What you will achieve
Clear the Windows DNS resolver cache so new DNS records take effect and stale entries stop causing resolution failures.
When to flush DNS
- After changing DNS servers in adapter settings.
- After migrating a website or mail service to new IPs.
- When some sites load but others show “server not found” inconsistently.
1) Flush with ipconfig
- Open Terminal or Command Prompt as a normal user (admin not required for this command).
- Run:
ipconfig /flushdnsExpect: Successfully flushed the DNS Resolver Cache.
2) Restart DNS Client (if issues persist)
- Open Services (
services.msc) as administrator. - Locate DNS Client.
- Restart the service if the option is available on your edition.
On some Windows editions the DNS Client service cannot be restarted manually — reboot instead.
3) Verify resolution
nslookup example.com
ping example.comCompare results before and after changing DNS servers. Use nslookup example.com 1.1.1.1 to query a specific resolver directly.