Internet connection is fine when my PC's connected directly to the modem. The router connects fine. But won't let the wired PC online. Under the "status" bar the "router" tab won't show the correct information. "DHCP Release", "DHCP Renew" and "refresh" buttons have no effect.

Base from the description of your problem it seems that we need to reconfigure the router to work with your modem again and we need to do that manually using a computer connected wired to the router.

To do that follow these steps.

Connect the modem to the router and computer to router also, make sure all connections are correct.
Then power on the router , modem and computer and check all the lights on the router are fine and make sure power is solid green if those are fine access the router setup page.

From the computer that is wired to the router a\open internet explorer and type 192.168.1.1 and hit enter then that should ask for a username and password, just leave the user name blank and password is admin hit enter you should be now on the router page.

From there under SETUP tab look for a sub tab MAC ADDRESS CLONE , then enable that and clcik on clone pc mac and ten save settings and once its save power off the router and modem for 1 minute then after that power on the modem and then the router and check if internet is already working.

Make sure that your computer is able to go online through the modem.
If your computer is not able to go online through the modem then you will need to call ISP first.
If your computer is able to go online through the modem
then you need to connect the computer to the router and the modem to the router.
open the set up page of the router and change the settings of the router according to the ISP.

Make sure that there is not direct connection between your desktop and modem ( USB ). If there is any USB connection from the modem to the computer then it will go on linee but the router will not be on line.
Are you trying to set up router ?
You can set up your router manually, without the CD.
Make sure that your computer is able to go online directly through the modem.
If your computer is able to go online through the modem, that means the modem is working fine.
You will need to connect the computer to the router and the modem to the router.
open the set up page of the router and change the settings of the router according to the ISP.

Click Here for more information about the routers and network

Make sure that your computer is able to go online directly through the modem.
If your computer is able to go online through the modem, that means the modem is working fine.
You will need to connect the computer to the router and the modem to the router.
open the set up page of the router and change the settings of the router according to the ISP.

Click Here for more information about the routers and network

can u please elaborate on the problem .. like what is the kind of modem, how do u connect .. i.e using wired or wireless ... do you have any other pc in the house connecting

Isolate the issue by directly connecting the PC to the router via ethernet cable (if possible).

If you were able to get online while hardwired connected to the router, then check the IP address of the wireless network connection, check the wireless security if the network key matches.

If you cannot get online while hardwired to the router, then directly connect the computer to the modem.

If you were able to get online while directly connected to the modem, then the problem is the internet settings on the router. Check the WAN configuration, such as DHCP or PPPoE.

If you cannot get online when directly connected to the modem, then you will need to contact your Internet Service Provider.

Are you sure your modem is giving a WAN IP from your ISP? Try power-cycling your modem with your router unplugged then bring up your router next, if you havent tried that already... After that try connecting your modem directly to a PC and set your NIC card to DHCP and see if you get an IP address thats routable to the internet (i.e not a private IP)

i just have a question, do you have an internet connection when your computer connected to your modem(the device provided by your Internet Service Provider)? Possible that the Belkin not working is that maybe you don't have internet from ypur ISP.

I suggest you to connect your computer first to the modem, turn off the pc and afterwards the modem, after 2 minutes, turn on the modem first, when all lights stable, turn on the pc and check if you can go online. If not, better contact your ISP first for them to check the connection. If everything working fine with your ISP. Reply to this post again and provide the following information.

Your ISP?
Brand of the Modem?
Brand of the Belkin Router?
Type of Connection you have form ISP, DSL or CABLE?
If DSL, please make sure that you have a username and password from your ISP?
How many computers do you have?
What is the Windows Version your using or the Operating System?

Thanks.

Try resetting the router to factory , should have a button on the back to do this .
you will have to log back into it with the default factory password
see their site for more info.

It sounds like the ethernet port has actually gone bad on the router. The light turns on when the device detects a phyiscal connection to another device. Your modem does not detect a connection to the router... But it does the PC. So you know the issue is with the router.