How To Speed Up DNS Propagation

Technically there is no way to “speed up” DNS propagation, however, in some cases DNS might be cached for you, resulting in your inability to access a website after DNS has been updated. This guide teaches you how to flush DNS cache to get access to the new server if DNS propagation is complete for you.

Navigation :

  • Windows
    • Windows 10
    • Windows 8.1 / 8 / 7 / Vista
    • Windows XP
  • Apple Mac OS X
    • X El Capitan
    • Yosemite
    • Mavericks
    • Mountain Lion
    • Lion
    • Snow Leopard
    • Leopard (and lower)

Flushing DNS via command prompt in Windows

Windows 10

  1. Right-click on the start menu and select “Command Prompt (Admin)”.
  2. Type in ipconfig /flushdns and hit ENTER.

Windows 8.1 / 8 / Windows 7 / Windows Vista

  1. From the search bar or start button, type in “cmd”.
  2. Right-click “Command Prompt” and select “Run as Administrator”.
  3. Type in ipconfig /flushdns and hit ENTER.

Windows XP

  1. Navigate to the command prompt (Start -> Run -> cmd.exe).
  2. Type in ipconfig /flushdns and hit ENTER.

Mac OS X

Open the command terminal and enter the appropriate command for your Mac OS X version :

X El Capitan

sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

Yosemite

sudo discoveryutil udnsflushcaches

Mavericks

sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

Mountain Lion

sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

Lion

sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

Snow Leopard

sudo dscacheutil -flushcache

Leopard (and lower)

sudo lookupd -flushcache

After following the instructions above, you should be able to access the website where DNS has been updated for if DNS propagation has been completed for you (which surprisingly doesn’t take much time unless cached).