>>>> It is possible to use a browser, IE or any other, to go to the URL
>>>> from the pc where the program throws an exception at the exact same
>>>> moment...
>>>> So it seems to me, the server is just doing fine, but the client pc
>>>> is blocking the request/response for an unknown reason...
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>> The url is
>> http://beta.soccerproject.com/man_to...e&pw=newsgroup
>>
>> The exception I'm getting is "The underlying connection was closed:
>> Unable to connect to the remote server."
>> And right after that: System.NullRefe renceException: Object
>> reference not set to an instance of an object.
>> I don't see where the second exception comes from...
>>
>> The exact code is this:
>>
>> HttpWebRequest request = (HttpWebRequest )WebRequest.Cre ate(url);
>> HttpWebResponse response=null;
>> try
>> {
>> response = (HttpWebRespons e)request.GetRe sponse();
>> response.Close( );
>> }
>> catch(Exception ex)
>> {
>> WriteToLog(LogT ype.Info, ex.ToString());
>> }
>>
>> if(response == null)
>> {
>> CGlobals.WriteT oLog(LogType.In fo,"Response = NULL");
>> //He's not coming here...
>> timeOut = true;
>> }
>>
>> XHTML = "";
>> if(!timeOut)
>> {
>> StreamReader reader = new
>> treamReader(res ponse.GetRespon seStream());
>> XHTML = reader.ReadToEn d();
>> }
>>
>>
>> BTW: Thanks for your patient help...
>
>
>

[at]

This just appeared on codeproject:
http://www.codeproject.com/csharp/HTTPeep.asp

"at" <a@t> wrote in message news:42******** *************** @news.xs4all.nl ...

As a matter of fact I am going international coming Friday. I will be in
Brussels the whole day, Rue de Hennin.

Anyway, I take it the problem is solved? If so, I don't get it but that
does not matter ;-)

"Kristof Thys" <Kr**********@l uc.ac.be> wrote in message
news:d1******** **@ikaria.belne t.be...

Unbelievable,

I just had contact with my Romanian friend... He installed ethereal and
tried it... And the program just worked...
The only thing I did was to save the generated xml in utf-8, yesterday...
That must have been the solution...

Very strange,

But thank you all for trying to help me on this one...
If you are in Belgium sometime, give me a call, I'll buy you a drink :D

ciao
Kristof Thys wrote:

I'm sorry for my stupidity, but I don't know exactly what you are
talking about... I'm not using a http logging proxy, but where can I
download something like that and how can I use it? What does it do
exactly?

thx

at wrote:

That makes it rather difficult! But...

Can you have the client person in Romania use a http logging proxy? So
that you can get at the headers being send? Do you run a client
yourself as well by the way? Do you get the headers it sends?
"Kristof Thys" <Kr**********@l uc.ac.be> wrote in message
news:d1******** **@ikaria.belne t.be...

> I don't own the server, so running ethereal there is a problem...
> Running ethereal on the failing client isn't easy neither, because the
> failing client situates in Romania, while I'm from Belgium...
>
> But when I try to change my IE settings, and block all cookies,
> everything keeps working... Even browsing to the url with IE...
>
> Tricky problem :S
>
> at wrote:
>
>> If you use ethereal on the serverside and run a working client, do
>> you see any cookie stuff in the received http headers? It looks to me
>> the client that does not work does not send cookie. It is my
>> assumption that a cookie should be passed as part of the request.
>>
>> If you are unable to sit behind the server, check cookie settings on
>> the client.
>>
>> Or, use I.E. from the failing client and see what headers get send.
>>
>> "Kristof Thys" <Kr**********@l uc.ac.be> wrote in message
>> news:d1******** **@ikaria.belne t.be...
>>
>>
>>> at wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>> What is the url? String, uri?
>>>>
>>>> What do you get in s?
>>>>
>>>> string s;
>>>> HttpWebRequest request = (HttpWebRequest )WebRequest.Cre ate(url);
>>>> HttpWebResponse response;
>>>> try
>>>> {
>>>> response = (HttpWebRespons e)request.GetRe sponse();
>>>> response.Close( );
>>>> }
>>>> catch(Exception ex)
>>>> {
>>>> s = ex.ToString();
>>>> WriteToLog(LogT ype.Info, s);
>>>> }
>>>> response = null;
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> "Kristof Thys" <Kr**********@l uc.ac.be> wrote in message
>>>> news:d1******** **@ikaria.belne t.be...
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> Landi wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>> You are not going to catch anything with Ethereal. He is not
>>>>>> having any
>>>>>> communication with the server at all and that is why his code is
>>>>>> throwing an
>>>>>> exception. Even if there is anything showing up on the log he
>>>>>> probably wont
>>>>>> know what to look for.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> The question remains, why isn't there any communication?
>>>>> It is possible to use a browser, IE or any other, to go to the URL
>>>>> from the pc where the program throws an exception at the exact
>>>>> same moment...
>>>>> So it seems to me, the server is just doing fine, but the client
>>>>> pc is blocking the request/response for an unknown reason...
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>> The url is
>>> http://beta.soccerproject.com/man_to...e&pw=newsgroup
>>>
>>> The exception I'm getting is "The underlying connection was closed:
>>> Unable to connect to the remote server."
>>> And right after that: System.NullRefe renceException: Object
>>> reference not set to an instance of an object.
>>> I don't see where the second exception comes from...
>>>
>>> The exact code is this:
>>>
>>> HttpWebRequest request = (HttpWebRequest )WebRequest.Cre ate(url);
>>> HttpWebResponse response=null;
>>> try
>>> {
>>> response = (HttpWebRespons e)request.GetRe sponse();
>>> response.Close( );
>>> }
>>> catch(Exception ex)
>>> {
>>> WriteToLog(LogT ype.Info, ex.ToString());
>>> }
>>>
>>> if(response == null)
>>> {
>>> CGlobals.WriteT oLog(LogType.In fo,"Response = NULL");
>>> //He's not coming here...
>>> timeOut = true;
>>> }
>>>
>>> XHTML = "";
>>> if(!timeOut)
>>> {
>>> StreamReader reader = new
>>> treamReader(res ponse.GetRespon seStream());
>>> XHTML = reader.ReadToEn d();
>>> }
>>>
>>>
>>> BTW: Thanks for your patient help...
>>
>>
>>