Invalid DNS entry causes IE to hang

[TemporalBeing]

Every now and then I get a DNS entry wrong - ocm instead com, for
example - and IE seems to process it, but hangs for several minutes. I
know it's not merely an IE issue as this also happens with Firefox and
other applications. The only error message that comes back is the one
that says its an invalid DNS entry - and that is only after a few
minutes of waiting.

I do have a couple entries in my hosts file - but nothing significant.
It's really annoying.

Any ideas on what is wrong or what can be done to fix it?

 

[Vanguard]

Every now and then I get a DNS entry wrong - ocm instead com, for
example - and IE seems to process it, but hangs for several minutes. I
know it's not merely an IE issue as this also happens with Firefox and
other applications. The only error message that comes back is the one
that says its an invalid DNS entry - and that is only after a few
minutes of waiting.

I do have a couple entries in my hosts file - but nothing significant.
It's really annoying.

Any ideas on what is wrong or what can be done to fix it?

When entering the URL for a .com site, be sure to use .com at the end of the
URL. .ocm is not a valid TLD (top-level domain) but it is currently only
invalid because the TLD has not yet been defined. I'm not DNS wizard, but I
would think they would operate under the assumption that they need to do the
lookup on whatever is entered rather than keep some table of valid TLDs
(because they do change over time and when a new one got added then using it
would be very flaky until all DNS servers got their TLD validity table
updated).

You'll get the same delay if you try to navigate to www.spampal.ogg (because
you mispelled the .org TLD). The long delay isn't because of IE. It is
because whatever DNS server that you use is taking a long time to return a
negative response (i.e., IE won't know it doesn't exist until the DNS server
says it doesn't exist or until IE times out after 5 minutes of waiting for
any response from the DNS server). Sounds like an issue you need to bring
up with whomever is your DNS provider. If you are using the DNS server at
Northrup then talk to them about the delay to return a negative response
when an invalid TLD is used. If you are using some other DNS, talk to them
about it.

 

[Robert Aldwinckle]

Every now and then I get a DNS entry wrong - ocm instead com, for
example - and IE seems to process it, but hangs for several minutes. I
know it's not merely an IE issue as this also happens with Firefox and
other applications. The only error message that comes back is the one
that says its an invalid DNS entry - and that is only after a few
minutes of waiting.

I do have a couple entries in my hosts file - but nothing significant.
It's really annoying.

Any ideas on what is wrong or what can be done to fix it?

Yes, depending on whether
A. you aren't giving a protocol prefix when you are typing in the Address bar
B. you have Search from the Address bar active (in Options, Advanced

So, one way to fix it would be to disable B. e.g. by clicking radio button
Do no search from the Address bar
or, if you want to leave that option active, always enter a protocol prefix when
you think you are typing a domain name or URL.

BTW if you have a search hijacker, e.g. due to spyware, option B. may not
be possible or attempts to disable it somehow ignored.

Another possibility depends on your what your DNS tries to do with
unsatisfied lookups. Some may try to do a (controversial) search.
You haven't disclosed your OS so we can't tell what tools you should have
available for diagnosing that case.


HTH

Robert Aldwinckle
---

 

[TemporalBeing]

I don´t believe it is my DNS Server as (a) it is only an issue on my
Windows based systems (2000 Pro SP4) and (b) it affects the system both
at work (where I have no control of the DNS) and at home where I use
DJBDNS (both as a cache and not) and my Firefox on Linux doesn´t have
the same issues (at least at home; I haven´t tested in on Linux since
I don´t run Linux much at work in graphical mode yet). It leads me to
believe it is something fishy with Windows because Firefox on Windows
has the same issue as IE.

Oh and (per the other post) per having ¨search from address bar¨
enabled - it isn´t. I hate that feature and turn it off immediately
upon using a system (for which I have a profile - I don´t bother with
other peoples profiles).