How to Clear DNS Cache on Windows

Before you start clearing the DNS Cache, you need to understand what the DNS cache is. A DNS, otherwise known as Domain Name System, is the index of every website that is on the internet, that also includes the IP address for the website. It is like an address book or telephone book for the internet.

The cache is a snapshot of a website page that allows for the browser to keep files and information of a website for faster load time later on. This improves user experiences. DNS caching is the combination of the capturing of the DNS information to help make the experiencing of loading the website quicker.

However, sometimes the DNS cache on your computer can become corrupted. This could because it is outdated or something damaged the files. Therefore, you need to clear the DNS Cache.

Clearing the DNS cache on a Windows operating system is really simple. There are often different ways of doing it for the various versions of an operating system. This is the same with Windows, so check below, for the solution you need.

If you’re using Windows 10, use this set of instructions.

The first thing to do is to open the Command Prompt on your system’s command line interface. To do this on Windows 10, click on the Start option, then find and click on the ‘Windows Systems’ and then ‘Command Prompt’.

Once the command line interface has opened for you, enter the following code into the interface:

ipconfig /flushdns

Once you’ve entered the line in, there should be a confirmation message that the job has been done.

If you’re operating a Windows 8 machine, use these instructions.

Open the ‘Apps Screen’ that is on the far right and then find the ‘Windows Systems’ and select the ‘Command Prompt’ option.

Once the program has opened, enter in the line:

ipconfig /flushdns

Once done, you should see a confirmation of the DNS cache being cleared.

If you’re using either Windows 7 or Windows XP, then you need to follow these instructions.

Start by clicking on the ‘Start’ button and then navigating to ‘All Programs’ followed by ‘Accessories’. Within that list you should see the ‘Command Prompt’ option. Click on that.

Within the command line interface, you need to run the line of code that reads:

ipconfig /flushdns

Once entered, you should get a confirmation message that the process has been carried out successfully.