Safely switch to Google Public DNS for a faster internet experience
Earlier this week, Google announced a new service – Google Public DNS. For the uniniated, DNS is a system that converts simple website addresses like www.google.com to IP addresses like 209.85.231.99. So for every website you visit, your browser requests the DNS to resolve the IP address before it can show you the actual page content.
Google’s free service replaces your ISP’s default DNS to provide a speedier and more reliable internet experience. User tests have shown that changing over to Google DNS speeds up browsing significantly. In fact, most users outside the US will notice a drastic change in navigation speeds. Changing your DNS address is extremely simple (you can read the instructions on the Google Public DNS homepage), but then I’ve made the whole process even more simple with Google DNS Helper.
Gooogle DNS Helper is a small utility coded in .NET using C#. It backs up your current DNS server address and then changes it to Google’s DNS. You can restore your old DNS anytime you want. As simple as that! You can find the download link below.
Download Google DNS Helper v1.2 (89 KB)
Requires .NET Framework 2.0 or above.
definitely cool
brainy boy
Is the source code to Google DNS Helper available anywhere?
@Joe Baptista: It won’t be, because I decided not to release the source code. If you are interested in coding something similar, I would recommend CodeProject and StackOverflow.
Hey Paras, make it opensource.
Share with the world.
@Arab: Its Pras.
m getting d APPLICATION ERROR: THE APPLICATION FAILED TO INITIALIZE PROPERLY (0xc0000135):
@Konark: Make sure you have the .NET Framework 2.0 (or above) installed.
Awesome work bro kudos…
1- “In fact, most users outside the US will notice a drastic change in navigation speeds. ” : this is nonsense ;
2- Most systems call 2 DNS servers, not 1 – Does your application change both adresses or only the first? Looks like only the first, which is nonsesnse as well.
3- When you decide to get rid of nonsesnse, I’ll be back.
@Siddanth: Thanks. The app’s been updated. Download it again!
@Apfelgluck:
1. That statement is based on my own Namebench tests (run yours if you want) and also on the article Google DNS vs OpenDNS: Google Rocks for International Users linked via Lifehacker.
2. I had overlooked that part, have fixed it now. Redownload it.
3. Learn some grammar and then get back.
Very useful tool, just used it and changed my DNS successfully
Cool idea! How about posting the code as well?
John
@Tinh: Glad it helped!
@John: The third person asking for the source! Really, its an extremely simple project. All you need is some programming knowledge and StackOverflow
@Joe Baptista: & @Arab: C# is easier to decode then Python is; there are plenty of free tools to show the source, unless Pras actually encrypted it, which I see no need for.
@Pras: Sorry, but I won’t even take a look at your source code, and I’m guessing there’s a registry key somewhere that dictates the current dns server. If not, it’s probably in a windows config file, and if still not, a simple search to Google would reveal where you can change it programmatically. In reality all it does is save the user several clicks and the hassle of “thinking that this might break my computer” kind of attitude.
Well, hopefully it will push people to start using their own custom DNS server. I use OpenDNS and I find it faster, because of where I live in the United States. So I hope the choice can remain up to the user to figure out which one is better.
@Pras: Fully respect your decision of not releasing the source, but if you are releasing it for free and not expecting to make money out of it, why not release the code ?
Pras – as you can see I think your hero factor would go up a few notices if you released the code. This is the sort of program a lot of DNS providers would luv to have.
Anyway – would it help if I paid you some bounty? How much would you want. Maybe we can fund raise.
regards
joe baptista
p.s. I was speaking to the developer of DNSJumper and he has agreed to release his code.
p.s.s. I would luv to talk to you too. email me direct at [Email removed] I would very much like to discuss some business with you.
@Pras: I think people want the source code because it reduces the time to develop source code. Since it’s already done.
If anyone is interested I can release the source code of similar product. I think its written in tcl. It basically does the same thing.
regards
joe baptista
Dumb question–where is the DNS setting changed? I looked in my network adapter properties to verify it had indeed changed and didn’t see it there. Where can I see the change applied?
No chanche of corrupting you into crafting a FoolDNS version?
Every time you open a web page, every time a banner shows up, every time you run a particular code, a great deal of your information is handed out: you’re not giving them to the web site you’re visiting, but to other networks who use them. And very often that happens without you even knowing their destination. FoolDNS blocks the majority of these attempts of invading your privacy.
You can find some descrition here: http://fooldns.com/community_en.html
…and the IPs are:
* DNS 1: 87.118.111.215
* DNS 2: 81.174.67.134
…hoping!
I downloaded this, switched to Google DNS, restarted my computer and want to switch back to prior but can’t find the utility in Programs – where do I reopen it?
@Shadow14l: You’re right, you can do this via the registry. But the method which I chose is a bit different (easy all the same!)
@Manu: I think I’m gonna change my mind!
@Joe Baptista: Thanks for the kind words. You know what, I really don’t want to get paid for such a simple program. Just give me a couple of days (really busy with something) and I’ll post the source code. @Matteo G.P. Flora has just given me a good idea, and I would implement it in the next version and release it (along with the source code, of course!).
@Teknojunkie: Its changed in Networks -> Adapter Settings -> LAN Properties -> TCPv4 Settings as shown in the first screenshot!
@Steve: It should be in the folder where you download stuff!
i like it ~!
thx! 
I f*** you , you are a thief , I don`t protect my code and you are used , I can prove it
@velociraptor: I’m not sure what you mean, but go ahead anyways
@Matteo G.P. Flora: The main problem with hard coding DNS numbers is what happens when you change them – at the DNS provider level. This should not happen.
Example – foolDNS uses an IP allocation belonging to
person: Hostmaster Day
address: Keyweb AG
address: Neuwerkstr. 45/46
address: 99084 Erfurt
address: Germany
phone: +49-361-658530
abuse-mailbox: abuse@keyweb.de
fax-no: +49-361-6585366
and
person: Matteo Berlonghi
address: Seflow Snc di Marco Brame’ & C.
address: V. Alberici, 20
address: Codogno, 26845 (LO)
address: IT
phone: +39 3484876015
so the DNS passes the redundancy test. But what happens if the DNS at those numbers stops responding. User chaos.
DNSHelper or DNSJumper can easily fix the problem of migrating IP numbers. But not as they are now. Right now they are good to help DNS services like foolsDNS help users migrate over to their servers. But if the DNS servers fail – watch out.
Good job Matteo – but do your DNS servers see China? Can you DNS help me surf to the Peking University in China http://北京大学.中国 – what about surfing in Russian – can foolsDNS see the Official website of the President of Russia in the native Cyrillic script http://президент.орг
Most people can’t surf to those domains. If anyone want to test you can check out the Cesidianroot – they are the only DNS supporting all domains worldwide. Theres a much bigger Internet out there than most people see.
regards
joe baptista
@Joe Baptista: Wow that is a good point. But how often do those DNS providers change their DNS addresses? And do you have any proposals for a possible workaround?
Doesn’t really seem to do anything. My wireless ip doesn’t seem to be affected. Have you taken this into account?
@dude: It should work regardless of the hardware. First check if the IPs have been changed to 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4. If they have been changed and still you don’t notice any changes, then tough luck, but Google DNS can’t help you. Mileage varies for different people when it comes to DNS services.
Thanks Pras, I see it now.
@Pras: DNS servers do change depending on the service and their understanding of DNS – which usually is not that good. The proper course of action is for the DNS provider to have fixed IP allocations in their name. That way if a situation develops where the service is dropped at one ISP provider you simply reroute the arpa numbers – i.e. IP – to another colo.
Of course very few people consider getting their own arpa.
The way to fix it is to simply make DNSHelper or DNSJumper SMART so it can figure out the new numbers using names instead of numbers.
cheers
joe baptista
The DNS is becoming popular and programs like DNSBench and DNSJumper are giving a lot of people ideas. I congratulate both developers. Especially DNSJumper which has a selection of different DNS views of he Internet. Few people know there is a much bigger Internet here they can’t reach because most ISPs use the legacy root system.
I received a few calls on this from readers who are interested in knowing more. About domains outside the vanilla Internet which is in most cases controlled by the US government or China – if you live in China. Websites look very different when you see the big picture. As promised – here is the Internationalized Domain Name test page I drew up:
Please note: The URLs or domain names on this page are IDNs (internationalized domain names). If you click on any of these URL’s and they don’t work that means your ISP is using a limited root system, like IANA. You need to reconfigure your computer in order to use these domains.
At this time there are only two root systems that see Chinese, Arabic, Russian or other language domain names. The CesidianRoot at http://cesidianroot.net/ and i-dns at http://www.i-dns.net/ provides DNS support for most of the domains on this test list. Enjoy.
• Peking University, Peking, China : http://北京大学.中国
• 长乐市山力化纤有限公司, China : http://山力化纤.中国
• China Internet Network Information Center, Beijing, China : http://香港工程师.中国
• Tsubakimoto Chain Company, Osaka, Japan : http://椿本中国.公司
• Tianjin Seamless Pipe Sales Company Limited, Tianjin, China : http://无缝管.公司/
• 合联.公司, China : http://合联.公司
• List of Arabic language web sites, United Arab Emirates : http://دليل.امارات
• UAEnic Arabic Domain Name test page, United Arab Emirates : http://كلية-اتصالت-للهندسة.امارات
• RegTime.net Limited test page, Samara, Russia : http://авто.ру
• Whois for .ру domains, Samara, Russia : http://домены.ру
• RegTime.net Registry, Samara, Russia : http://регтайм.нет
• Official website of the President of Russia, Moscow, Russia : http://президент.орг
• おまとめローンとは THISAIGAL.COM : http://திசைகள்.வணி
hey Pras… cute wordpress blog.
+here’s another vote for the source.
i’d like to mod it so it auto switches… i have diesel fast internet (dedicated oc-3, not shared) @ work, which is fine, but at home i’m currently stuck with terrible verizon dsl, and their dns frequently STOPS working – no joke, i get vz search results for things like google.com! really bad.
anyway props on the app, lots of people seem more comfortable messing with this stuff when they see a gui, haha =P
just a thought – doesnt google now own all of our… base… er browsing habbits?? targeted ads, here we come
btw you should put that “notify me” checkbox above the submit button!
or maybe i need to slow down =p
@Corporal Max Sterling: Thanks for your comment Max. And you are probably right about Google tracking our usage data, but personally, I think its no big deal. I use AdBlock + Firefox anyway! And I believe our other commenter Joe Baptista has also asked for a similar feature. I’ll have to figure out something.
Nice! I just tried it, and I see a difference. Located in Chicago, and not a terribly savvy user. Thanks!
Does it work with Windows 98 SE? Yeah, that’s true, my mum still stuck with that…
@Rifat: Sorry to tell you but it doesn’t
I think it will work smooth in Windows 98 SE. Provided you have the .NET Framework v2.0 installed in your system. Isn’t it Pras?
@NLV: Uh.. No the .NET framework cannot be installed on Windows 98.
Is it? Please check out the System Requirements -> Supported Operating Systems section here.
@NLV: Wow I didn’t know the framework supported ’98. Thanks!
@Pras:
.NET Framework 2.0 can be installed on Windows 98 SE. However, Google DNS Helper cannot work with it on Windows 98. I tried but I get a strange error… But in my opinion it’s not directly about the Google DNS Helper; Windows 98 is an extremely unstable system and it’s been 1 and half year since I formated it. Moreover, the default DNS of it cannot be changed manualy; I tried but nothing’s changed…
Thanks for your concern, I’m planing to buy a new PC for my mother next month; so there won’t be a problem anymore. Windows 98 is a really fossil operating system that can never worked precisely…
Thanks again for your help…
How much times lasts the DNS change? Does it persists if you close the program or if the computer is restarted?
@Oscar: Yes, it does persist, even after restarting your machine.
Hi,
Great software dude
but do you have the link to v1.2 please because the link at top for download is for v1.1 still 
Thanks in advance
@Nathaniel: Thanks. Link updated in the post!
Sorry, for my ignorance, but this is what is happens in my case: I start Google DNS Helper, and it shows my current DNS, then I push the button for DNS switch, and it shows a change confirmation message , current DNS dress as 8.8.8.8, and the switch button is grayed. But if I close the program and run it again the 8.8.8.8 disappears and with my first DNS in its place. Is this correct? That’s the reason I asked to you for the lasting of the change. Thanks for your help.
@Oscar: That shouldn’t happen, Oscar. I really wonder how it didn’t work for you. You can try my latest utility posted here – http://inversekarma.in/technology/net/one-click-switching-to-any-dns-provider-of-your-choice
I found DNS servers that povided by my ISP still faster than google public dns
here the results :
my ISP
packets sent : 4
packets received : 4
lost : 0
average round trip time : 44ms
google public dns (8.8.8.8)
packets sent : 4
packets received : 4
lost : 0
average round trip time : 231ms
@abu aufa: It looks to me like you did a ping test. The results of this test don’t determine the speed of the DNS your using. Although the ping response times do affect DNS speeds to some extent they are not an accurate way of testing DNS.
You should try namebench which is a much better test of DNS speeds – check it out at http://bit.ly/64WyVs
Thanks Pras, I downloaded DNS Helper, as you advised to me, and it shows the succesful change confirmation message, but if I run Google DNS Helper my first DNS is showed. I don’t know how to check out if the change was really succesful. I’m runing Windows 7 x64 .
@abu aufa: Joe Batista is right. Ping tests are inaccurate.
@Oscar: Check out the first screenshot. You can verify it in Networks -> Adapter Settings -> LAN Properties -> TCPv4 Settings.
No way… my DNS remains unchangeable. I even changed the TCP/IP v4 settings for obtain the DNS server address manually (it was set to automatically) with no results: after DNS Helper change confirmation, it remains the same (checked via DNS Helper view button and TCP/IP v4 properties).
I’m stumped. Since it remains the same even after you’ve changed it yourself manually, I think there is something wrong with your network configuration. DNS Helper cannot solve this issue.
I was able to make the change manually in TCP/IP v6 settings and when I check the View button in DNS Helper the change I made is showed, but I’m unable to perform the change from the program interface. Is it fully compatible with Windows 7 x64?
@Oscar: Ah! x64 is the culprit! I haven’t tested my app on a 64-bit machine, and chances are, that is causing you trouble!
This will definitely Help, thanks.
Excellent. I have been fighting to get access to a couple of West European websites from my ISP here in Canada for months now. Their tech help keeps denying there is a problem. This just fixed it. Now I can register my ski team for their races. Many thanks.
Thank you so much for this great utility Mr.Ganesh :))
thanx so much.it’s a good notice and utiliti.
but I wanna say:
please translate descriptions of articles to persian that anyone can use in other places such as Iran….
@Sevda: Enter Google Translate.
I have download it but it can’t be installed to my computer… any suggestions thanks
There’s nothing to install! Can you show me step-by-step, what exactly you are doing?
thanks for sharing, nice and usefull.
My internet was crap tl i changed my dns
absolutely brilliant now!!! hooray