Change your DNS Server in Windows 7 [How to]

By Stu on January 14, 2010 (21 Comments)

With Google launching their new DNS Server not long ago, aptly named; Google Public DNS, I’ve been playing around with my DNS server to see which is the quickest!

This guide will show you how to change your DNS server and verify the settings in Windows 7.

See here to test your DNS server.

Step 1.

Open the Network & Sharing Center by either clicking on your network icon in the Notification Area and clicking Open Network and Sharing Center (1), typing network in the start search box (2) or through the Control Panel (3).

(1)

(2)

(3)

Step 2.

Once Network & Sharing Center is open, in the left hand pane, click on Change adapter settings.

Step 3.

Right click your network adapter and choose Properties (if you get a UAC prompt, accept).

Step 4.

In the following window, under “This connection uses the following items”, click Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) and click Properties.

Step 5.

Under the General tab check the Use the following DNS server addresses radio button, and enter your prefered DNS server address, in the guide we’ll be using Google’s DNS server address which is 8.8.8.8 /8.8.4.4

Make sure that Validate settings upon exit is also checked and hit OK.

Windows Network Diagnostics will now attempt to detect any problems with the addresses you’ve specified, leave it to work and hopefully it’ll report that troubleshooting couldn’t identify the problem.

Close the troubleshooter and that’s it done!

So, why change your DNS address?

“The DNS protocol is an important part of the web’s infrastructure, serving as the Internet’s phone book: every time you visit a website, your computer performs a DNS lookup. Complex pages often require multiple DNS lookups before they start loading, so your computer may be performing hundreds of lookups a day.”

By using a faster DNS server, your browsing speeds can increase, security can be improved and you get the results you expect with absolutely no redirection.

Return to default.

Returning to default is as easy as changing the DNS address. Repeat Step 1 – 4, in Step 5. Check the Obtain DNS server address automatically. Hit OK.

Changes are made straight away, either way, no need to reboot.

There are hundreds of different DNS server addresses you can use. OpenDNS is preferred by many and considered one of the best out there. As always, experiment as YMMV.

Enjoy!

About Stu

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Comments

Ferris Henson II
If I’m on a home network should I change this on each computer or on the router? Which do you find better, OpenDNS or Google DNS?
thanks
Ferris Henson II
If I’m on a home network should I change this on each computer or on the router? Which do you find better, OpenDNS or Google DNS?
thanks
Ferris Henson II
If I’m on a home network should I change this on each computer or on the router? Which do you find better, OpenDNS or Google DNS?
thanks
Ferris Henson II
If I’m on a home network should I change this on each computer or on the router? Which do you find better, OpenDNS or Google DNS?
thanks
RSVR85
You can change it on the router if you like but i reckon it’s easier/safer to do it on your PC.
I found neither Google nor OpenDNS to be the best but out of those two, i found Google to be better.
You can use this benchmarking tool for a very accurate result of which is best for you.
http://www.grc.com/dns/benchmark.htm
RSVR85
You can change it on the router if you like but i reckon it’s easier/safer to do it on your PC.
I found neither Google nor OpenDNS to be the best but out of those two, i found Google to be better.
You can use this benchmarking tool for a very accurate result of which is best for you.
http://www.grc.com/dns/benchmark.htm
RSVR85
You can change it on the router if you like but i reckon it’s easier/safer to do it on your PC.
I found neither Google nor OpenDNS to be the best but out of those two, i found Google to be better.
You can use this benchmarking tool for a very accurate result of which is best for you.
http://www.grc.com/dns/benchmark.htm
RSVR85
You can change it on the router if you like but i reckon it’s easier/safer to do it on your PC.
I found neither Google nor OpenDNS to be the best but out of those two, i found Google to be better.
You can use this benchmarking tool for a very accurate result of which is best for you.
http://www.grc.com/dns/benchmark.htm
SandraMillhouse
I just switched to Windows 7 and I feel lost.
Marco
Thank you so much, I actually had a network problem and I thought I had solved it by selecting “Obtain DNS server address automatically”. However, after I downloaded some VAIO updates regarding the Vaio smart network system, it seems I have got a bigger problem.
Each time I connect to the n/w the Vaio smart network authomatically shows the list of my profiles (home, office), and each time time it (growl) resets the DNS system as before. Meaning each time I need to go in the connection settings and select “Obtain DNS server address automatically”.
Do you know how can I keep the authomatic option for good?
Thanks so much for your time.
Marco
Tahiriah_l100
Thank you so much! Worked after trying about a dozen other fixes without them working and days and days without it! :) Good job!
Tahiriah_l100
Thank you so much! Worked after trying about a dozen other fixes without them working and days and days without it! :) Good job!
Tahiriah_l100
Thank you so much! Worked after trying about a dozen other fixes without them working and days and days without it! :) Good job!
Tahiriah_l100
Thank you so much! Worked after trying about a dozen other fixes without them working and days and days without it! :) Good job!
Apope Pe
i have a problem. I bought a new usb drive to scan with my pc form networks but every time founds nothing who can help me?
Unreal_star
thank you i’ve been messing with this computer at work for 3 days now and this finally solved the problem!!!
HMS
what does the “validate settings upon exit” do?
also is there a way to have it revert to obtain automatically AFTER making the change if it doesn’t connect to internet? e.g. i am using logmein to change and when i change sometimes, it will not connect due to IP conflict or out of range IP and would be nice if it would revert just like changing screen resolution….
any thoughts?
- Michelle Wood
  I need to know how to do this as well!
http://twitter.com/AndreasEriksso9 Andreas Eriksson
If you change this in cmd by using nslookup. To lets say Googles DNS. Will it remain like this then?
Roman
Is it possible, that this change could cause, when I am using my uTorrent, I am not getting my full speed (dl about 300kb/s, up 10kb/s) and websites are also loading slowly…
- Roman
  This webiste is dead for sure….

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