OpenDNS Or Google Public DNS

DNS stands for Domain Name System (or Service or Server). An Internet service that translates domain names into IP addresses. The Internet however, is based on IP addresses. Every time you use a domain name, a DNS service translates the name into the corresponding IP address. For example, the domain name www.google.com may translate to 74.125.45.100

What is DNS?

The DNS system is, in fact, its own network. If one DNS server doesn't know how to translate a particular domain name, it asks another one, and so on, until the correct IP address is returned.

Now the question arises which DNS server should we use for our computer?

The answer could be Open DNS, Google Public DNS, Our ISP's DNS or any other DNS server.

Slow DNS resolving is one of the major causes of browsing slowdowns. The The DNS services provided by the ISPs were often crappy and erratic specially in India.

Here I'll focus on the popular Open DNS and Google Public DNS.

Configuring Open DNS

To use OpenDNS, all you have to do is open your Network Connections or Router’s settings page and update the default DNS server to point to the OpenDNS nameservers that are 208.67.222.222 and 208.67.220.220.

Configuring Google Public DNS

To use Google Public DNS, point to the Google Public DNS nameservers that are 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4.

Google Public DNS aims to replace Your ISP's default DNS server with a faster safer, and more reliable alternative.

OpenDNS is a service that makes your Internet faster and more reliable, and keeps you safe from phishing Web sites trying to steal your personal information.

OpenDNS is that it blocks phishing websites from loading on your computer. It uses data from Phishtank, a community site that is also used by Yahoo! Mail to determine if some particular website is part of any online phishing scam.

OpenDNS also takes care of any typos that you commit while typing the name of popular websites. For instance, if you type www.gogle.com omitting the additional “o” by mistake, OpenDNS will open the main www.google.com site automatically.

         
The test which DNS is best suited for you you can run a test by downloading namebench and running it on your system.

It hunts down the fastest DNS servers available for your computer to use. namebench runs a fair and thorough benchmark using your web browser history, tcpdump output, or standardized datasets in order to provide an individualized recommendation. namebench is completely free and does not modify your system in any way.

Namebench for windows

Namebech for Mac OS

Namebench for UNIX

          Here are my test results:

For me Google Public DNS is working like a charm. The results may differ for people living in different locations.

Image Credit: labnol.org

Which DNS works best for you? Do you prefer Google Public DNS and Open DNS or stick to the default DNS?

Labels : DNS, Tech Tips   | Posted by Sahil Patel   | 19:54