“DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN” basically means that “the URL you typed in was not found in the internet ‘address book,’” or Domain Name. Because of an NXDOMAIN error, your browser is not able to associate an IP address with which it can connect, causing the webpage not to load. Before moving on to advanced problem-solving, you can check to make sure it is a legitimate problem with an NXDOMAIN error by making sure you don’t have any spelling mistakes by copying and pasting the URL, looking up the URL through mobile internet access to eliminate your Wi-Fi connection, and attempting to access the webpage through an Incognito or “private” browser.
Most Common Causes
However, there are many possible explainations to why the domain could look like it doesn’t exist. The reason could be that you are using the wrong version of the domain, like .net versus .com. Perhaps the domain has either expired or has been suspended. Another possible reason could be that the domain has already been deleted. From a more technical standpoint, perhaps the DNS records–like the CNAME record and others—are yet to be created. Another possible reason could be that you are modifying the DNS records in the wrong place. For example, you could be modifying the DNS at the registrar level when the domains are being hosted on a service that has its own nameservers, like Cloudflare. Lastly, issues such as a corrupted cache of your DNS in your router or ISP, and “Secure DNS” options in your browser, may lead to persistent errors of NXDOMAIN even if the records resolved.
Possible Fixes
1. Checking the Status and Ownership of Your Domain: Before moving along with the remaining setup process, make sure that you are typing the domain name correctly and that you are typing the right extension for the domain name too. For example, if you are going to use a custom domain name, make sure that this domain name has not expired by logging into the domain registrar. For example, if you are going to use a subdomain obtained from a free web hosting service, make sure that your account is not cancelled.
2. Locate and Manage Your DNS Records The most common mistake is editing DNS records in the wrong dashboard. You now need to check where your nameservers are currently pointed, and you would be required to handle the records on Cloudflare or make the changes on your registrar’s website depending upon where they are pointed. You also need to make sure you have the right set of records in place. This should start with an “A” record set up for the main domain (@) and an “A” or “CNAME” record set up for the “www” version. For subdomains, you should have followed the correct set of instructions from your web hosting service provider.
3. Address Propagation and Local Cache If you have recently updated your DNS settings, you may simply need to wait. The time it takes for the propagation to finish may vary from a few hours to 48 hours depending on the ISP, and you should refrain from making multiple changes during this period, as the cached value may get reset. In order to check whether it’s a local issue, you can try draining the DNS cache by typing the following commands on the Command Prompt on the Windows environment, or you can delete the host cache on Chrome by typing the following Chrome link: chrome://net-internals/#dns. You also have the option to change the DNS on your device to a public DNS such as Google DNS (8.8.8.8) or Cloudflare (1.1.1.1), as it bypasses the issue caused by the ISP’s caching mechanism. Since the issue gets resolved on mobile data but not on Wi-Fi, you know it’s either the router or ISP cache, and it’ll get cleared automatically after some time.