DNS Nameserver Problem?

[Zalophus]

Just changed from Linksys e2000 to RT-AC56R/U. Everything went ok, except when I ran DNS Benchmark, it shows 192.168.1.1 as a "Local Network Name Server".

I have also noticed that while all my wired devices are working fine, but my wireless devices (Laptop, Smartphone and Kindle) all seem to be running slower than with the Linksys, and I get periodic "unable to connect with DNS server" errors on my smart phone.

DNS gives me the following warning:
System has only ONE (router based) nameserver configured.
It appears that only one local (router gateway) DNS nameserver, with the IP address of [192.168.1.1], is currently providing all DNS name resolution services to this system. This configuration is not recommended because most consumer-grade routers provide inefficient and under-powered DNS resolution services.

I have manually changed my WAN DNS servers to the DNS Benchmark recommendations (same as with Linksys), but am wondering if/how I should change the LAN IP address.
Thanks

 

[Preskitt.man]

For most home users, the ISP provides two DNS IP's as part of its DHCP services. While you can have your router point to these addresses directly, or other DNS providers you might prefer, by default most home routers provide DNS services to their clients indirectly by having the client access a dns server on the router (192.168.1.1) and going out to the network as necessary. Usually (though can't say for sure with ASUS, the local dns server will cache DNS responses giving the client faster DNS access for commonly used IP's.

Yes, you will only have one DNS IP, but if your router is down, your not going anywhere anyway.

Dave

 

[Zalophus]

Thanks for the reply. I'm still a bit confused.
Can I/should I change my LAN IP address to one of the DNS Benchmark servers? In effect, change my router based address to an "ISP" based server address.
It sounds like you don't think it's necessary nor advisable?
Again, thanks for your response.

 

[RMerlin]

DNS benchmarks are meaningless.

 

[Preskitt.man]

I would only recommend it if you prefer the special features that services like OpenDNS provide, such as porn filters, etc. Otherwise, unless you have a problem with the ISP provided DNS services, let your clients get DNS services from the router.

Explicitly setting them can be problematic for mobile devices that you take to work, and must you your work's DNS service while at their location.

Dave

 

[stevech]

I change the DNS server choice in my router from "use your ISP's DNS" (which are slow and error prone),
to
Use these static (given by me) ones:
4.2.2.2 (very fast, low ping times, here in CA)
8.8.8.8

These are among the largest DNS servers in the US.

With these changes to the router, next time a PC reboots it will get/use those DNS server IPs.

Slow DNSes can noticably slow down your web surfing experience, due to all the DNS lookups that ads do on your web pages.

 

[Zalophus]

Thanks everyone.
Merlin-Did you mean all DNS benchmarks results or just those from DNS Benchmarks? What's the best way for a home user to find the "best" servers?

I'm still trying to figure out if I can/should change my LAN nameserver IP address. Right now it's the "generic" IP for all ASUS routers, and I've read that that is a possible security issue.

So if I change the LAN IP address, can I change it to an IP based server address i.e. one of the ones Stevech suggested, or am I restricted to something in between the to DHCP's "IP Pool Starting Address" and the "IP Pool Ending Address".

 

[RMerlin]

Any DNS benchmark is useless. The time to resolve a hostname is just a fraction of the time needed when browsing the Internet. Things get cached by your router after the first query (and also cached by your computer), so it's only the first lookup that has to go to the nameserver.

What those benchmarks don't tell you is if you get redirected to the optimal server when trying to connect to a site that makes use of a CDN (Content Distribution Network). Youtube, Akamai-backed download sites... If looking up the Youtube IP takes 10ms less than with your ISP but you end up being pointed at a streaming server located at the other end of the country, those 10ms you saved during the initial lookup won't do you much good as you might have your video buffering every 30 seconds. Your ISP DNS will often point you to the closest Youtube server (and some ISPs even host their own local Youtube cache).

So the advice is: always use your ISP nameserver, UNLESS they are actually unreliable, or you need to rely on a filtering service (such as OpenDNS) and are ready to deal with the consequences.

 

[Zalophus]

Thanks for explanation.

Just so I understand, my LAN IP Address is 192.168.1.1, which is the ASUS router nameserver. I have my WAN Servers manually set for two ISP (Comcast) IP addresses, 75.75.75.75 and 68.87.76.178.

Is this what you mean by:
"So the advice is: always use your ISP nameserver, UNLESS they are actually unreliable, or you need to rely on a filtering service (such as OpenDNS) and are ready to deal with the consequences."

Thanks.

 

[RMerlin]

Thanks for explanation.

Just so I understand, my LAN IP Address is 192.168.1.1, which is the ASUS router nameserver. I have my WAN Servers manually set for two ISP (Comcast) IP addresses, 75.75.75.75 and 68.87.76.178.

Is this what you mean by:
"So the advice is: always use your ISP nameserver, UNLESS they are actually unreliable, or you need to rely on a filtering service (such as OpenDNS) and are ready to deal with the consequences."

Thanks.

Correct. By having your clients go through your router (which, in turn, will forward queries to your ISP's DNS), it provides you with an additional level of cacheing (the router).