As a test of this, you can shut down the DNS server, configure the OS X Server box to use the existing public DNS servers, and confirm DNS operations with sudo changeip -checkhostname or such. As for the forward and reverse DNS records, anything that expects to use secure network connections will want the host names to match.
Do websites sometimes load really slow for you although you have a decent internet connection? If this especially happens during peak-times, i.e. In the evening, your provider’s DNS server might be overloaded. Luckily, using an alternative DNS server can solve this issue for you. Here’s how to find the best DNS server for you to improve your browsing speed: What are DNS-servers and what do they do? Before we get started to find a good DNS server you should understand what DNS servers do.
I’m not going into details here, but here’s a (really simple) description. DNS stands for Domain Name System. Whenever you browse the internet, your computer (or mobile device) uses a DNS-server to translate the URL (for example www.google.com) of a website to an IP (173.194.44.1 for google.com) to display the content of the website using the TCP/IP protocol. To say it in a few, non-technical words: The DNS Server is (partly) responsible to display the content of the website on your computer.
If you want to go into more technical details, HowStuffWorks has. Knowing this, you can now understand why the surfing the internet may seem slow during peak hours.
If the DNS server that you’re using is overloaded, connecting to a website can be slow even with a fast internet connection. But don’t worry! Finding a decent DNS-server is quite easy and changing it can be done in a few steps. How to find the best DNS server for your connection is an free Open-source DNS benchmark utility for Windows, Mac OS X and UNIX.
It runs a benchmark using your web browser history, tcpdump output, or standardized datasets in order to generate a personal and individual recommendation for a DNS server. Simply download and install the app and you’re good to go. However, beware of the “include censorship checks” function. It makes some request to some fairly horrible websites that you (or your boss) may or may not wish to see on your DNS request log. Namebench requires roughly 5 minutes before the program will suggest the three best-performing DNS servers for your connection. That’s it – easy right?
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How to change DNS servers on Mac or Windows Now that you’ve found a great DNS server, you have to tell your computer or mobile device to use it. There are two ways to do this: Adjust the settings on your computer or, if your router supports this feature, directly in your router settings. Changing the DNS server on your router has a few advantages:. Everybody connected to your WiFi uses the best DNS server. You don’t need to setup all your devices. Unlock services on devices where you can’t change the DNS settings To change the DNS settings on your Mac, simply go to your system preferences, click the network icon and the advanced button on your preferred connection (like Wi-Fi or Ethernet). In the advanced settings, hit the “+” button in the DNS settings.
Now go ahead and enter the DNS servers, click on OK and Apply. If you’re using Windows, open the “Network and Sharing Center” in your control panel. Clicking your internet connection will open the connection status menu.
Head over to the Properties situated in the lower left corner. In the next menu you need to select Internet Protocol Version 4 (TPC/IPv4) and hit the properties button. The next menu will open the DNS settings.
Click “Use the following DNS server addresses” and enter the IP addresses you received earlier from Namebench. Hit OK and you’re good to go!
I hope that I was able to help you to speed up your internet connection. Let me know if you have any questions!
Your Mac uses something called the Domain Name System (DNS) to access websites. It's a system invisible to you, the user, and most people don't even know it exists. But if the DNS servers you're using are slow or unavailable, websites will load slowly or won't load at all. That's why it's important to learn about DNS and consider changing your DNS servers. In this tutorial, we'll show you everything you need to know about DNS to speed up surfing and ward off potential problems.
DNS Crash Course To understand how DNS works, you need some background information. Every website connected to the Internet is assigned something called an IP address, which is a little like a home or apartment's street address. Just like a friend could find your house if she had your address, your computer can load a website if you type its IP address in to a web browser. The problem is that IP addresses can be difficult to find and remember.
DNS was created to map memorable domain names, like cnn.com, onto IP addresses, like 157.166.226.25, which is the CNN website's IP address. When you type in a URL in to your web browser's address bar and hit Enter, your computer contacts a DNS server to find the IP address associated with the domain name. DNS is essentially a directory of all the websites in the world. Imagine a giant phonebook with the IP addresses for all of the websites on the Internet. Why You Should Change Your DNS Servers Every Internet service provider operates their own DNS servers. When you purchase Internet access from a company like Comcast, your Mac will automatically use Comcast's DNS servers.
That's not a problem unless the service provider's DNS servers become unavailable. At that point, your Mac won't be able to load any websites. Fortunately, there are other companies out there that offer free DNS servers that you can use with your Mac. Many of these services are faster, and some companies have never experienced a service interruption. Plus, some DNS providers offer additional services for free, like malware protection and parental controls. Selecting Another DNS Provider There are dozens of free DNS servers out there. How do you know which ones to use?
We'll make it easy for you. The two best DNS services are and, both of which are free, fast, and reliable. Google's service 'never blocks, filters, or redirects users,' which is great for users who just want the unfiltered Internet in all of its glory. OpenDNS prevents you from accessing webpages that are known to host malware that could harm your Mac.
Plus, if you register for a free OpenDNS account, you can use parental controls to restrict access to adult content and other Internet nasties. Changing Your Mac's DNS Servers Once you've settled on a DNS service provider, it's time to update your Mac's DNS servers.
Here's how:. From the Apple menu, select System Preferences. The window shown below appears.
Select Network. The window shown below appears. Select a network interface from the sidebar. By default, your primary network interface is selected. If you use more than one interface to connect to the Internet, use these instructions to update the DNS servers for all of the interfaces. Click Advanced. Click the DNS tab.
The window shown below appears. Click the + button to add a new DNS server. To use OpenDNS, enter 208.67.222.222 and 208.67.220.220. To use Google DNS, enter 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4. Click OK.
Click Apply. Test your new DNS servers to make sure they're working. If you're using OpenDNS, visit the. If you're using Google Public DNS, follow.
If the DNS servers aren't working, try rebooting your computer. Test the servers again when your computer turns back on. You've updated your Mac's DNS servers! Related Articles. Meet Your Macinstructor, the author of, has been a Mac user for over 20 years.
A former ghost writer for some of Apple's most notable instructors, Cone founded Macinstruct in 1999, a site with OS X tutorials that boasts hundreds of thousands of unique visitors per month. You can email him at:.