Environment
DNS
Issue
A DNS cache flush may be necessary to clear outdated information. You might experience this as difficulty accessing websites or applications. If the domain name in the cache points to an old or incorrect IP address, the website won't return the correct information.
Resolution
Windows operating systems
To clear the DNS cache on Microsoft Windows, follow these steps:
- Open a DOS command window. To do this, click Start, click Run, type cmd, and then press Enter
- At the command prompt, type the following flush DNS command and then press Enter:
ipconfig /flushdns
- The DNS cache is now clear
Mac OS X operating systems
To clear the DNS cache on Apple Mac OS X, follow these steps:
- Open a terminal window. To do this, click Applications, click Utilities, and then click Terminal
- At the command prompt, type the appropriate command for your Mac OS X version to clear the cache. For information about which command you should use for your Mac OS X version, please visit https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202516
- The DNS cache is now clear
Linux operating systems
Many Linux distributions do not use DNS caching at the operating system level. Instead, applications (such as web browsers) maintain their own internal caches. To clear an application's DNS cache, often all you need to do is restart the application.
If your Linux computer does use a DNS caching service, however, consult its documentation for instructions about how to clear the cache.
Google Chrome browser
The Google Chrome web browser maintains its own internal DNS cache. To clear it, follow these steps:
- Start Google Chrome
- In the address bar, type chrome://net-internals/#dns. Google Chrome displays a list of hosts in its internal DNS cache
- Click Clear host cache
- In the address bar, type chrome://net-internals/#sockets
- Click Close idle sockets, and then click Flush socket pools
Additional Information
Need additional information or assistance? Contact the ITS Service Center.