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Please scroll down for the solution that solved my problem...

Question :::

Firstly, please excuse me for asking this question here. I have searched other sites in SO network, but I didn't really understand where to put this and this is the only site that I am familiar with. I also, have spent hours reading other sites, but didn't find an answer. I request moderators to, please move this question to appropriate site, if this is not related here.

I have IE, Mozilla, Google Chrome installed in my system. When I try to view sites for example, http://www.millennialmedia.com , I get a DNS Lookup failed error in all the browsers. I can access most of the sites, but this error is only with a few. The colleagues at my workplace were able to access the site without any problems. I cannot even open the site at my house. I get the same DNS Lookup failed error. So, I guess the problem is not related to network and since my friends are able to access it, it's not the problem with the site as well. It must be a problem in my system.

I have Windows 7 Ultimate Edition on my system.

If someone has any idea on how to resolve this, please guide me.

Here is my hosts file

# Copyright (c) 1993-2009 Microsoft Corp.
#
# This is a sample HOSTS file used by Microsoft TCP/IP for Windows.
#
# This file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. Each
# entry should be kept on an individual line. The IP address should
# be placed in the first column followed by the corresponding host name.
# The IP address and the host name should be separated by at least one
# space.
#
# Additionally, comments (such as these) may be inserted on individual
# lines or following the machine name denoted by a '#' symbol.
#
# For example:
#
#      102.54.94.97     rhino.acme.com          # source server
#       38.25.63.10     x.acme.com              # x client host

# localhost name resolution is handled within DNS itself.
#   127.0.0.1       localhost
#   ::1             localhost

enter image description here

enter image description here

Change the settings in the browser to no proxy. The screenshot is with Mozilla Firefox and it works now..

Ravi K Thapliyal
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Vamsi Challa
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  • I understand that this question doesn't belong here. Can some one suggest me a site in SO network, where I can ask this question? – Vamsi Challa May 20 '13 at 06:12
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    I have updated the question with answer. As in my case, many people would be looking for the answer. So, instead of closing the question, it would be much appreciated, if moderators can move this question to a related site. Thanks for the SO Team!! You rock!!! – Vamsi Challa May 20 '13 at 06:27

2 Answers2

4

Run the following from your command prompt.

nslookup www.millennialmedia.com

This should respond with an IP address as well as let you know your current DNS server that's resolving your requests. On my machine the output was as below which implies the site is accessible to me.

nslookup millennialmedia.com
Server:  <hidden>
Address:  <hidden>

Non-authoritative answer:
Name:    millennialmedia.com
Addresses:  216.146.46.11
          216.146.46.10
Ravi K Thapliyal
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  • I have updated the question with the screenshot. Please have a look and guide me. – Vamsi Challa May 20 '13 at 06:16
  • Great! We have some progress here. Now open `Firefox` and go to `Tools > Options > Advanced > Network > Settings...` and make sure that `No Proxy` is selected there. Then try accessing the website. – Ravi K Thapliyal May 20 '13 at 06:18
  • Thank you!! It works. It even works in chrome now. Why was it not working previously? – Vamsi Challa May 20 '13 at 06:20
  • Windows maintains a DNS cache and if an IP address changes before the cache has refreshed you'll get a site not found error. Doing an nslookup explicitly, bypassed and updated the cache as well. Please do accept/upvote if this has been helpful. Thanks. – Ravi K Thapliyal May 20 '13 at 06:23
  • And one more thing the reason I had asked to clear any proxy was so that the browser doesn't make the site request through a proxy having the same outdated dns cache problem. Glad to be of help. Thanks for accepting. – Ravi K Thapliyal May 20 '13 at 06:28
  • @RaviThapliyal: A service that comes with Windows maintains the DNS cache. Important distinction. I for one keep this cache disabled whenever I am on a computer which has a caching upstream DNS server (such as inside an intranet). – 0xC0000022L Jul 13 '15 at 08:40
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Try to ping the domain name and check if you are seeing the same IP address as the other machines where it is working. Also check the hosts file on your system.

Ankit
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