The Windows 10 workstation is missing DNS after changing from the built-in NIC to a PCI NIC.
The Windows 10 workstation is missing DNS after changing from the built-in NIC to a PCI NIC.
Have you explored the Win10 repair procedure?
What about switching your DNS server manually to 1.1.1.1 or 9.9.9.9?
See: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/e6mL6_FCbeo
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Alternatively, if you prefer, you can attempt to operate a local Technitium DNS server for Windows.
https://technitium.com/dns/
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_q...itium+DNS+
You may need to download it using Linux, though, depending on your needs.
The PCI NIC is configured automatically for those parameters.
I attempted to fix things by changing the DNS servers myself, but unfortunately I ran out of options. It seems I’ll need to reinstall.
Just to summarize for anyone with suggestions before I try reinstalling:
The previous onboard NIC had occasional connectivity issues, apparently because it was ten years old. The new NIC is connected via the motherboard's PCI port. The Asus Z97K board itself is in decent shape aside from its age. This issue only occurs during higher-level DNS lookups in a Windows setup. The new network card performed flawlessly for two weeks. Recently, I encountered a popup indicating my assigned IP address was already in use by another interface, so I changed the static IP on the router to match the MAC address of the new NIC. Ping works with any IP address, whether it's WAN or LAN. nslookup functions with any domain name and DNS server. Tracert remains stuck indefinitely on all WAN hosts. Resolve-DnsName times out for every domain, though it becomes slower if I use the -Server argument. The Windows Event Viewer logs a message saying "Name resolution for the [some address] timed out after none of the configured DNS servers responded." WAN IP requests are successful. For instance, adding this line to the hosts file:
# C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts
199.232.192.193 imgur.com
allows me to visit Imgur in my browser and see the page load correctly, including the title updating in the browser's title bar. All other devices on the LAN are functioning properly, which suggests the problem isn't with the router. DNS queries work when running Ubuntu from a flash drive on the same machine, indicating no hardware issues.
I resolved it by opening my VPN client, setting up a connection, then disconnecting and leaving the software. The anxiety of having to reinstall pushed me into another intense session on network analysis, which unexpectedly succeeded. My AT&T router had a debug panel that revealed NAT traffic, and after narrowing it down to a specific workstation—10.2.0.1—I found it linked to my VPN service, Proton. I suspected Proton was altering Windows' DNS settings to interfere with its operations. I doubted my VPN was the culprit since I relied on it only for Split Tunneling in Include mode, where just one app routes traffic securely while the rest remains exposed. Yet, after adjusting the IP allocation settings, all DNS requests reached a level that could be silently redirected. I believe the issue was resolved because switching in and out of the VPN triggered Proton to clean up what it had started, even though I didn’t notice a crash at that moment. The day was hectic, so I might have overlooked the alert. Grateful to all who helped. Your advice would have been invaluable—I wouldn’t have considered checking the router if @Ralston18 hadn’t nudged me toward this investigation. Happy holidays, and enjoy some time outdoors for a few weeks.
I really dislike vpn software clients. I had to reinstall Windows just to get one to uninstall. Partly my responsibility since I was trying out various VPNs and didn’t fully delete one before installing the next.
Now I use all my VPN on a router or another dedicated VPN PC.
I think the best choice if you have to run a client on Windows is to use the OpenVPN version. It’s a bit of work because you need to set it up manually... just like with a router... but at least you understand every setting.
Any VPN provider that forces you to install their client would probably be doing something questionable.
It seems that ProtonVPN does not always establish a virtual adapter permanently; instead, it generates a WireGuard or OpenVPN adapter dynamically based on the protocol you select or have Proton choose automatically. The ProtonVPN adapter for WireGuard/OpenVPN remains active while connected but vanishes when disconnected.