# Switching your IP to OpenDNS. Best move I ever made, pros and cons inside.



## Phusius (Jul 7, 2012)

First off, the website is opendns.com/start and I just signed up for the free basic plan.

After rebooting my PC and testing it out I have noticed some amazing differences.

*Pros:  much faster internet browsing, more secure and safe according to their website

Cons:  Yahoo mail now asks me to enter a copy of the letters security bypass to login (never did before)
*

First heard of this in Maximum PC magazine issue I got last night, never see anyone talking about it here, so I just thought I would share my experience, have a nice day.


----------



## 3design (Jul 7, 2012)

I did that way before you did... 

It's the best DNS client - better than Comodo Secure DNS!


----------



## Nordic (Jul 7, 2012)

I use the dns's that the namebench and another dns benchmark gave me


----------



## 1freedude (Jul 7, 2012)

How did you do it?


----------



## Phusius (Jul 7, 2012)

1freedude said:


> How did you do it?



Once you go to opendns.com/start it shows you step by step process.


----------



## acerace (Jul 7, 2012)

I just use Google DNS. *Every* sites that are blocked in my country, I can access.


----------



## Nordic (Jul 7, 2012)

1freedude said:


> How did you do it?


quick google search to first video. Did not actually watch. I just assume it tells you accurately.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFI8Uio4LHQ

I have my dns set via router so all devices on my network use it.

Here is namebench. The dns benchmark to find the fastest dns for you.
https://code.google.com/p/namebench/


----------



## 1freedude (Jul 7, 2012)

I use opendns from my router...
Didn't sign up for anything.

Was wondering how Phusius did it


----------



## bmaverick (Jul 7, 2012)

Using OpenDNS over 4 years now. 

It has helped with the internet speed as well. 

Some of those nasty websites that track you on the web can be blocked with the service.


----------



## Wastedslayer (Jul 7, 2012)

I ran the name bench and it said my current DNS was the fastest, typical results or?


----------



## Phusius (Jul 7, 2012)

Wastedslayer said:


> I ran the name bench and it said my current DNS was the fastest, typical results or?



No idea Waste, I am new to OpenDNS in general, I thought it was something new so I posted it here, unfortunately most people here to seem to use it already and never bothered telling us new PC builders.


----------



## Wastedslayer (Jul 7, 2012)

I think maybe Ill run it again at like 5-6 PM during peak hours and check the results


----------



## Disparia (Jul 7, 2012)

OpenDNS is good, though ultimately I ended up with my ISP's DNS servers because they edged them out performance-wise. I'm on a business class line, which has separate servers from the residential customers.

Note: The choice was only based on performance. There are some features of OpenDNS that some people might like.


----------



## helloWorld (Jul 7, 2012)

Since I pay for Business Class internet, even though I am in an apartment, should I still use my ISP's DNS or switch to the one it is recommending?


----------



## Phusius (Jul 7, 2012)

helloWorld said:


> Since I pay for Business Class internet, even though I am in an apartment, should I still use my ISP's DNS or switch to the one it is recommending?
> 
> http://img.techpowerup.org/120707/Untitled.png



135% faster... sounds like you should use that DNS man... I just checked mine and it says I am currently using the fastest DNS server for my location. so yeah I say switch.


----------



## Spaceman Spiff (Jul 7, 2012)

Go into your connection properties.

Under networking tab look for the list beneath "This connection uses the following items:"

Select your Internet Protocol Versions. I have 6 and 4. (TCP/IPv6, TCP/IPv4) and hit properties.

Select "Use the following DNS server addresses"

Enter 8.8.8.8 and/or 8.8.4.4 (Google's) or 208.67.222.222 and/or 208.67.220.220 (OpenDNS). They are the best.

Profit.

Edit: Using W7 64-bit


----------



## Phusius (Jul 7, 2012)

Spaceman Spiff said:


> Go into your connection properties.
> 
> Under networking tab look for the list beneath "This connection uses the following items:"
> 
> ...



Which do you use Spaceman?  Would I see any benefit from going to Open DNS to Google's?


----------



## Spaceman Spiff (Jul 7, 2012)

I switch between those two and my ISP default. Whichever is working better at the time. You may see a benefit. Try the benchmark listed earlier, or use speedtest.com between each switch&restart.


----------



## Elmo (Jul 7, 2012)

http://www.opendns.com/technology/dnscrypt/ Check it out .


----------



## Over_Lord (Jul 7, 2012)

acerace said:


> I just use Google DNS. *Every* sites that are blocked in my country, I can access.



Same. Google DNS rocks.

But no nothing's blocked here.


----------



## arsenala (Jul 7, 2012)

Did it before it was cool


----------



## Phusius (Jul 7, 2012)

arsenala said:


> Did it before it was cool



I didn't even know about it until a couple days ago.  Share your wisdom next time.  Lot of new PC builders in the past 12 or so months because of premium PC games like Diablo 3 and BF3 and soon to be GW2, none of those games which I play, but know a lot of people started building their first PC because of.*  Someone here needs to make a list of top things to do after you get your new PC all built.*


----------



## Spaceman Spiff (Jul 7, 2012)

Phusius said:


> I didn't even know about it until a couple days ago.  Share your wisdom next time.  Lot of new PC builders in the past 12 or so months because of premium PC games like Diablo 3 and BF3 and soon to be GW2, none of those games which I play, but know a lot of people started building their first PC because of.*  Someone here needs to make a list of top things to do after you get your new PC all built.*



I don't think this is really on the top of people's list. Its usually just for convenience. I learned about it when I tried to play Bad Company 2 on my PS3 on a military base and they had blocked something so I would lose connection all the time. Talked to my brother who happened to use Google DNS and told me how to switch. Then did some research and found Open DNS and have been switching around with them. Again, your ISP *could* be your fastest DNS but it *could* also be the slowest. It also depends on internet traffic at the time. Apologies if this seemed like privileged information, as it most certainly isn't. 

But now you know, so play with some settings and light one if you got one.


----------



## Wastedslayer (Jul 7, 2012)

Ran the test again since its peak hours now and OpenDNS is 20% faster then my ISP. Thought I would let everyone know


----------



## Elmo (Jul 7, 2012)

Wastedslayer said:


> Ran the test again since its peak hours now and OpenDNS is 20% faster then my ISP. Thought I would let everyone know


You should try out dnscrypt its just a suggestion :S


----------



## razaron (Jul 8, 2012)

Mine's the fastest. Google is -58.9% and OpenDNS is -70.8%.


----------



## Phusius (Jul 8, 2012)

Elmo said:


> You should try out dnscrypt its just a suggestion :S



I did try DNSCrypt, it felt like things were a tad slower then compared to just OpenDNS, OpenDNS is very snappy for me for some off reason I can tell a noticeable difference in load times, very cool.


----------



## yogurt_21 (Jul 9, 2012)

razaron said:


> Mine's the fastest. Google is -58.9% and OpenDNS is -70.8%.



same, a dns server on your network will trump any of these all day long. they're pretty easy to setup too.


----------



## Steevo (Jul 9, 2012)

I have been using OpenDNS for years. Awesome good, and if you ever find a bad domain you can submit for a block.


----------



## Phusius (Jul 14, 2012)

Steevo said:


> I have been using OpenDNS for years. Awesome good, and if you ever find a bad domain you can submit for a block.



No idea what you mean by if you find a bad domain and you can submit for a block.  No websites have given me any problems so I guess this is info I don't really need?


----------



## Aquinus (Jul 14, 2012)

yogurt_21 said:


> same, a dns server on your network will trump any of these all day long. they're pretty easy to setup too.



That's only if your local DNS server already has it cached and it hasn't timed out. If it doesn't know where xyz.com goes to, it has to ask another server and it isn't like your machine is requesting DNS information for the same domain multiple times. Once it gets the record, you're done until it times out or you flush your cache.

Some people also seem to be under the mistaken impression that a faster DNS server improves your bandwidth. *This is NOT TRUE*.


----------



## Wrigleyvillain (Jul 14, 2012)

Yeah it would not increase bandwidth but it could improve "web browsing speed" if your particular ISPs DNS servers are often busy with other queries. The less time it takes to resolve name to IP the quicker the page will be loaded on your screen.


----------



## yogurt_21 (Jul 16, 2012)

Aquinus said:


> That's only if your local DNS server already has it cached and it hasn't timed out. If it doesn't know where xyz.com goes to, it has to ask another server and it isn't like your machine is requesting DNS information for the same domain multiple times. Once it gets the record, you're done until it times out or you flush your cache.



you've obviously setup very few dns servers. If your dns server has absolutely zero and i mean zero error handlers then yes that's true...if you're not a complete novice then no that's not true.


----------



## Aquinus (Jul 17, 2012)

yogurt_21 said:


> you've obviously setup very few dns servers. If your dns server has absolutely zero and i mean zero error handlers then yes that's true...if you're not a complete novice then no that's not true.



Where did I even mention error handlers? I'm talking about DNS caching on the client and their TTL. I have absolutely no idea what you're trying to get at. Also don't presume to call me a novice when you can't even clearly state what you're talking about yourself.


----------



## Delta6326 (Jul 17, 2012)

Think its worth it?

This is what I get.
I pay for .5 down and .256 up






After DNS change





bottom 2 are with my ISP's DNS, the new DNS seems more constant.


----------



## Mussels (Jul 17, 2012)

this varies by ISP/country, use DNS testing programs like the one delta used (namebench? something like that) to find out properly.


----------



## Delta6326 (Jul 17, 2012)

Yeah I used Namebench just tested webpages do load faster now. Also just to note Namebench did take a while to finish around 10min or so.


----------



## Ra97oR (Jul 17, 2012)

192% faster using Google DNS, 48ms avg vs 148ms using ISP DNS, at 0522! Virgin media really does sucks.


----------



## Mussels (Jul 17, 2012)

around here my ISP's is faster than everything else, because most of these 'alternative' DNS servers are hosted in other countries


----------



## yogurt_21 (Jul 17, 2012)

Aquinus said:


> Where did I even mention error handlers? I'm talking about DNS caching on the client and their TTL. I have absolutely no idea what you're trying to get at. Also don't presume to call me a novice when you can't even clearly state what you're talking about yourself.



Read the novice comment again, it was aimed in general at those who don't know how to properly setup a dns server, not specifically to you (unless you count yourself among that category). Dns servers shouldn't sit there and keep one static cache until requested. They should be connected with either a dns service (one that handles filtering as well as caching) or a larger dns server like your ISP's dns server or even an open DNS server. When the master gets an update, so does your local one. The speed savings come in the fact that requests over gigabit LAN are going to be faster than requests over your net connection. (providing your dns server has recent enough hardware of course).

A dns server on your network that has a static cache and only requests new sites when you do isn't going to do you any good any more than a caching server that sits there static will do you any good, your browser cache does that already.


----------



## pantherx12 (Jul 17, 2012)

Spaceman Spiff said:


> Go into your connection properties.
> 
> Under networking tab look for the list beneath "This connection uses the following items:"
> 
> ...



Where would I find this?


----------



## Aquinus (Jul 17, 2012)

yogurt_21 said:


> Read the novice comment again, it was aimed in general at those who don't know how to properly setup a dns server, not specifically to you (unless you count yourself among that category). Dns servers shouldn't sit there and keep one static cache until requested. They should be connected with either a dns service (one that handles filtering as well as caching) or a larger dns server like your ISP's dns server or even an open DNS server. When the master gets an update, so does your local one. The speed savings come in the fact that requests over gigabit LAN are going to be faster than requests over your net connection. (providing your dns server has recent enough hardware of course).
> 
> A dns server on your network that has a static cache and only requests new sites when you do isn't going to do you any good any more than a caching server that sits there static will do you any good, your browser cache does that already.



Aha. Okay. I was just saying the client holds on the the record until it has a reason to query it again. I agree though, a local DNS server would be substantially faster. It doesn't even have to be over 1Gbps, the local network latency is so low that it will be fast, even over 10Mbit. I apologize, I thought the "novice" comment was directed at me and I was wondering why.


----------



## yogurt_21 (Jul 17, 2012)

Aquinus said:


> Aha. Okay. I was just saying the client holds on the the record until it has a reason to query it again. I agree though, a local DNS server would be substantially faster. It doesn't even have to be over 1Gbps, the local network latency is so low that it will be fast, even over 10Mbit. I apologize, I thought the "notice" comment was directed at me and I was wondering why.



it could have easily been worded better too so my apologies for that.


----------



## Spaceman Spiff (Jul 17, 2012)

pantherx12 said:


> Where would I find this?



Depends on your operating system. You can Right-click your internet icon in the task bar and bring up Network Connections, or Start-->Connect To and then click show all connections. Pick whatever you are currently using, 1394, LAN, or wireless.

I'm using wireless so I double-click on Wireless Network Connection. Under the General tab click properties.

Under the General tab here's a small scroll box that says "This connection uses the following items:" Look for Internet Protocol(TCP/IP). I had to scroll to the bottom of the list to see it. Highlight it and click properties.

Now you should be in Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) Properties window. Under the General tab, at the bottom you should see that you can change from automatic to a DNS you enter.

Edit: This time I did this on WinXp 32-bit.


----------

