ClearCloud DNS To Be Discontinued

that's true

 

Well, tomorrow I'm officially going to switch DNS servers to Norton DNS, to see how things go.

For whatever reason, I simply cannot get the hang out of DynDNS. It keeps saying I don't have the Internet Guide service. I mean, it detects I'm using the IPs, but I cannot create a Defense Plan, because... well... it complains I don't have Internet Guide...

I doubt their support team would be of any help, considering the last time I tried it, they told me to use IE.

Most likely, I'll end up returning to my ISP's DNS servers. Bummer...

 

They told me to use IE, whilst using IE.... Yes their support is terrible, was complaining to them about a routing issue for hmm, close to 5 months, did they fix it? Nope, they responded by blocking tracert.

Barracuda is just as bad, whilst being a mediocre shield against malware, their response team towards new URLs being reported (I was using the web report form) was zero. Reporting domains was useless. Add to that the whole issue with barracuda being hacked.

You won't catch me with Dyn again.

 

using norton dns for couple of days now.. not even close to clearclouds malware blocking ability

 

You're luckier than me! I just gave Norton DNS a run, and I my connection wouldn't even work!

No wonder the other day when I tried both CC and Norton IPs, that when CC failed, Norton failed as well.

I can't possible understand GFI's decision. They killed a great service (sure, it has its issues, but better than Norton... for what it seems.) Does it cost them money? Sure... partner with some search engine... Bing (Microsoft), perhaps? I'm sure Microsoft wouldn't mind...

 

Where the heck do you guys go on the net? I rarely if ever got a peep out of the DNS servers. I get the very occasional block from MBAM Pro's website blocking.

 

I think they just dont want to provide anything for free to the community..cant say anything because a lot of companies think alike..nevermind it.. I shall meet the malwares head on with my dancing panda

 

Could anyone point me a link for the different OpenDNS offered plans? I don't see anything at OpenDNS web site. I mean, a detailed Plan something vs Plain something, etc.

Or, are you aware of some other link?

I'm thinking of trying it and see if it will be a replacement for ClearCloud, considering Norton DNS won't work for me, at all. DynDNS =

 

-http://www.opendns.com/home , I don't know if that's what you want. Just choose between different solutions

 

That's the website I know. I'm trying to look for some detailed info on what features it has, by looking at a comparison table. I know they have an OpenDNS Basic plan, Deluxe plan, etc (At least, they used to.). But, I see no mentions to them anymore. Only general information.

I'm wondering if I first need to register in order to get more detailed info?

-edit-

I found a bit more info by writing -http://www.opendns.com/home/basic

Apparently, the Basic plan won't allow blocked page bypassing. So, if there's a false positive, I'd have to wait for a response. I think.

 

OpenDNS makes it ridiculous to try and info about their services. Anyway, here is what is on their page where you pay-

Upgrading from OpenDNS Basic?
OpenDNS Deluxe provides powerful new features to better manage your network at home or at work. In addition to all the Basic features, you'll get:
Ad-free guide and block pages
Advanced customization
More robust stats and archive reports
Whitelist-only mode
Email support
Double the whitelist/blacklist domain limits

OpenDNS Deluxe costs $9.95/year for households, or $5/user/year for small businesses.

What's the family pack?
The family pack is a version of OpenDNS Deluxe priced for an individual or a household with up to 5 users.

What's a user?
A user is someone using OpenDNS — not just the people who administer it. If you have an office with 30 people on computers, that's 30 users. If you have an office with 10 people on computers, but 50 people in a warehouse, it's only 10 users as far as OpenDNS is concerned.

 

@ acr1965

Thanks.

Yes, they do seem to make it difficult to find info. I felt like I was "walking" in circles.

Oh, well... Now that CC is a thing of the past, I really got no other choice than my ISP's DNS servers. I don't like not being able to bypass blocked web sites or easily report false positives.

I'll manage some other solution for my relatives. I got to reconsider this or another aspect. (Besides sandboxes and all that. lol)

 

They have only just changed their website. There is a comparison chart in Google's cache.

 

I assume you're talking about OpenDNS not NortonDNS since it allows you to bypass. But what false positives are you expecting with OpenDNS? Phishing ones? That's all it blocks. The free version has no malware protection, only "botnet protection" which is nothing other than a warning if a PC on your network tried to connect to a known botnet website, a list which is rarely updated, and a feature that requires registering and IP updating.

The link in the post above shows its absence in the free version.

 

Yes, it appears to be. No malware protection. I thought it offered malware protection. It seems I was wrong.

No much more alternatives out there, that would be worth trying. For some reason, Norton DNS breaks my Internet connection.

 

Does OpenDNS paid version that has the "block ads" feature block all ads (like a regular ad blocker) or just ads to upgrade the OpenDNS product?

 

Anyone using FoolDNS?
http://www.fooldns.com/fooldns-community/english-version/

 

FoolDNS sounds interesting

 

I'm very new to OpenDNS, and trying to learn about features.
Right now, the OpenDNS site has a link for the deluxe version, but unfortunately the link takes me right back to the free home version.
I've asked support to fix that.
Meanwhile, I read your post saying OpenDNS has no malware protection, but their dashboard settings show the following, which refers to malware protection. Is it really as you say?

 

Using FoolDNS, it does block ads. . Also great at blocking malware sites

 

how long have you been using it? also, any issues so far? and would it make any difference since I'm in the U.S. as the fooldns service looks like it may be from some other country? I'll start a new thread about FoolDNS for others to be able to contribute as well.

 

If you read the description of that tickbox, it is exactly as I described. "At the moment we only block the conficker virus". It is nothing other than an alert when access is attempted to a few specific sites. Real URL malware protection needs to be vigorously updated daily. Something only possible by an anti-virus lab.

I know you've tried to already but I still can't quite understand. Could you elaborate on how this happens?

Try and add the NortonDNS IPs, then close all applications, then open command prompt and enter "ipconfig /flushdns" and see if that helps.

Triple check the IPs too and copy/paste if need be:

 

I have read the description... I wouldn't attach the description without reading it... and it actually does not say what you have quoted it as saying.

Your quote reads, "At the moment we only block the conficker virus".

The actual quote reads, "At this time, this feature blocks the Conficker virus and the Internet Explorer Zero Day Exploit, and is continually expanded to include other types of malicious sites."

The OpenDNS statement does not contain the word "only", and it does say that it, "is continually expanded to include other types of malicious sites".

In addition, the OpenDNS statement looks more comprehensive than what you have implied and inferred... "When certain Internet-scale botnets are discovered or particularly malicious malware hits, we offer protection to all our users so that as many people as possible can be protected from the threat".

It appears to me like you are stating facts (drawing conclusions?) that are not supported by the OpenDNS statement.

 

I thought of the ipconfig /flushdns command, and I must say I haven't done it, back then. But, switching DNS IPs to other services, like DynDNS, works just fine, so it's unrelated to that. For some reason, it just breaks my Internet connection.

I actually copied & pasted Norton DNS IPs, so there wasn't room for mistakes.

I guess that's the reason why sometime ago, when I had both CC and NortonDNS running together, if CC would fail, then NortonDNS wouldn't kick in.

Well, I won't bother with it. That much I know. Other relatives also reported they had no Internet connection after switching to NortonDNS, but as soon as they switched to either CC or DynDNS (as an experiment), Internet connection was up and running again.

 

It's quite clear you do not understand the feature at all. There's a clear as day difference between malware blocking, a service that Symantec and Sunbelt (used to) provide, and a simple "alert" when a PC tries to connect to an outdated list of long dead and buried websites.

As a test, try flipping the IPs around.