You can run this test via your Mac’s Terminal, so launch a ‘Finder’ window and select ‘Applications > Utilities > Terminal.’ By performing this test before and after editing your DNS settings, you can see exactly what impact your changes have made to your Internet connection.
#Dns servers mac how to setup mac#
The quickest way to gauge how your current DNS settings are performing, is to test how long it takes your Mac to query a DNS server. Along the way I’ll also be sharing some troubleshooting tips, as well as a quick Terminal command that lets you see exactly how long your DNS lookups are taking.
#Dns servers mac how to setup how to#
In this article I’m going to show you how to use Google’s Namespace app to find the DNS server that offers the best performance for your particular Mac and your exact location, and how you can switch your Mac to these new DNS settings. While most Macs will use the DNS from your Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) or Wi-Fi router, you’re under no obligation to use this particular DNS, and can often improve the speed of your connection by switching to a different DNS.
How quickly this lookup can be completed determines how quickly (or slowly!) your web browser will load the website you’re trying to access. Whenever you type a URL into your browser’s address bar, your Mac contacts a DNS server and gets the IP address associated with that domain name. The problem is that a long string of (seemingly) random numbers isn’t the easiest thing for the human brain to remember, so a DNS is the system that’s responsible for translating these numerical IP addresses into the more human-readable domain names we’re all familiar with. One of the most effective ways of cutting the time it takes your Mac to load a web page, is to change your DNS (Domain Name Service) settings.Įvery website is assigned an IP (Internet Protocol) address, which is a string of numbers. Maybe it seems like web pages are taking longer to load, or maybe you simply like the idea of a faster Internet connection (and let’s be honest, who doesn’t like the idea of a faster Internet connection?) The domain name can contain periods, hyphens, and alphanumeric characters.Do you want to speed up your Internet connection? The domain name must start and end with an alphanumeric character. Local hosts (the Security Gateway and network objects) are optionally appended with the domain name when DNS resolving is performed.ĭNS queries that do not contain a domain name are automatically appended with the domain name. There are two separate uses of the domain name: When selected, the local DNS servers resolves network object names to their IP addresses for internal network clients.Įnter a Domain Name. When DNS proxy is enabled, Resolve Network Objects controls if the DNS proxy treats the local network objects as a hosts list. To get IP addresses directly from the DNS servers defined above, clear the Enable DNS Proxy checkbox. This option is global and applies to all internal networks. If Internet Connection High Availability is enabled, the DNS servers switch automatically upon failover.īy default, the appliance functions as your DNS proxy and provides DNS resolving services to internal hosts behind it (network objects). The gateway uses the DNS settings of the currently-active Internet connection (in case of static IP – the DNS manually provided under "Internet connection"-> Edit, in case of DHCP / Dialers – the DNS automatically provided by the ISP). The second option allows a more dynamic definition of DNS servers.
In this case, all DNS requests from this branch office are directed to these DNS servers. Use the first option if your DNS servers are located in the headquarters office. If you select Configure DNS servers, make sure that you enter valid IP addresses. Select to define up to three DNS servers which is applied to all Internet connections or use the DNS configuration provided by the active Internet connection (Primary). In the Device > DNS page you can configure the DNS server configuration and define the domain name.