If you've been online long enough then you’ve more than likely heard the infamous expression, "it's always DNS." This, of course, refers to the slowdowns, anomalies, and outages that occur when the Air Traffic Control system of the Internet, aka The Domain Name System, has a bad day.
You see, DNS is essential to the efficient functioning of the World Wide Web as we know it. Much like the phone books of old, it ensures that all the vital parts of the web are able to find each other and work in sync.
What is DNS and Why Does it Matter?
Simply put, DNS is a system of decentralized servers known as Resolvers. These Resolvers act as the entry points into the wider network of Name Servers. Name Servers, in turn, keep track of all the various IP addresses on the web that lead to the websites and services that you and I access via the human-friendly format known as domain names. Google.com is perhaps the most widely known example of such a domain name.
Resolvers usually come in two different flavours: Public vs Premium (aka Free vs Paid). The vast majority of people online use the default Resolver assigned to them by their Internet Service Provider - often because they aren’t aware of what Resolvers are, let alone that they have a selection to choose from. Much like Public Transit vs Uber, both types of resolvers will certainly get the job done; the latter just happens to provide you with a lot more flexibility, convenience, and customizability.
Enter Control D
Now that you have a better understanding of DNS and the purpose it serves,
let's get into why you should consider using a custom DNS solution like Control D.
At the heart of Control D is a global network of strategically placed DNS Resolvers, which ensure low latency and high throughput no matter where you are on the planet. To this, we then add an equally well thought out array of local exit locations (proxies) that cover just about any place you can think of, with more being added frequently as we expand into the future.
That's just the cake, of course; for the icing, we provide you with a web-based interface to, ahem, control your DNS to your heart's content. While Customised DNS is by no means a new concept, we provide a turnkey solution for just about every use-case imaginable, right down to VPN-like abilities without the need for a VPN client. Though, if you are looking for that sort of thing, our sister service Windscribe is right this way.
On the entrepreneurial side of things, we are currently formulating business oriented solutions that will offer per-seat pricing and advanced business level functionality, all with the same level of conviction for value as our other services. If you have a commercial use-case in mind, or have a feature request along those lines, please give us a shout at hello@controld.com.
Free vs Some vs Full Control
For those of you who just need a reliable and trustworthy DNS Resolver without all the bells and whistles, you’ll be glad to know that we offer 6 different flavours at no charge whatsoever.
If however, you want more control, from Control D, then you’ll want to consider our paid options, Some Control, and Full Control. These are about as straightforward as they sound, but let's get into the nitty gritty and see which one is appropriate for what you need DNS to do for you.
Some Control
Consider this our Custom DNS starter kit, if you will. Don't let that description fool you however, as it still punches well above its weight class and then some.
For just $2 a month, Some Control can be your one-and-done productivity hack, your WiFi watchdog, or an internet nanny for your little ones and their devices. Up to 10 devices can be added under this plan.
You'll also get access to our entire library of curated blocklists ranging from Ads & Trackers, to Adult Content, to even IoT Telemetry. This is alongside a growing list of 300+ services that you can block or allow as you see fit, using our marvellous Scheduler.
(What is IoT Telemetry you ask? Well, let's just say that WiFi enabled devices in your home, such as your smart bulb for example, are shedding light on you in more ways than one.)
Furthermore, you can use our Custom Rules feature to fine-tune your DNS queries to the smallest detail. This feature works in conjunction with our Activity Log, which lets you privately monitor all the traffic originating from any device that is using your custom Control D resolver.
So whether it's blocking a particularly annoying source of ads on your favourite blog while allowing all others, or blocking your WiFi hogging VanLifer cousin's favourite All Terrain Horse Racing stream from Inner Mongolia, Custom Rules can get it done with just a few clicks!
Full Control
Our full-fat offering gives you everything you've just read about, plus the ability to proxy Custom Rules and Services through any of our 100+ locations. This allows you to access content you would otherwise be locked out of due to silly notions such as geography.
The benefit of enabling Geo-Unlocking through a DNS service is that it works with just about any use-case imaginable, since no app or client software is required. DNS redirection is built into even the most archaic network-enabled devices, and once assigned to Control D, our server-side smarts will do the heavy lifting for you.
For the Power Users among you, have a look at my colleague QA'izen's article *here* for a taste of what is possible with what we've already put in place. We pride ourselves in having our ear to the ground and always welcome feature requests and ideas from those of you out there putting pedal to the metal.
Suffice it to say, if you're just looking to jailbreak your fruit flavoured TV box out of its walled garden, or want to go all out and turn your toaster into a Pi-powered router with superpowers, Full Control has you covered.
We’re the Best - Let Us Know How We Can be Better
All said and done, we're quite convinced you'd be hard pressed to find anything among the competition that delivers what we do, even at double the cost. That being said, if you're curious about what we offer, but want to try it before you buy it, you can grab a free one month trial of our Full Control offering, with no credit card necessary.
We believe in an internet that delivers all of its promises without harvesting your secrets, and for less than the cost of a latte, you can have your privacy and stream it too. As a seamless service that can inhabit all your devices and provide you with a central point of control, we're just getting started.
Last, but certainly not least, our feedback portal is available to anyone who'd like to chime in on what they'd like to see us incorporate into our product in the future. So no matter how niche or bizarre your ideas may be, please do reach out to us, we'd love to hear from you!
