Start Stop option of DNS Client Service is greyed out in Service manager Fix

DNS Client Service is one of the most important services for getting access to internet on your Windows system. The service caches the queries of the servers you frequently visit and is also responsible for the DNS resolution of these servers. The Windows OS allows you to start and stop the service as per your wish through the Service manager.

However, sometimes users may find that the Start and Stop options in the right-click menu is grayed out preventing them to enable or disable the service.

Services Name Dns Client Right Click Stop

Fortunately, there are a couple of ways you can enable the DNS Client service if grayed out in your Windows 10 PC. Let’s see how.

 

Method 1: Using the Registry Editor

 



Before you proceed to make any changes to the Registry Editor, make sure that you create a backup of the registry editor settings, so that, in case of any data loss, you can recover it easily.

 

Step 1: Press Win + R shortcut keys together on your keyboard to open the Run command.

 

Step 2: Now, type regedit in the Run command search box and press OK to open Registry Editor.

 

Win + R Run Command Regedit Ok

 

Step 3: In the Registry Editor window, navigate to the below path:

 

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\Dnscache

 

Go to the right side of the pane, look for Start DWORD and double-click on it.

 

Registry Editor Navigate To Path Dnscache Start Double Click

 

Step 4: It will open the Edit DWORD (32-bit) Value dialogue box. Go to the Value data field and set it to 4.

Press OK to save the changes and exit.

 

Edit Dword (32 Bit) Value Value Data 4 Ok

 

*Note – This will disable the DNS Client Service. If you want to enable it, then set the Value data field to 3 instead.

Now, exit the Registry Editor and follow the process as shown in “How to stop the DNS Client Service” above to enable it back again. Simply go to the Service manager window, right-click on DNS Client and select Start.

 

Method 2: By Enabling the DNS Client Using System Configuration

 

Step 1: Press Win + X keys together on your keyboard and select Run.

Step 2: It opens the Run command. Now, type msconfig in the search field and hit Enter.

 

Run Command Search Field Type Msconfig Enter

 

Step 3: In the System Configuration window, go to the Services tab and check the box next to DNS Client from the list.

Press Apply and then OK to save changes and exit.

 

System Configuration Services Dns Client Check Apply Ok

 

This will enable the DNS client service. If you want to disable the service, simply uncheck the box next to it.

 

Method 3: Using the Command Prompt

 

Step 1: Right-click on Start and select Run to open the Run command.

 



Desktop Start Right Click Run

 

Step 2: In the Run command window, write cmd and press Ctrl + Shift + Enter keys together on your keyboard to open the Command Prompt window in admin mode.

 

Run Command Search Cmd Enter

 

Step 3: Copy and paste the below commands in the Command Prompt (admin) window one after another and press Enter after each command:

 

net stop dnscache

net start dnscache

 

While the first command will force the DNS client service to stop if it’s enabled, the second command will start the DNS client service if it’s disabled.