How To Fix DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN Error In Chrome? [8 Methods]

DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN is a typical confusing Chrome mistake WordPress users experience. This error can be disturbing because you can’t access the website you want or any website at all! However, it is easy to solve.

We have provided eight different ways to fix it, including step by step guidelines for Windows. These solutions will also work on Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, etc. Before going to the answers, we will understand the DNS probe finished nxdomain means and some common causes.

RecommendedHow to Fix the ERR_CONNECTION_REFUSED Error in Chrome

DNS PROBE FINISHED NXDOMAIN

What Is The DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN Error?

DNS stands for Domain Name System. DNS is accountable for translating the domain name like google.com to a type that a computer can understand, i.e., IP Address. The DNS acts as the Internet’s phone book.

When you type a domain name in the browser’s search bar, it sends a request to the webserver to look up the IP address. The DNS web server performs various operations using the DNS recursor to determine the server’s actual IP address that you want to connect.

If the process succeeds, then you can access the website. But if something goes wrong in DNS resolving the domain name or the address, it will result in a dns_probe_finished_nxdomain error. You will see a message that says ‘xxx:xxx:x:x server IP address could not be found’ on the error page.

We can say as ‘DNS server has finished its process, but the domain is not found.’ The nxdomain stands for ‘non-existent domain.’ Now, follow these steps very carefully, and if one solution didn’t work, then move on to the next one.

How to fix DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN Error?

Now, we’ll look at some methods you can use to fix the DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN error.

Method 1: Restart your PC

Restarting your device is one of the best ways to get any problem solved. What Restart does is that it starts everything fresh and clears everything out of memory.

It can fix some minor glitches that your PC was having. If you have many work and browser tabs open, this may not be comforting to need to do. For them, try this method at the last until you have tried all the other solutions.

Step 1: To restart your pc, click on the Windows logo located at the left bottom of the screen.

Step 2: Next, click on the power button, and you can see three options.

Step 3: Click on Restart and done! Your pc/laptop will restart within a few seconds to minutes.

Method 2: Flush DNS Cache

DNS cache is like a local database that the operating system keeps. The data in it tells about the recently visited and attempted websites. We can also say that DNS cache is like a lookup that helps the machine load the webpage faster, and thus, resolving a website’s corresponding IP address is much more efficient.

It eliminates the need to contact a DNS server again, which saves a lot of time. At the same time, it stores some wrong and unnecessary information that may take a large amount of space in your system. It also causes errors such as ‘HTML5 Video not found’. To clear DNS Cache,

Step 1: Type cmd in the windows search bar and click on the command prompt option.

Step 2: Here right-click on choose open as an administrator option.

run as administrator

Step 3: A black screen will pop up on your screen. In this command prompt window, type ipconfig/flushdns.

flushdns command

Step 4: Now, press Enter to remove all cache items from your system.

It will remove all the cache from the system.

Method 3: Release and Renew IP Address

If the second method didn’t solve the error, then try this method. A new and unique IP address will be assigned when you connect to the Internet. When releasing, it means you are releasing your current IP address and requesting a new one.

Now you are renewed with your new IP address. This solution will fix most minor glitches and errors. It also refreshed your internet connection. To do this method, follow these steps.

Step 1: In the search bar, type cmd can see Windows command prompt option on the screen.

Step 2: Next, right-click on it and choose to run as an administrator option to open the cmd window.

run as administrator

Step 3: Type or copy-paste the following command and hit the enter button after it:

ipconfig /release

ip release command prompt

Step 4: Next, type the command ipconfig /renew and again press Enter.

ip renew configuration command prompt

It will release and renew your IP Address.

Method 4: Change DNS Servers

Since the problem is related to DNS servers, changing the things that are related to DNS properties can be a solution to the DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN error. It happens if the DNS servers do not function properly, overloaded, or offline.

The default DNS server address is obtained automatically from your ISP. If you are using your ISP’s DNS address, change it to other third-party DNS servers and check if it solves the problem. The recommended ones are Google’s DNS servers (8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4) and Cloudflare’s DNS servers (1.1.1.1 and 1.0.0.1). Or you can also try vice-versa.

To change the DNS address, follow these steps.

Step 1: In the search bar, type Control Panel to open it.

control panel

Step 2: Click on open, and you can see various options on your screen.

Step 3: Here, click on the Network and Sharing Centre.

network and sharing center

Step 4: Next, right-click on the Network Adapter and open properties from the menu.

network properties

Step 5: Click Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv6) and click on the Properties button.

Internet Protocol Version 4

Step 6: You can see a new window on your screen. Here you can enter the custom DNS address.

Step 7: Inside the popup box, you can enter the DNS servers of Google, which is 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4 for the Preferred DNS server and Alternate DNS server, respectively.

Internet Protocol Version 4 properties

Step 8: Click OK and restart Chrome.

Method 5: Reset Chrome Flags

If you have installed any new chrome extensions or features, it may accidentally change your browser’s settings. Sometimes, it interferes with DNS settings, too, raising the DNS probe finished nxdomain error. It is best if you reset the DNS settings to the default. You can do this by following these simple steps.

Step 1: Open the Chrome browser from your pc or laptop.

Step 2: In the search bar of Chrome, type chrome://flags.

Step 3: Click Reset all to default option. It is located on the top next to the search flags bar.

chrome flags

Step 4: Relaunch Chrome.

Method 6: Disable your VPN and Firewall temporarily

In this digital world, we have to be very secure while using the Internet. Firewalls and VPN software can keep your system safe from harmful viruses, Trojans, etc. When you surf the Internet, firewalls analyze and filter your network traffic at regular intervals to automatically block unsafe and malicious pages.

But simultaneously, it will become a problem when it unjustly blocks websites that you want to access and change your DNS settings accidentally, resulting in the dns_probe_finished_nxdomain error. So, you can temporarily disable your firewalls and VPN software. However, this method is not advisable, keeping in mind the risks that it can give. To disable your firewall,

Step 1: Open the Control Panel from the search bar. For that type, the control panel in the search bar, and you can see the result.

control panel

Step 2: Next, navigate to system and security.

system and security

Step 3: Now, open the windows defender firewall.

windows defender firewall

Step 4: From the left pane, click on Turn Windows Firewall on or off option.

Turn Windows Firewall on or off

Step 5: On the next screen, you can see the following option shown in the image. Turn off both option and save the changes.

turn off windows defender firewall

Step 6: Now check the site.

Note: After checking the site, please enable it in the same way. For that, go to control panel >> system and security >> windows defender firewall >> turn it on.

Method 7: Restart your DNS service

DNS client services cache and resolves domain names. Sometimes restarting it may solve the error message. Follow the steps given below to restart your DNS service.

Step 1: Press Windows and R together from the keyboard. It will open the run command tab.

Step 2: In the run search bar, type services.msc and click OK.

services.msc

Step 3: Now a services window is open on your screen. Scroll down and find DNS Client.

dns client

Step 4: Right-click on it and choose Restart.

In some systems, this option is disabled. To enable it, you have to follow these steps.

Step 1: Type cmd in the search bar and open the command prompt.

Step 2: Now type net stop dnscache and press enter.

Step 3: Next, type net start dnscache and press enter.

It will enable the option of resetting the DNS client.

Method 8: Check your Local Hosts file

If any of the above seven methods didn’t work IP address could not be found error for you after trying all, there is a final solution you can try to solve the DNS probe finished nxdomain problem. The local host file keeps a record of manual DNS entries mapped to respective IP addresses.

This record is ordinarily just utilized for seeing a DNS before changing to another host. There are chances that it may be some way or another coincidentally modified; it very well might be the explanation for getting the error message. So, it is better to check your local host’s file to ensure the website you’re trying to access isn’t listed there. To do that, follow these steps.

Step 1: Search for notepad in the search bar and open it in administrator mode.

Step 2: To open it in admin mode, right-click on a notepad and chose run as administrator.

Step 3: In the editor, click file >> Open.

open file in notepad

Step 4: Now, go to C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\

Step 5: Here you will find the host file; click on it.

Note:

Make sure that the domain you want to access isn’t there in the file. If it is there, delete it, and don’t forget to save the file.

Conclusion:

There can be many reasons why DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN got triggered in Chrome. But it can be solved quickly, and we have provided the best steps to solve the issue. Hopefully, this article helped you in solving the error and resumed your smooth and fast surfing!

Recommended Reading:

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.