Last week, as part of our AWS server migrations, we updated our DNS (Domain Name System) servers that manage a small portion of our customers' domain names. The new servers are up and running successfully, but it appears that our previous service was shut down yesterday, September 21, by our provider while some networks still have the old IP address cached. If this cache is in place for you or a user on your network, you may see the following error on your website:
Unfortunately we can't force that cache to clear on our end, but it is the reason that when you view the website, it's still trying to connect to that old DNS server and you're seeing an error. This is intermittent across the country, and is not affecting all visitors to your website.
The expiration of the IP address cache across all providers should occur in the next 24-48 hours, forcing the update to the new server IP address across all networks. In the meantime, you can force your cache to clear with the following instructions:
For Windows
Click on the Start menu, then click on Control Panel.
Click on Network and Internet.
Click on Change Adapter Settings.
Right click on the Wi-Fi network you are connected to, then click Properties.
Select Internet Protocol Version 4 (or Version 6 if desired).
Click Properties.
Write down any existing DNS server entries for future reference.
Click Use The Following DNS Server Addresses.
Replace those addresses with the 1.1.1.1 DNS addresses:
For IPv4: 1.1.1.1 and 1.0.0.1
For IPv6: 2606:4700:4700::1111 and 2606:4700:4700::1001
Click OK, then Close.
Restart your browser.
You're all set! Your device now has faster, more private DNS servers
For MacOS
Open System Preferences.
Search for DNS Servers and select it from the dropdown.
Click the + button to add a DNS Server and enter 1.1.1.1
Click + again and enter 1.0.0.1 (This is for redundancy.)
Click + again and enter 2606:4700:4700::1111 (This is for redundancy.)
Click + again and enter 2606:4700:4700::1001 (This is for redundancy.)
Click Ok, then click Apply.
You're all set! Your device now has faster, more private DNS servers.