Why can I PING an IP, but not browse websites?

Question

The lights on my router as well as the connection status displayed by my router states that I am currently connected to the internet, yet I am unable to browse any sites or send or receive any emails.

I have run a ping test to a known IP address on the internet, and I do get a successful reply.  But when I use my browser to try and view any websites, it states that the website is unavailable.  My mails are also not sending or receiving.

Answer 1

The issue you described is most likely a DNS resolution issue.  Your router is connected to the internet and is allowing the transmission of data, but is unable to translate the website addresses entered into the browser into the IP addresses used by the computer to retrieve and display the information on the site itself. (eg.  www,google.co.za - translates to - 74.125.24.94).

The most likely solution for this would be to manually assign the Afrihost DNS settings or alternative global DNS settings into the router or personal network connection settings.

1.  Log into the router and enter the following DNS settings into the settings for your ADSL internet settings:

Afrihost DNS Settings
 >  Primary DNS:  196.7.7.7
 >  Secondary DNS:  196.7.8.9

Google (Global) DNS Settings
 >  Primary DNS:  8.8.8.8
 >  Secondary DNS:  8.8.4.4

2.  These settings can also be manually entered into the IPv4 DNS settings for your computer's local network connection settings.  The location of these settings varies between Operating Systems and device manufacturers.

Manually forcing the use of the above details shoud resolve the issue.