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Problems connecting to websites...

Ambrosia7177

Ambrosia7177

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Feb 6, 2016
2,078
396
Hello. I broke down earlier this month and got a mobile plan for my iPhone. It's from AT&T and comes with a personal hotspot which I use to replace my old dedicated AT&T hotspot.

It seems to be a common occurrence where I am connected to my iPhone hotspot on my Retina MBP, and my VPN is turned offl, and I cannot surf anywhere - especially with Chrome and Google.

Sometimes I get messages about there not being a "secure conenction".

WTF? My iPhone's personal hotspot should be way more secure than my hotel's Wi-Fi, so what gives?

If I conncet to my hotel's Wi-Fi and fire up my VPN, I have no issues surfing.

Right now I opened Chrome, it defaults to Google, I typed in "Twitter", and I get a "This site can't be reached" page.

What is going on??
 
Since details here are pretty sparse I’m going to guess that your unidentified VPN service is not properly returning DNS to its prior configuration when you disconnect from it.

Some people here might be able to provide more information but the following would be helpful

  • Exact model of Mac
  • Exact version of macOS
  • name and version of VPN software if any
  • VPN service
If your VPN service has multiple servers you should try another.
 
Erehy Dobon said:
Since details here are pretty sparse I’m going to guess that your unidentified VPN service is not properly returning DNS to its prior configuration when you disconnect from it.

Some people here might be able to provide more information but the following would be helpful

  • Exact model of Mac
  • Exact version of macOS
  • name and version of VPN software if any
  • VPN service
If your VPN service has multiple servers you should try another.
Click to expand...

I have a 2105 Retina MBP with macOS Sierra.

My VPN is turned off, so that shouldn't be part of the equation.

And I am able to surf around just fine in Firefox, so that seems to rule out DNS...

But I need Chrome working since that is how I conenct to Twitter, since Twitter seems to get pissy if you conenct from different IPs or different browsers, or if you breath while logging in... :rolleyes:
 
You’re right, if Firefox can surf the ’net then the problem isn’t DNS but likely Chrome.

Log into a different account and fire up Chrome.
 
Erehy Dobon said:
You’re right, if Firefox can surf the ’net then the problem isn’t DNS but likely Chrome.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't be quite so sure, Firefox uses its own DNS encryption scheme for most people who live in the US, whereas IIRC Chrome (and Safari) do not.
 
Wowfunhappy said:
I wouldn't be quite so sure, Firefox uses its own DNS encryption scheme for most people who live in the US, whereas IIRC Chrome (and Safari) do not.
Click to expand...

Not sure what that means...

I use servers.opennicproject.org for my DNS, but if there was a DNS problem it would impact all browsers.
 
Texas_Toast said:
I use servers.opennicproject.org for my DNS, but if there was a DNS problem it would impact all browsers.
Click to expand...

Nope, it wouldn't, that's just it! Firefox ignores the OS's DNS for most users in the US, it has its own system.

Firefox DNS-over-HTTPS | Firefox Help

DoH improves privacy by hiding domain name lookups from anyone lurking on public Wi-Fi, your ISP or others on your local network. Learn more.
support.mozilla.org support.mozilla.org

The idea in theory is to prevent ISPs from snooping on your web history.
 
I just went into Safari - which I never use, and DickDuckGo loads.

I typed in Google, and it came up in the results.

Then I clicked on the link to Google, and I see...
Safari Can't Open the Page

Safari can't open the page "https://www.bing.com/aclick=?id=....
Click to expand...


What's up with that?

Come to think of it, I don't think my Safari has worked in ages...
 
Texas_Toast said:
I'm not logged into Chrome, and I am not logged into Google.
Click to expand...
Irrelevant.

Log into another user account on your Mac not the browser. Basic Internet surfing does not requiring logging into a browser’s sync service.

More and more this appears to be something specific to Google Chrome in your Mac user account.
 
Fishrrman said:
OP wrote:
"But I need Chrome"

Hmmmm....
Lemmmeeeesseee here....

You're one of the most "security conscious" posters in this forum...
and yet...
You use Chrome ...? o_O
Click to expand...

So here's the deal...

Point #1:
I have Firefox so locked down on my rMBP that it is useless whenever surf to new websites.

And I struggle with how much uMatrix and NoScript protect me on new websites - along with lots of other add-ons - because I have to "allow" one hundred things to get the damn pages to load and work?!

For instance, you need to allow Google on nearly every website to get things to work?!

So when I am in a hurry or simply exhausted by all of this security stuff, I run to Chrome for a pain-free "quicky"...

I don't like it, but if I add that same website to Firefox, I often have to allow so much stuff it probably spies on me as much as Chrome does, you know?!


Point #2:
I spend about 3 hours a night reasearching things in the news every night. And I need a way to get a "pixel-perfect" version of the web pages that I read PLUS workable links.

Back in the good ol days of the Internet, I'd just go to File > Save As in my browser, and I'd have a WYSIWYG page with workable links all in one html file on my hard-drive. (Life was good!) 👍

Fast-forward 20+ years and the Internet is fubared in every way.

So now to get the same thing, I have a PHP script I wrote which "scrapes" web pages and gives me a single HTML file that has workable links, but which often does not give me a WYSIWYG.

Pay attention here...

Next I run Chrome's "Full Page Screen Capture" add-on which for the most part gives me a WYSIWYG PDF file that is easy to read, but the problem is that it is not a "real" PDF, but a *image* PDF, so none of the links work?!

So then I run a one last add-on in Chrome called "Just Read" that *usually* gove me a web page with all workable links, and sometimes gives me all of the images, but the WYSIYG part is 50/50.


<< Waits for sarcastic comments... >>

<< Waits for uninformed comments... >>


Hint: If there was an easier way to do all of this in Firefox, I would have done it YEARS ago, but there isn't an easier way. And as a "researcher", I need a copy of every artcile I research that IS a perfect WYSIWYG and has all the content and has workable links, and has all web page comments which can only be captured with Chrome's "Full Page Screen Capture".

So that is why I (unfortunately) use Chrome...

If some genius here thinks they have a better way, let me know and I'll start a new thread and you all can help me solve this hell of another problem.


Now, back on topic...
 
Okay, now that we are back on topic...

Last night, I picked up on one of my many Mac projects, and started downing updated macOS versions as per my other thread.

I won't use my hotel's unportected Wi-Fi for obvious security reasons. And I don't even feel comfortable using my VPN over the hotel's Wi-Fi - not necessarily logcal, but hey!

So I fired up my iPhone and personal hot spot - this time using a USB cable to tether - and when I went to the links provided in my other thread to the App Store, I could not connect?!

And as mentioned in my OP, it seems like most places I try to surf using my iPhones personal hotspot fail.

This includes, Google, Apple's App Store, NYTimes.com, Wikipedia.org, etc.

However, if I fire up my VPN, i.e. IVPN, then things work fine?!

So why does that matter?

Because while I surf the Internet 99% of the time with my IVPN turned ON, there are a few cases where I need to turn OFF my VPN, including...

- Sometimes when I make VoIP calls and IVPN is sluggish

- When creating a NEW account (e.g. Twitter)

- Logging into my new (secondary) twitter account, since it seems that Twitter likes to lock people out of their accounts who use VPNs?!


So what in the flip is going on with my iPhne's new mobile plan with personal hot spot from AT&T? :mad: :mad: :mad:


Here is what I am wondering...


Being a privacy and security nut, I am mindful that DNS is one of the most basic ways that people's privacy (and security) gets violated.

As such, all of my MBPs have there DNS pointing to servers from servers.opennicproject.org that are: a.) Outside of the "14 eyes", and b.) proclaim to do "No logging".

Even though all of my MBP's have custom DNS settings, is that somehow getting overridden/negated because I am connecting to the hotspot on my iPhone??


Maybe I am getting stuck with AT&T's DNS servers because I am conencting to the Internet via my iPhone??


I did some research last night, and found an obscure way to supposedly set the DNS on your iPhone, but it appears to only apply to when you are connecting to OTHER Wi-Fi connections (e.g. Panera, McDonalds, my hotel)...


So what do all of you experts think about my issues on this topic??? :-/
 
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