When the DNS (Domain Name System) service is down, it can have various impacts on your internet connectivity and browsing experience. Here are some possible scenarios and solutions related to your setup:
1. **Impact on Internet Connectivity**:
- If the DNS service provided by ControlD Family Friendly or AdGuard Pro is down, your devices may have trouble resolving domain names to IP addresses. This means that you might not be able to access websites by their domain names (e.g.,
www.example.com).
- Your internet connection may still be active, but you may experience delays or timeouts when trying to access websites due to the DNS resolution issues.
2. **Fallback DNS Servers**:
- To mitigate the impact of a DNS service outage, you can configure fallback DNS servers on your devices. Fallback DNS servers are alternative DNS servers that your devices can use if the primary DNS service is unavailable.
- In Windows 11, you can configure multiple DNS servers in the Network Adapter settings. By adding backup DNS servers (e.g., Google DNS, Cloudflare DNS) alongside ControlD Family Friendly, your device can switch to these servers if ControlD is down.
- Similarly, in AdGuard Pro on your iPad, you can configure additional DNS servers to serve as backups in case the primary DoH DNS service is unavailable.
3. **Local DNS Resolver**:
- Another approach is to set up a local DNS resolver on your network, such as Pi-hole or BIND DNS server. These local DNS resolvers cache DNS records and can provide DNS resolution even if the external DNS service is down.
- By pointing your devices to the local DNS resolver as the primary DNS server, you can ensure that DNS queries are resolved within your network even if the external DNS service is unavailable.
4. **Testing and Monitoring**:
- Regularly testing the DNS resolution on your devices can help you identify issues with the DNS service promptly. Tools like nslookup or dig can be used to manually check DNS resolution.
- Monitoring services can also be set up to alert you when the DNS service is down, allowing you to take action proactively.
In conclusion, while the internet may not completely stop working if the DNS service is down, you may experience disruptions in accessing websites. Configuring fallback DNS servers, setting up a local DNS resolver, and monitoring the DNS service can help mitigate the impact of DNS outages and ensure a more reliable internet connection.