Many a time, the Windows XP ARP cache becomes corrupt and needs to be cleared. The first symptom which points to a corrupt ARP cache is that connections to web pages will time out and fail.
Occasionally, clearing the ARP cache will fail due to a bug in Microsoft Windows XP. When 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.
How To Solve The “Unable to repair ARP cache” bug in Windows XP
This bug occurs when Routing and Remote Access service of Windows XP is enabled. Routing and Remote Access service is almost unnecessary and can be turned off.
To disable Routing and Remote Access service:
- Click on the “Start” button.
- Click the “Run” button.
- Type “services.msc” and hit Enter.
- Scroll down to “Routing and Remote Access” under the “Name column”.
- Double-click “Routing and Remote Access”.
- Set the “Startup Type” to “Disabled”.
- Also make sure the service status is Stopped. If it is not Stopped, click the “Stop” button.
- Click the “OK” button.
- Close the services window.
Try clearing the ARP cache again. It will complete with no error messages. 