MSN / Windows Live Messenger a bit broken ...

Temporary fix for MSN Messenger problems

The following might fix connection problems to MSN Messenger's servers if you are unable to connect. This temporary fix reroutes outgoing connections to the server to a specific server address that's actually working.

I've tried it on my laptop with Windows Live Messenger v8.1 beta and it worked fine for me, however if you try this on your PC and bugger up Windows, don't blame me!! :-)

STEP 1: Click on Start / All Programs / Accessories / Notepad

STEP 2: Click on the File menu of Notepad and choose Open.

STEP 3: In the File name box, copy and paste the following line, then click the Open button:

%WINDIR%\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC\HOSTS

You should see a text file with "This is a sample HOSTS file used by Microsoft TCP/IP for Windows"

STEP 4: At the bottom of the text file, copy and paste the following two
lines:

65.54.239.80 messenger.hotmail.com
65.54.239.80 dp.msnmessenger.akadns.net

STEP 5: Close Notepad and when it asks if you want to save the changed file, choose Yes.

STEP 6: Open MSN Messenger and try to connect. Hopefully it now works!

In a couple of days time, try removing the two extra lines from your HOSTS file and reconnecting to MSN Messenger as this is only a temporary workaround not a permanent fix...