Advice Request CleanBrowsing DNS vs NextDNS vs ControlD DNS

Jonwinter · Nov 15, 2022

Well the Quad9 is the best.

Zero Knowledge · Nov 15, 2022

The only thing missing from NextDns or Adguard is gorhill's own uBlock Origin filters. They are very comprehensive and work very well without breaking a lot of websites. I wish they could be incorporated somehow into other programs filter lists.

goodjohnjr · Nov 15, 2022

TairikuOkami said:
Quad9 is still one of the three pre-set DoH in Windows though.

Enable DNS Cache, one DNS request per 5 min. We use it on 2 PCs and 2 phones and I have never passed 200K.

Where are these preset DNS Over HTTPS at on Windows 11 Home, because when I look at the Ethernet settings under Settings | Network & Internet, I only have the option for automatic or manual with no presets?

Zero Knowledge said:
The only thing missing from NextDns or Adguard is gorhill's own uBlock Origin filters. They are very comprehensive and work very well without breaking a lot of websites. I wish they could be incorporated somehow into other programs filter lists.

Yeah, I wish that both of those, Brave Browser, Ghostery, Quad9 DNS, CleanBrowsing DNS, Cloudflare DNS, et cetera had the uBlock Origin filters.

SeriousHoax · Nov 16, 2022

goodjohnjr said:
Where are these preset DNS Over HTTPS at on Windows 11 Home, because when I look at the Ethernet settings under Settings | Network & Internet, I only have the option for automatic or manual with no presets?

Set 9.9.9.9 manually and select DNS over HTTPS as On (automatic template).

silversurfer · Nov 16, 2022

On my Windows 11 Home, beside default Quad9, I made another DoH setup for Cloudflare 1.1.1.2 (Malware Blocking) and even for my user account of NextDNS.

I have bookmarked this how to... from "ElevenForum" what I found via google search. IMO it's a good description just step by step...

Enable DNS over HTTPS (DoH) in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to change your DNS Server address and enable DNS over HTTPS (DoH) in Windows 11. A DNS (Domain Name System) server is the service that makes it possible for you to open a web browser, type a domain name and load your favorite websites. DNS over HTTPS (DoH), or...

www.elevenforum.com

ForgottenSeer 97327 · Nov 16, 2022

My experience

Quad9 has the best quality blocklist which they receive from their sponsors. IBM is a big player (mainframe and network switches supplier). Their other partner Global Cyber Alliance also has a lot of security companies participating. Combined with open their source filters they probably have the best filters when I take only free DNS services into account. Quad9 does not has any AI-based filtering in place.

NextDNS offers a lot of security features related to the DNS service itself. Their AI-based filter and Google safe search makes them a good choice for people using Edge with Microsofts Smartscreen feature. Knowledgeable users can raise the bar by blocking newly registered domains, blocking all non-latin character TLD's, enabling some parental categories which they don't use to reduce malvertising (e.g. gambling, piracy, dating and porn).

I don't have any experience with CleanBrowsing, so can't provide feedback on that

I used to prefer Quad9, but after reading some articles about how successful AI-based DNS blocking is at Cisco and Cloudflare 1.1.1.2, I started to look at NextDNS. After all the initial horror stories of Google's MV3 killing adblocking as we it, I started to use NextDNS because of the unmatched level of control they provide for free and the option to add privacy based filters NextDNS, AdguardDNS and OISD).

I know that some people are quite convinced that malware blocking should be done at DNS and adblocking on the client or in the browser (which makes sense in theory), but I can say that I use Next DNS for nearly a year now and have not run into a situation that the NextDNS adblocking caused a website to break (but that is my practical experience only).

goodjohnjr · Nov 16, 2022

SeriousHoax said:
Set 9.9.9.9 manually and select DNS over HTTPS as On (automatic template).

Thank you for sharing that, I already knew how to manually set that, when pre-set was mentioned, I thought that meant that those were already there to choose from like they are in most web browsers; that wording was confusing.

goodjohnjr · Nov 16, 2022

silversurfer said:
On my Windows 11 Home, beside default Quad9, I made another DoH setup for Cloudflare 1.1.1.2 (Malware Blocking) and even for my user account of NextDNS.

I have bookmarked this how to... from "ElevenForum" what I found via google search. IMO it's a good description just step by step...

Enable DNS over HTTPS (DoH) in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to change your DNS Server address and enable DNS over HTTPS (DoH) in Windows 11. A DNS (Domain Name System) server is the service that makes it possible for you to open a web browser, type a domain name and load your favorite websites. DNS over HTTPS (DoH), or...

www.elevenforum.com

Thank you for sharing that link, I already knew how to manually set that on Windows, when pre-set was mentioned, I thought that meant that those were already there to choose from like they are in most web browsers; that wording was confusing.

n8chavez · Dec 10, 2022

My one year subscription to NextDNS is going to expire soon, so I thought it would be a good opportunity to try alternative I haven't used in a while. I tried ControlD. It's improved a lot since I used it last. Some of the features present in NextDNS are not there in ControlD, like TLD blocking, but it does now have 3rd list blocking in addition to its extensive feature blocking toggles. I'm impressed.

Edit - I was wrong. You can block TLDs with Control D. Create a custom rule folder and then add this to it. Be careful though. This list is all TLDs, so DELETE THE ONES YOU'LL NEED!

Templarware · Dec 10, 2022

I used NextDNS for one year, but now I use Quad9 because it's free and with no need for configuration all the time.

blackice · Dec 11, 2022

I have been trying ControlD with TLS on my phone and their routing has improved. I am no longer routed to servers in Canada from the southwest United States. Seems to be a viable option now.

monkeylove · Dec 12, 2022

You can also look at performance by region, e.g., dnsperf.com, etc.

n8chavez · Dec 13, 2022

I don't want to keep harping on this, but the once chasmic gap between NexDNS and ControlD is rapidly shrinking. I am very impressed with the updated ControlD has pushed out. The ability to export your rules and even assign global rules for a folder of sub-rules is a nice touch. DoT on my Pixel 6 pro has also improved a lot. The DNS connection would drop a lot. Now I haven't gotten one drop.

TairikuOkami · Dec 16, 2022

n8chavez said:
I don't want to keep harping on this, but the once chasmic gap between NexDNS and ControlD is rapidly shrinking.

Can ControlD block the internet? That is the main reason I use NextDNS for. I do not care, if it is free or paid, it is the ultimate protection.

n8chavez · Dec 17, 2022

TairikuOkami said:
Can ControlD block the internet? That is the main reason I use NextDNS for. I do not care, if it is free or paid, it is the ultimate protection.

What do you mean, by "block the internet?" I suppose if you block all the TLDs that would work. But it would be much easier to create a deny by default rule and then just add exceptions as needed.