Adguard DNS (beta)

Discussion in 'other software & services' started by Nanobot, Jul 26, 2016.

  1. avatar

    avatar Developer

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    Yeah. it also breaks Windows Store now. We'll fix it soon.
     
  2. WildByDesign

    WildByDesign Registered Member

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    Also a slight delay at the beginning of any YouTube video is occurring. So far, so good for this being in beta. I've got my router pushing this Adguard DNS out to all of the devices on my network over the past 24 hours or so now with zero major issues while having a server on my router replacing any blocked domains with a base64 encoded 1x1 pixel transparent image.

    - It would be interesting to see a lightweight companion browser extension which simply takes care of element hiding and cleaning up any web site breakage caused by the DNS filtering. So this would not be a full-fledged browser extension for ad-blocking, simply just element cleanup

    - Or alternatively, maybe for paid users or Adguard for Windows built-in, some sort of resident mini-server (or underlying kernel-mode driver) which would serve the purpose of element hiding and serving transparent 1x1 image or similar

    Anyway, running public DNS servers is a gigantic responsibility and a tremendous amount of work. I am excited to see the Adguard take this giant step forward here and look forward to seeing this progress forward. Also interesting to see that this may end up as open source software as well.
     
  3. Fad

    Fad Registered Member

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    I have just started testing.

    Level3 have always been problematic for me in tests done in the past (slow and even complete timeouts), although I seem to be connecting to Frankfurt with one.
    Have you added European servers ?

    Using AG dns with AcrylicDNS and the connection speeds don`t appear to be particularly slower after testing just a few sites.
    Will keep testing .


    Are there any logs kept ?
    I found the answer:
    "We do not save any personal data and do not log any of your actions. Your privacy will remain safe."
     
    Last edited: Jul 30, 2016
  4. WildByDesign

    WildByDesign Registered Member

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    @avatar Adguard DNS is blocking Windows Update on Windows 10 Anniversary Update, specific to Insiders on Fast ring. I have not yet had a chance to start some logging to determine the specific IP or domain, but if you need my IP or something to help narrow it down, I'm happy to help.

    Essentially, in Windows 10 Anniversary Update within the Settings App - Windows Insider Program section - the user has a choice between Release Preview ring, Slow ring, and Fast ring. Release Preview ring and Slow ring allow me to successfully check Windows Update. However, when choosing Fast ring, Adguard DNS blocks the checking of Windows Update servers and therefore the update check fails. Choosing between those 3 rings essentially just makes one minor modification within the registry and that is where Windows Update looks first to determine flighting ring prior to checking for updates through Windows Update. Let me know if there is anything that I can do to help you rule this out to add to exceptions. If I have time to enable some sort of logging or check existing logs, I will try to figure out which domain is being blocked.
     
  5. OQTW

    OQTW Registered Member

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    Sometimes there is a delay, where the "Resolving Host" message appears down at the bottom left of Chrome, after switching to Adguard DNS. But the slight delay is worth it to have the ads blocked at the DNS level.

    I have gotten a few unreachable web pages come up, so what I do is copy the link to the clipboard and then load that page on a second computer that does not have the Adguard DNS settings.

    I really feel if the Adguard company could offer a fast, reliable, stable, and successful ad blocking scenario at the DNS level, especially one that Websites cannot block the way they can block the browser plugins, countless people would switch to it. And if a Pro version offered great value, people would pay a reasonable annual fee.

    Good luck!
     
  6. WildByDesign

    WildByDesign Registered Member

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    @OQTW I agree with what you've said 100%, particularly that myself and many others would be willing to pay for a Pro version as well as long as it has additional features such as categories, exceptions, among other things. Adguard is definitely the team to do it. First, though, they need to continue forward with this beta phase and smooth out any problems and increase performance. I am definitely willing to help beta test their DNS and help populate their resolvers with plenty of domain names.

    Welcome to Wilders forums, by the way. :thumb:
     
  7. Fad

    Fad Registered Member

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    (EDIT: I totally missed Tairiku`s post #16 re: Google)

    Are the Google locations logging our DNS requests and other info ?

    I have stopped testing AG dns until further info appears.
     
    Last edited: Jul 30, 2016
  8. TairikuOkami

    TairikuOkami Registered Member

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    Could you maybe check it out as well please, thus far only I have reported it.

    You can use https://ipleak.net and https://www.browserleaks.com/whois
     
  9. Fad

    Fad Registered Member

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    I did check originally and it basically said exactly the same as your post. (I shouldn`t have deleted the content in hindsight so will double check again to be sure)

    I was seeing at Google Finland servers (Lappeenranta 74.xx.xx.xx)

    Most were USA Level3 and also one or two German Level3 addresses as well. (Frankfurt and Hessen)

    They did not appear at each and every repeated test I tried - but they did appear more often than not.

    Retest: 31 July
    https://s32.postimg.org/479alsnpx/2016_07_31_100742.png
     
    Last edited: Jul 31, 2016
  10. TairikuOkami

    TairikuOkami Registered Member

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    Thanks, at least I know, it is not a problem with my computer. ;)
     
  11. WildByDesign

    WildByDesign Registered Member

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    After having a handful of iOS apps fail to load and/or crash over the past few days, I've had no choice but to back out of the Adguard DNS testing for the time being. Happy wife, happy life... as they say!

    Sadly, that also shows the reliance of nefarious trackers / ad servers used by many smart phone apps these days. It is quite a sad reality these days, the amount of tracking and such that the majority of users allow and accept these days. But at the same time, these app developers give us little choice.

    I've had quite a bit of experience working with DNS servers over the years, including running BIND and others. So I know how difficult it can be to block ad servers and trackers without causing breakage on web sites or smartphone apps. I can only assume that Adguard DNS is going to have to employ some sort of exceptions component and whitelisting of certain domains and that is going to grow significantly over time.
     
  12. pegas

    pegas Registered Member

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    In the spirit of Adguard philosophy, i.e. being a pioneer of ad blocking, Adguard has launched beta testing of Adguard PRO for iOS. It is the first application that can filter the whole internet traffic on an iOS device.

    More to learn: https://forum.adguard.com/index.php?threads/adguard-pro-for-ios-v1-0-beta.12327/
    How it works: https://blog.adguard.com/en/adguard-news/adguard-dns-beta.html
    How to become a tester: https://forum.adguard.com/index.php?threads/adguard-for-ios-beta-test.6344/

    Adguard developer adds ... Passing AppStore review will mean that we can go further and do the full-scaled on-device filtering as well.

    Stay tuned!
     
    Last edited: Aug 1, 2016
  13. max2

    max2 Registered Member

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    Actually your wrong there. Adblock was the first application on iOS to do this. Then again maybe I am wrong.

    https://www.adblockios.com/
     
  14. max2

    max2 Registered Member

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    That why I wish Ad Muncher was still being actively developed and around. It sucks not having a lot of competition. Jeff is a wizard on not breaking pages and making filters!
     
  15. pegas

    pegas Registered Member

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    No problem being wrong, you or me, either way AG PRO is gonna be a killer :)
     
  16. max2

    max2 Registered Member

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    I agree!
     
  17. max2

    max2 Registered Member

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    Right now I find Adguard Pro beta on iOS slower than Adblock but then again it is a beta.
     
  18. avatar

    avatar Developer

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    Could you please tell me which exact apps/webpages were broken?
     
  19. max2

    max2 Registered Member

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    Avatar btw video ads in NBC iOS app are not blocked when watching streaming video within the app.
     
  20. max2

    max2 Registered Member

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    This is with Adguard Pro that is.
     
  21. pegas

    pegas Registered Member

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    Yes, it's beta with all pros and cons. :)

    If I'm correct Adblock works quite differently than AG. While Adblock uses dummy VPN AG uses their own DNS servers. I guess AG solution is far better, imo.
     
  22. avatar

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  23. max2

    max2 Registered Member

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    Yes but Adblock doesn't have the VPN icon appearing on the top left hand corner all the time.

    Hopefully there a jailbreak tweak to turn it off with the VPN still being on and Adguard Pro still works with a jailbreak.
     
  24. avatar

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    It uses a VPN profile with blocked hosts redirected to a "blackhole".

    AG in turn does not create a VPN profile, instead it creates a local VPN which redirects DNS requests to AG DNS servers. It gives us more control over what is blocked. For instance, you can see what is being blocked in the "filtering log".

    However, we cannot yet control it on the per-app basis (which could be very useful for solving app conflicts).
     
  25. max2

    max2 Registered Member

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    Thanks makes sense.

    Anyway to disable the VPN thing that appears on my iPad and iPhone on the top left hand corner when Adguard Pro is enabled ?
     
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