Still experimenting to improve the ROCK performance. I was trying to change the DNS server, and just realized I need to change the DNS server on ROCK, not on my remote!
I live in a compound and all devices sit under a central router (so all IP addresses are under the subnet like 10.212.xx.xx). I go on ROCK control page on the web browser, but I cannot edit the DNS server. Should I set it up on Static IP setup? Does the Static IP setting override the DHCP?
If using DHCP, the device gets all this info from the router (IP, Gateway, Netmask, DNS).
So yes, if you want to set up the DNS on the ROCK, you need to switch from DHCP to Static. I suppose that you then need to enter all 4 pieces of information, not just the DNS. I don’t know how well this works with your compound router if you have to set a static IP for ROCK. You would need to obtain a static IP from the router’s admin that is outside of the router’s DHCP range.
Thanks. I just did it anyway, on Static IP typed in the other three the same, and just put 8.8.8.8 in DNS server. Does this override the DHCP settings (if the Static IP tab is clicked in)? Anyway, it seems working, although it’s not clear if this makes it any faster. I will try it for a while.
“Override” is not quite the correct word, but the result is what you want. If it is set to DHCP, then it it uses the settings it receives by DHCP. If it is set to Static, then it uses the settings you enter.
There’s probably no need to change the DNS on ROCK. On my network I’ve observed Roon ignores the DHCP assigned DNS and queries 1.0.0.1 and 8.8.8.8 instead.
Yes, the ROCK web interface doesn’t make it clear which setting is used, except that one of the two tabs (DHCP vs. Static IP) looks shaded (pushed in). I will not be able to confirm if my ROCK server is actually pulling info from 8.8.8.8. So far it seems to make little difference…
@Nepherte How do you know which DNS server is being used?
That’s interesting 
Trust me, you don’t want to go there. I capture the actual DNS network packets destined for servers other than my own.
It helps if the automatic DNS that is provided by the ISP is poor (and there are indeed cases like this on the forum), but if the automatic DNS is reasonable then it doesn’t necessarily make much noticeable difference.
The one that is pushed in is the one that is being used.
The shading means that that is the selected setting.
I never spent time with Wireshark on my network, so it’s interesting that you found this. It would maybe solve many DNS problems if Roon OS used Cloudflare/Google by default whatever the DHCP says
That is exactly what RoonServer on ROCK is already doing. For the record, I’m against this It uses both 1.0.0.1 and 8.8.8.8
You could, but you probably shouldn’t
And this is one of the many reasons why.
Yeah I understood that this is what you were saying. Must be a new thing?
It’s questionable in a way if it ignores the local admin’s DNS settings. But then, it’s an appliance and connects to various servers anyway. If Roon found that a significant number of problems are caused by poor DNS, I guess I can understand it.
You may run into problems with this. By using the same IP address in the Static settings as the DHCP server in your compound has given out, you will experience issues if the DHCP server hands out that IP address to another device used elsewhere in the compound… IP addresses get renewed on a regular basis by DHCP servers, so the next time it is renewed, it may get handed out to another device.
Who administers the DHCP server in your compound? You should contact them and either ask them to reserve the address currently used by your ROCK/NUC to this device or ask them what the range of addresses is that is used by the DHCP server. Then set the Static IP address to something that falls outside of the server range, but that is in the same subnet…
It’s practically not a problem since the DHCP IP doesn’t change so long as I don’t turn the machine off for over a week (which I never do). This same IP has been used for many years. If it changes, for any reason, I will then reset the static setting.
In any case, it is working as I described. But then if ROCK already pulls from 1.0.0.1 and 8.8.8.8, it won’t make much difference anyway.
The annoying problem I have is sometimes (randomly) clicking an artist and album takes 10-20 seconds or longer to load the information. Sometimes it takes a long time to play a track. This happens more often with streaming contents, so now I suspect that it’s related to DNS. I’ve posted this issue many times on Roon support page over the past years, but still never got to the bottom of it.
It might become a problem. Your ROCK will no longer request an IP address from the DHCP server. The IP address lease will expire and that DHCP server will issue it to another device on the network. Suddenly you have 2 devices with the same IP address… Bad things will happen, this is just one possible and likely scenario.
When using DHCP, RoonOS will initiate lease renewal. Now that you have Static settings, the DHCP server won’t be contacted, so the IP address lease will expire, and it will be handed out to a new device that joins the network and asks for an IP address.
DHCP Lease Time - What is it and How does it work? — LazyAdmin