I'm visiting my parents who just switched to a new WiFi provider, and my Lenovo Idea Pad 5 running Windows 11 connects fine. However, I can only access my email accounts and perform searches on Google and Bing. When I try to visit any website from the search results or even saved bookmarks, I get an error message about the site not being reachable. I've already tried restarting my laptop, unplugging the WiFi, toggling airplane mode, checking for blocked apps in Windows Defender, and switching browsers. The WiFi works perfectly for other devices, so I'm at a loss. What can I do to resolve this issue? I'll be visiting often and need reliable access for work. I also ran the Windows network diagnostics, but it returned nothing helpful.
5 Answers
Sounds like it could be some sort of filtering issue, like parental controls might be blocking access to certain sites on your laptop. Have your parents checked if their ISP has any content filtering settings enabled? A VPN might be a quick workaround to see if that’s the issue. It’s strange your brother can access the same sites though.
This could be an issue with your ISP automatically applying content filtering which is often set as default. It can block a significant number of harmless sites. Try getting in touch with your parents' ISP to clarify any settings they might have enabled.
You might want to try changing your DNS settings. Sometimes, the default DNS provided by your ISP doesn't play nicely with Windows. Switch to Google DNS by going to Control Panel > Network and Sharing Center > Change adapter settings, then right-click your Wi-Fi, select Properties, and then Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4). Set your Preferred DNS to 8.8.8.8 and Alternate DNS to 8.8.4.4. After applying the changes, restart your browser and see if that solves the problem.
I tried changing the DNS, but unfortunately, it didn’t help. I got errors when I ran some of the commands in Step 2 of your suggestions. Any other ideas?
Have you considered installing Cloudflare Warp or using Tor? If your parents have something filtering your device, those might help clear up the restrictions preventing access.
You should check your DNS settings to see if you accidentally set something that's unique to your internet connection. Sometimes, the addresses for sites might be cached, allowing them to work on your device while others are blocked.
I was thinking the same about parental controls. I tried a VPN, but it didn’t let me access the sites either. Confusing situation!