When your computer loses access to the Internet, websites stop opening in the browser and various errors appear - I recommend running troubleshooting. So, as a result of diagnostics, a variety of errors can appear. One of these errors: "Windows cannot contact the device or resource (primary DNS server)" in Windows 10, Windows 8 (8.1) and Windows 7. From the description itself, it is already clear that the problem is somehow related to DNS. There is no connection with the DNS server, which is registered (or automatically assigned) in the properties of our Internet connection.
Because of these DNS in Windows, the Internet very often stops working and various failures occur. The connection to the Internet via Wi-Fi or via a network cable seems to work, the connection is established, there are no errors, and the sites in the browser do not open. Making diagnostics - we get an error related to the operation of DNS servers. Moreover, this does not have to be the error that is discussed in this article. It is very common to see the error DNS server is not responding. We can say that these are the same problems, and the solutions will be approximately the same. To better understand the problem, I will briefly talk about DNS servers. They perform a very important task - they convert the site addresses we are used to into IP addresses. After that, the browser is already loading the site. If the DNS server is not working, then, accordingly, the browser cannot access the site, since it cannot find out its IP address at which it is located. We usually automatically obtain DNS settings from the ISP and use their servers. You can manually change these settings. For example, register the addresses of Google's public DNS servers. By the way, this is one of the most effective solutions to this problem.
This is what the error looks like as a result of diagnosing Windows networks:
Various DNS-related errors will appear in browsers, or messages that the connection to the site cannot be established, the server's IP address could not be found, etc. In Chrome, there may be an error code DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_BAD_CONFIG.
But it is not important. The problem is clear, and what to do with it is also clear.
Solutions for communication error with primary DNS server in Windows
1I always recommend that you restart your computer and router first. Unplug the router and power it back on after a few minutes. Perhaps the error will disappear and you will not have to waste time and nerves on other solutions. 2 You need to register the static addresses of DNS servers from Google. I recommend doing this even if everything works for you and there are no problems. As practice shows, Google's public DNS servers work more stably and faster than the servers of the Internet provider. More information about these public servers is available at the link that I left at the beginning of the article.We need to open the "Network Connections" window. On Windows 10/8/7, this can be done in different ways. For example, through the control panel and parameters. But there is one universal solution - press the key combination Win + R, copy the command ncpa.cpl and execute it by pressing Ok. Next, right-click on the adapter through which we have an Internet connection and open its "Properties".
Next, open the properties "IP version 4 (TCP / IPv4)" and write the DNS addresses in the appropriate fields: 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4
After clicking on Ok, the system will "think" a little and everything should work. If the sites do not start to open, then restart your computer.
3 Start / Restart the DNS Client service. Windows has a service that manages DNS. It is unlikely that it is disabled, but it needs to be checked. At the same time, restart it.Services can be opened through the control panel, through the search in Windows 10, or by running the services.msc command in the Run window (you can open it with the Win + R keyboard shortcut).
Right-click on the "DNS Client" service and select "Restart". We confirm the restart. And if it is initially disabled, then select "Run". You can also open its properties and stop the service, and then start it again.
Very often the DNS Client service cannot be restarted. Menu items are simply not active. I have the same problem now, although everything worked out before (the screenshot above is from an old article). What is the reason - I don't know yet.
In this case, run Command Prompt or Windows PowerShell (you can start the Windows key + X keyboard shortcut) as administrator and run the following commands in turn:
ipconfig / flushdns
ipconfig / registerdns
netsh winsock reset
Reboot your system.
4You can still perform a full network reset. I have already written separate instructions on this topic:- Reset network settings in Windows 10
- Resetting TCP / IP and DNS Network Settings in Windows 7
Especially Avast antivirus. One of its components changes the network settings and Windows cannot contact the DNS server. Practice shows that disabling the antivirus does not help. You need to completely remove it. After that, you can reinstall it, only during the installation process select the main components (without VPN, some kind of network traffic filters, etc.).
I think some of these solutions should help get rid of this error. If everything worked out, let us know in the comments. Write what exactly helped and after which you got this error. If it doesn't help, ask questions.
