How to Clear the ARP Cache

The Microsoft Windows ARP cache will occasionally become corrupt and need to be cleared.

The first symptom you are likely to notice is that connections to web pages will time out and fail.

If you troubleshoot further, you will notice that you can `ping` your IP address and also 127.0.0.1, but not other IP addresses.

Clearing the ARP Cache

To fix this error, you will need to clear the ARP cache. This is done with the `netsh` command:

C:\>netsh interface ip delete arpcache
Ok.

Viewing the ARP Cache

If you would like to view your ARP cache, this can be accomplished using the `arp` command:

C:\>arp -a
Interface: 192.168.1.100 --- 0x10004
Internet Address      Physical Address      Type
192.168.1.1           00-0f-66-37-22-32     dynamic

If Clearing the ARP Cache Fails

Occasionally, clearing your ARP cache will fail due to a bug in Microsoft Windows.

If you try to use Microsoft Windows to repair the network connection, you will receive an error message that says:

Windows could not finish repairing the problem because the following operation could not be completed:
Clearing the ARP cache
For assistance, contact the person who manages your network

This bug occurs when Routing and Remote Services is enabled. Routing and Remote Services is almost unnnecessary and can be turned off unless you know that you are using it.

To disable Routing and Remote Services:

• Click the Start button
• Click the Control Panel button
• Switch to "Classic View" if you are in "Category View"
• Click Administrative Tools
• Click Computer Management
• Double-click Services and Applications
• Double-click Services
• Scroll down to Routing and Remote Services
• Double-click Routing and Remote Services
• Examine the "Startup Type"
• The options are "Automatic", "Manual", and "Disabled"
• Set the "Startup Type" to "Disabled"
• Examine the "Service status"
• Make sure that the service status is Stopped. If it is not Stopped, click the Stop button
• Click the OK button

Now, try clearing the ARP cache again and it should complete with no error messages.