All of us have for once encountered this error on our chrome browser: This Site Can’t be Reached. It is the most commonly found error on the browser by the users when they browse one or the other sites.
Primarily, there are two reasons for it. Firstly, your internet connection may be down or might have glitches that lead to this error. Secondly, the website may be down.
But, there could be other reasons as well that cause the This Site Can’t Be Reached error in Chrome. For e.g. there may be problems with your Chrome settings, DNS settings, or Network Adapter Driver.
In this article, we will explore numerous methods to fix the “This site can’t be reached” error in Chrome. These are very effective methods that will readily resolve this issue and let you access the website you wish to. We have discussed all the methods in detailed and simple steps that will guide you to fix the issue easily.
# Method 1: Change your IPv4 DNS address
1st Step: Go to the network icon displayed in your Task Bar and right click on it. Then, click on “Open Network and sharing center”.
2nd Step: Now, click on your network connections and then click on “Properties”.
3rd Step: Once Properties are opened double-click on Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4).
4th Step: Enter 8.8.8.8 as your preferred DNS server address and 8.8.4.4 as your alternate DNS server address.
5th Step: Click on “Validate settings” and then click OK.
6th Step: Go to the website and see whether it is working or not.
# Method 2: Reset TCP/IP
1st Step: Type cmd in the search box.
2nd Step: Now, right click on the Command Prompt and select “Run as administrator”.
3rd Step: Your user account control will ask your permission to proceed further so click Yes when prompted.
4th Step: Now, type the following commands and press Enter after each command.
ipconfig /release
ipconfigb /all
ipconfig /flushdns
ipconfig /renew
netsh int ip set dns
netsh Winsock reset
5th Step: Lastly, reboot your Windows. Check if the website is working.
# Method 3: Changing maximum allowed TLS version
1st Step: Go to your Google Chrome web browser and type the following in the address bar.
“chrome://flags”
2nd Step: Once you enter this, scroll down to the drop down option stating “Maximum TLS version-enabled”.
3rd Step: Now, select the version 1.3 and restart your browser. You do not have to press the save button because the new settings are automatically saved.
4th Step: Open the web page that was showing you the error. The error will no longer be there and you will be able to access the site easily.
# Method 4: Reinstall Chrome
1st Step: Type in the search box and click on Apps and Features.
2nd Step: Now, click on Google Chrome and uninstall it.
3rd Step: You can download a new Chrome browser from the official website for the same.
4th Step: Now go to your website on the newly installed Chrome browser and check if the website works.
# Method 5: Allow DNS Prefetching to Fix This Site Can’t Be Reached Error
1st Step: There are 3 dots on the Address Bar. Go here and click it to open the Chrome menu.
2nd Step: Select the “Settings” option from the menu.
3rd Step: Once you have opened the Settings page, click on the Advanced option which is displayed at the bottom. This will take you to the Advanced Chrome Settings.
4th Step: Here, head to the Privacy section and select the Use a prediction service to load pages more quickly option. This will enables DNS Prefetching on Chrome and will probably fix the issue.
5th Step: If you are unable to find the “Use a prediction service to load pages more quickly” option, then update your Chrome to its latest version.
# Method 6: Update your network adapter driver
This error may also be caused due to a corrupt or wrong network adaptor driver running on your PC. Therefore, you can easily fix this issue simply by updating your network adaptor driver.
You can do this in two ways and have the right network adaptor card for your computer.
- Manual driver update: This can be done by directly going to the manufacturer’s website. Look for the updated or the most recent version of your network adapter. Make sure that you choose the driver that is compatible with your Windows versions.
- Automatic driver update: If the above method fails or you are unable to do it due to any reason, then you can do it with the help of Driver Easy. Driver Easy automatically recognize your system and monitor the correct driver along the lines of your network adapter as well as your Windows version. The right network adaptor will be automatically downloaded on your device.
Follow these steps carefully and update the Network Adapter Driver.
1st Step: Press Windows + X keys and the following list will be opened on your screen.
2nd Step: From here, click on Device Manager.
3rd Step: Under Device Manager, go to network adapters option and expand it. There will be a list of drivers from where you have to select the LAN or Wireless internet driver depending on your use. Now, Right click on it and Update driver software.
4th Step: A new window will be opened up in front of you. Here click on Search automatically for updated driver software.
5th Step: Your PC scrutinize the newer version of the driver. You have to follow the instructions given to update the network adapter driver. If it notifies that you already have the latest version of the driver, then that means that your driver is updated one.
6th Step: Once you have completed the update process restart your PC. Go to the website and check if it is still showing the error.
# Method 7: Disabling Experimental QUIC Protocol in Chrome
The method entails disabling the flag named Experimental QUIC Protocol to try and fix the issue.
1st Step: Go to the address bar of your Chrome browser and type the following and press Enter.
chrome://flags/
2nd Step: Once you type the aforementioned, you will see a page of options displayed on your screen. Now, press Ctrl + F to go to Find box.
3rd Step: In the Find Box, type Experimental QUIC protocol to find it. This will be set as default in the drop-down menu. You have to change it to Disabled.
4th Step: Now, restart your Chrome and check the site again.
# Method 8: Restart DNS Client Service
Restarting DNS Client Service is one of the easiest methods to solve the error of “This Site Can’t Be Reached Chrome error.” You can restart your DNS client service by following the steps mentioned below.
1st Step: Press Windows + R together and open the Run box.
Open the Run box by pressing Windows + R keys together. Now, in the Run box, type the following command and hit enter.
2nd Step: A list of Services will be opened on your screen. From here you have to select DNS Client.
3rd Step: You will find the Restart the service option on the left side of the window. Click it.
4th Step: Once the DNS client service starts, go to the website and check for the error.
# Method 9: Reset Chrome Settings
Resetting your Chrome settings is also another easy method to resolve this error. Just follow the steps mentioned below and you are done!
1st Step: Go to the address bar in your Chrome browser and type chrome://flags/ and press Enter.
2nd Step: When you have opened the Flags page, you will find the Reset to the default option. Click on it to reset all Chrome settings.
3rd Step: Go to the website and check if you have fixed the error.
How to fix “This Site Can’t be Reached” Error in Android
If you are using Chrome browser in your smartphones, then this error may arise there too. Android has abstract DNS services. Therefore, you can change the DNS serve under your phone settings or you can install any app that changes the DNS server to fix the issue.
You could also follow the methods mentioned below to solve “This site can’t be reached” error in Google Chrome.
# Method 1: Clearing App Data
When you are trying to get access to the erroneous website, there might be changes in the DNS server. In this situation, the Chrome browser will try to open the old IP address as that stored in DNS cache.
To invalidate this DNS cache, you need to get rid of Google Chrome’s App Data and App Cache. To do this, follow these steps:
- Go to Settings in your phone and open Apps.
- Scroll down to select Google Chrome.
- Select Storage and click on Clear Cache and Clear Data.
# Method 2: Clear Browser Data
You must know that by clearing the browsing data of Google Chrome, you get resolve the “This site can’t be reached” error. It is a very simple method. Follow these steps.
- You will see three vertical dots on your browser. Tap on it and go to history.
- Select all the options displayed under the Basic and Advanced Tabs and then clear all the data.
# Other Methods
- You may restart your browser and check if the error has been fixed.
- Reboot your phone and go to the website again.
How to fix “This Site Can’t be Reached” Error on Mac
Though Mac has its own default browser which is Safari and many users use this browser only. However, a large number of Mac users also use Google Chrome as their primary web browser. Therefore, we can fix the issue by changing the DNS servers in Mac too just like Windows. You can follow either of the two methods listed below and fix this error.
# Method 1: Change DNS
1st Step: Select Network under System Preferences.
2nd Step: Then, click on Advanced option under your Wi-Fi connection tab and then switch to DNS.
3rd Step: You will see a plus icon. Click on it and change your DNS servers to either Google DNS or Open DNS.
# Method 2: Change TCP/IP4
If the above method fails to fix the error, you can try changing the TCP/IP4 in Mac. This is very easy. Just follow these steps.
- Go to System Preferences and select Network.
- Click on Advanced under Wi-Fi connection tab.
- From here, you have to select TCP/IP and then choose “Using DHCP“.
- If there are any entries in the DNS tab, delete all of them.
- Under the TCP/IP Tan, you will find the option “Renew DHCP Lease”. Click on it.
- Lastly, restart your Mac and check for the error on the website.
Conclusion
We have mentioned all the important methods to resolve This site cannot be reached the error. You can follow different steps and check what problem is causing this error on your browser.
But, in many cases, the error occurs because the Chrome browser is not updated. Therefore, users should make sure that they have updated the browser to the latest version and then try to access the website.
If this also fails to fix the issue, you can explore any of the above methods and check the relevant website. If still its not resolved you can ask in google chrome forum.
You Might Also Be Interested In:
