You can check the connection settings.

• Tools > Options > Advanced : Network : Connection > Settings
• https://support.mozilla.org/kb/Options+window+-+Advanced+panel

If you do not need to use a proxy to connect to internet then try to select "No Proxy" if the default "Use the system proxy settings" setting doesn't work properly.

See "Firefox connection settings":

• https://support.mozilla.org/kb/Firefox+cannot+load+websites+but+other+programs+can

Which security software (firewall, anti-virus) do you have?

"Use system proxy settings' is what appears to be selected. Complete newb here, so you'll need to hold my hand through this. :\

I've got Symantec Endpoint as well as Ad-Aware. OS is Windows Vista home, 32-bit.

The problem appears when I lose connectivity for a moment, and then when I try to refresh the pages that were caught in the middle, they go to the nginx redirect.

You can also check these pages:

• [/questions/918236]

• http://en.kioskea.net/faq/15289-google-nginx-404-error

I've already seen those pages and nothing works.

Currently in safe mode with networking, and i don't see anything with nginx when I look at the processes via task manager.

I have no such program to remove called "Anti Phishing Domain Advisor"

Norton Power Eraser didn't find anything except a bad FLV player install which it removed.

I accessed the notepad hosts using the run command, and what popped up looked just like the "good example."

Did you try to reboot the computer?

You can try to reset (power off/on) the router.

You can do a malware check with some malware scanning programs on the Windows computer.
You need to scan with all programs because each program detects different malware.
Make sure that you update each program to get the latest version of their databases before doing a scan.

• http://www.malwarebytes.org/mbam.php - Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware
• http://www.superantispyware.com/ - SuperAntispyware
• http://www.microsoft.com/security/scanner/en-us/default.aspx - Microsoft Safety Scanner
• http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/defender/default.mspx - Windows Defender: Home Page
• http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html - Spybot Search & Destroy

You can also do a check for a rootkit infection with TDSSKiller.

• http://support.kaspersky.com/viruses/solutions?qid=208280684

See also:

• "Spyware on Windows": http://kb.mozillazine.org/Popups_not_blocked

Been restarting all evening trying different things. I will run through the different programs you suggested. The TDSSKiller didn't find anything. Am working on the others now.

With the exception of Windows Defender, I ran all the programs. SuperAntiSpyware found a ton of tracking cookies and a number of infected registry items... all associated with *Ad-Aware*. I haven't liked the way Ad-Aware has felt on my machine since they released a new version. I didn't have it, and decided to download it again after the problems started with nginx, so who knows why so many infected things were associated with if it came in after the fact.

Before the scans, I also did the IE optimization as recommended here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-YPtErh1t4 , and then followed along with his steps, and actually didn't find anything along the way.

I also cleared everything out of my Firefox history via Tools.

• knock on wood* Things are OK, so who knows what helped. I do find the Ad-Aware stuff interesting, though.

Argh, it popped up again.

Maybe try a program like Wireshark to see if that helps to identify the source.

• Wireshark: http://www.wireshark.org/download.html
• Wireshark - Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wireshark

What do I do with it? (wireshark)?

BTW, thanks for all the help along the way.

You can use that program to check the network activity. I don't know if it will show anything useful in your case, but you can give it a try.