Back in October I posted a message
(http://www.debian.org/Lists-Archives/debian-user-9910/msg00689.html)
to the Debian user list in which I complained about `ping' hanging on
recent kernels. I've since found a workaround, but I don't think I
told any of you about it, so if you're interested, here it is.
I have a DSL connection to my ISP, and I use a Cisco 675 router
and a recent (2.2.12) kernel.
I have a crackpot theory as to why this is happening, but that's
not important. What's important is that I stumbled onto a
workaround which might work for you if you're having the same
trouble: insert the following lines into /etc/init.d/network,
before the call to `ifconfig' that brings up your network card:
# Work around a possible bug in the Cisco router
if [ -f /proc/sys/net/ipv4/ip_local_port_range ]; then
echo 1025 4999 >/proc/sys/net/ipv4/ip_local_port_range
fi
For a more detailed description of the problem, see the bug report
that I (foolishly) filed against the GNU C library:
http://cgi.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=45912
