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How to Clear or Flush Your DNS Cache to Speed Up Propagation (StickyHosting Knowledge Base)

Overview:

Your DNS cache stores the locations (IP addresses) of web servers that contain web pages you have recently visited. If the location of the web server changes before the entry in your DNS cache updates, you will no longer be able to access the site.

If you encounter a large number of HTML 404 error codes, you may need to clear your DNS cache. After you clear your DNS cache, your computer will query the nameservers for the updated DNS information.

How to Clear Your DNS Cache:

Here are the methods to clear the DNS cache on different operating systems.

For Windows 8:

1. Press Win+X to open the WinX Menu.

2. Right-click Command Prompt and select Run as Administrator.

3. Run the following command:

   ipconfig /flushdns

4. If successful, the system will display:

   Windows IP configuration successfully flushed the DNS Resolver Cache.

For Windows 7:

1. Click Start.

2. Type cmd in the search box.

3. Right-click Command Prompt and select Run as Administrator.

4. Run the following command:

   ipconfig /flushdns

5. If successful, the system will display:

   Windows IP configuration successfully flushed the DNS Resolver Cache.

For Windows XP, 2000, or Vista:

1. Click Start.

2. In the Start menu, click Run.

   • If you don't see the Run option in Vista, enter run in the Search bar.

3. Run the following command in the Run text box:

   ipconfig /flushdns

4. If successful, the system will display:

   Successfully flushed the DNS Resolver Cache.

For MacOS X 10.10.4 and above:

1. Click Applications.

2. Click Utilities.

3. Open Terminal.

4. Run the following command:

   sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

5. If successful, the system will not display any output.

Warning: You will need to know the Administrator password to run this command.

For MacOS X 10.10.1, 10.10.2, and 10.10.3:

1. Click Applications.

2. Click Utilities.

3. Open Terminal.

4. Run the following command:

   sudo discoveryutil mdnsflushcache

5. If successful, the system will not display any output.

Warning: You will need to know the Administrator password to run this command.

For MacOS X 10.7, 10.8, and 10.9:

1. Click Applications.

2. Click Utilities.

3. Double-click Terminal.

4. Run the following command:

   sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

5. If successful, the system will not display any output.

Warning: You will need to know the Administrator password to run this command.

For MacOS X 10.5 and 10.6:

1. Click Applications.

2. Click Utilities.

3. Double-click Terminal.

4. Run the following command:

   sudo dscacheutil -flushcache

5. If successful, the system will not display any output.

Warning: You will need to know the Administrator password to run this command.