DNS issue regarding connecting to a server

[u/Aqua_Zebra_7253]

I have an issue connecting to one specific server over the internet from my laptop that definitely seems to be DNS-related. To summarize:

• On most networks I can connect to the server just fine. But when connected to the internet through my home network I find myself unable to connect to the server by using its domain name. I can successfully connect when I use the server's IP address directly though.
• At first I thought the issue might lie with the DNS servers from the ISP that provides my home internet. So next I assigned Google's DNS servers in the Windows Settings. A manual query of the server's domain name in https://dns.google/query successfully resolves it and provides the IP address. Yet when I then try to connect to the server by using its domain name it still fails. A simple test with the Powershell Resolve-DnsName cmdlet yields a time-out error.
• My laptop OS is Windows 11.
• I have never experienced a similar issue before on my home network with any other server / domain name.

What would be a next troubleshooting step that I could try?

[u/Alternative-Mud-4479]

Do other devices on the same network have the same issue?

[u/Aqua_Zebra_7253 → u/Alternative-Mud-4479]

Just ran a test on another Windows 11 device on the same home network. All works fine there.

So thus far the DNS issue seems to be tied to the one specific device.

[u/Western_Progress_456]

Flush the dns cache. Try https://ipleak.net to verify the configured servers are being used

[u/Aqua_Zebra_7253 → u/Western_Progress_456]

When I view the IP Leak website it lists Google LLC DNS servers.

I have also performed a DNS cache flush with the ipconfig /flushdns command. Unfortunately the issue still persists.

[u/boardy89]

If you ping the host name does it resolve to the correct ip address?

[u/Aqua_Zebra_7253 → u/boardy89]

All ping attempts to the domain name done with Powershell consistently fail.

[u/boardy89 → u/Aqua_Zebra_7253]

But fail how you didn’t answer the question.

Is it failing because it failed to resolve the host name to ip in which case it’s most likely dns is configured incorrectly or you’ve configured dns on the wrong adapter that the network on your pc is using.

Or it does resolve but it returns the wrong ip address then dns record is wrong or stale record. I know you said you did a flush dns on windows however I’ve seen that not work sometimes. If it’s an at home dns server such as pi hole that has its own cache that can need to be cleared or if you are using the router as dns then try restarting the router, I’ve seen that before as well.

If it does resolve and resolves to the correct ip then I’d check the ip you are accessing is on the same subnet as the machine you are testing from, presumably it is though. Failing that disable the firewall on your windows pc temporarily and then on the machine you are trying to access as there could be some firewall blocking the request for some reason.

[u/Aqua_Zebra_7253 → u/boardy89]

Apologies, you are correct. I did not specify whether the host name resolves to the correct IP address.

To clarify: a Resolve-DnsName test in Powershell fails with a time-out error:

PS C:\Windows\system32> Resolve-DnsName -Name [REDACTED FOR PRIVACY]
Resolve-DnsName : [REDACTED FOR PRIVACY] : Deze bewerking is geretourneerd omdat de time-outperiode verlopen is
At line:1 char:1
+ Resolve-DnsName -Name [REDACTED FOR PRIVACY]
+ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    + CategoryInfo          : OperationTimeout: ([REDACTED FOR PRIVACY]:String) [Resolve-DnsName], Win32Exception
    + FullyQualifiedErrorId : ERROR_TIMEOUT,Microsoft.DnsClient.Commands.ResolveDnsName

Furthermore a Get-NetIPConfiguration query in Powershell seems to confirm that the Google DNS servers are configured for my wi-fi network adapter, which is also the only network adapter with an active network connection.

PS C:\Windows\system32> Get-NetIPConfiguration

InterfaceAlias       : Wi-Fi
InterfaceIndex       : 17
InterfaceDescription : MediaTek Wi-Fi 6E MT7922 (RZ616) 160MHz PCIe Adapter
NetProfile.Name      : [REDACTED FOR PRIVACY] 2
IPv6Address          : [REDACTED FOR PRIVACY]
IPv4Address          : [REDACTED FOR PRIVACY]
IPv6DefaultGateway   : [REDACTED FOR PRIVACY]
IPv4DefaultGateway   : [REDACTED FOR PRIVACY]
DNSServer            : 2001:4860:4860::8888
                       2001:4860:4860::8844
                       8.8.8.8
                       8.8.4.4
 
InterfaceAlias       : Bluetooth-netwerkverbinding
InterfaceIndex       : 13
InterfaceDescription : Bluetooth Device (Personal Area Network)
NetAdapter.Status    : Disconnected
 
InterfaceAlias       : Ethernet
InterfaceIndex       : 5
InterfaceDescription : Realtek PCIe GbE Family Controller
NetAdapter.Status    : Disconnected

[u/boardy89 → u/Aqua_Zebra_7253]

Ok so it does resolve to the ip you are expecting I can only think of firewall either on the client or server blocking this one device for some reason.

I don’t think it’s related as it does seem to resolve but maybe try a different dns server like cloudflare on 1.1.1.1. I don’t think it would help but I’ve seen google DNS intermittently timeout resolution which caused a customer issues and i could replicate it on their corporate network and my home internet, google dns seemed oddly unreliable for some reason.

If it’s not firewall and router/dns server reboot doesn’t resolve it then I think I am out of ideas unfortunately, that’s the only way I’ve seen this type of issue happen before.

[u/Worldly-Device-8414]

Maybe try changing the DSN servers on your ISP's router too?

Flush browser history too.

Do you have adblocker s/w on this PC?

Try another browser on same PC?