Symptoms:
The NIC disappears from device manager in windows. The computer will not PXE boot, nor will any live OS’s such as linux detect the nic. Reloading the OS usually will not fix the issue either. It will look like the NIC died and the motherboard needs to be replaced.
Cause:
An old driver doesn’t properly wake the NIC from s3 sleep state.
Fix:
1) Download the latest driver and save to the local computer.
http://www.bytespeed.com/global/storage/41ty_LAN_allXP_5.754_PV_RTL.exe
2) Goto add/remove programs and uninstall the Realtek LAN Driver
software
3) Shut the computer down and unplug the power for 5 minutes.
4) Turn back on and install the new driver.