Saturday, December 17, 2011

Free DNS


Would you like to have an alternative DNS other than what your ISP is providing? DNS plays a crucial role in the internet because it translates the IP addresses into a friendly and easy to memorize names.  On June 22, 2010 I published an article about the DNS and what it does.

Below are just some of the well known free DNS services and their IP addresses:

1. Google Public DNS
    8.8.8.8
    8.8.4.4   

2. Norton DNS
    A. 198.153.192.40
       198.153.194.40

    B. 198.153.192.50
       198.153.194.50

    C. 198.153.192.60
       198.153.194.60

3. OpenDNS
    208.67.222.222
    208.67.220.220

Each one of them has their own DNS IP addresses that you will need to configure on your computer or router. All of them has these features like internet security, web filtering, phishing protection, malware protection and other related securities. They are also claiming that it will make your browsing much faster if you will use their DNS.

First, you need to choose among the three which you preferred more because you cannot use all those IP addresses above at the same time.

To change the DNS on your computer:
  1. Click on the Windows logo
  2. Click Control Panel
  3. Click on Network and Sharing Center
  4. Click Change Adapter Settings
  5. Right click on either Local Area Connection or Wireless Network Connection depending on how you connect to the internet.
  6. Click Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IP)
  7. On the Preferred DNS Server and Alternate DNS Server type the two sets of IP addresses that you have chosen from the list above.
To change the DNS on your router:

Changing the DNS on your router varies depending on the brand. However, the most common way of changing the DNS is by going to the WAN.  OpenDNS has prepared an instruction on various brands of routers.  You will find the instruction on this link https://store.opendns.com/setup/router/.