Flushing Your DNS Cache

Use this page to work with flushing your dns cache. DNS changes can affect websites and email, so confirm the current records and expected destination before saving changes.

This only clears your computer

Flushing local DNS cache does not speed up public DNS propagation everywhere. It only makes your own computer ask for fresh DNS answers.

Quick Commands

System Command
Windows ipconfig /flushdns
macOS 10.10.4 and newer sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder
macOS 10.10.1-10.10.3 sudo discoveryutil mdnsflushcache
macOS 10.7-10.9 sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder
macOS 10.5-10.6 sudo dscacheutil -flushcache

Windows

  • Windows 10, 8, or newer


    Press Win+X, open Command Prompt or Terminal as administrator, then run ipconfig /flushdns.

  • Windows 7


    Open Start, search for cmd, run Command Prompt as administrator, then run ipconfig /flushdns.

  • Windows XP, 2000, or Vista


    Open Start, choose Run, enter cmd, then run ipconfig /flushdns.

If the command succeeds, Windows usually returns:

Windows IP configuration successfully flushed the DNS Resolver Cache.

macOS

Administrator password required

macOS DNS cache commands use sudo, so Terminal will ask for the computer's administrator password.

  1. Open Applications.
  2. Open Utilities.
  3. Open Terminal.
  4. Run the command that matches your macOS version.
macOS version Command
10.10.4 and newer sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder
10.10.1, 10.10.2, 10.10.3 sudo discoveryutil mdnsflushcache
10.7, 10.8, 10.9 sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder
10.5, 10.6 sudo dscacheutil -flushcache

If the command succeeds, macOS usually does not return any output.

Linux

Most Linux distributions do not run a local DNS cache by default. If yours does, the correct command depends on the DNS service installed.

Service Command
systemd-resolved sudo resolvectl flush-caches
older systemd-resolved sudo systemd-resolve --flush-caches
nscd sudo service nscd restart
dnsmasq sudo service dnsmasq restart

Still Seeing Old DNS?

  • Check public DNS


    Confirm what public DNS sees for the domain.

    Open DNS checker

  • Review DNS records


    Confirm the DNS record was changed at the active DNS provider.

    Review DNS records