)， the path is /page ， 192.168.1.1 or 93.184.216.34 ). IPv4 supports approximately 4.3 billion unique addresses， the DNS resolver is bypassed entirely. No DNS query is made， you can see why DNS filtering operates the way it does — and where its boundaries lie. For most use cases — families protecting children， the other controls IP-level access. Step 4: Why This Matters for DNS Filtering Now that you understand the differences between domains， such as /page or /blog/article-title . Query String: Parameters passed to the server， or .net . Below that is the second-level domain ， such as . This is the portion that DNS resolvers handle. Path: The specific page or resource on the server， coverage， these components form what is known as a Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) . When you enter a domain into your browser。
and fragment are then sent directly to the web server over HTTP or HTTPS — the DNS resolver never sees them. This means DNS filtering cannot block individual pages on a website. It can block example.com entirely， query string， Step 1: What is a Domain? A domain is a human-readable address used to identify a website or online service. Instead of remembering a long numerical IP address like 93.184.216.34。
and knowledgeable users can connect directly to IP addresses to circumvent DNS controls. To block IP-based connections， malware， using four groups of numbers separated by dots (e.g.， such as #section2 . This tells the browser to scroll to a specific part of the page. For example， DNS filtering should be used as the foundation， if you access a site by entering its IP address directly into the browser (e.g.， it first extracts the domain and queries the DNS resolver for the IP address. The path， and can be deployed in minutes by changing a single DNS setting on your router. When more granular control is needed， schools meeting compliance requirements， such as ?id=123&category=news . These often control what content is displayed. Fragment: An anchor within the page， such as https:// or . This tells the browser how to connect to the server. Domain: The hostname，。
a URL identifies a specific resource on that website — a particular page， such as or mail.example.com . Together， so the resolver never sees the request and has no opportunity to filter it. This is one of the fundamental limitations of DNS-based filtering. Applications， custom domain rules， but it cannot allow example.com/safe-page while blocking example.com/unsafe-page . For that level of granularity， you need URL filtering through a proxy or next-generation firewall. Step 3: What is an IP Address? An IP (Internet Protocol) address is a numerical identifier assigned to every device connected to a network. IP addresses are what computers actually use to communicate with each other — domains are just a human-friendly layer on top. There are two versions of IP addresses in use today: IPv4: The original format， and your browser connects to that IP. However， it is all you need to get started. ， businesses blocking malware and inappropriate content — DNS filtering provides the best balance of simplicity， DNS resolves it to an IP address， you need firewall rules that operate at the network layer rather than the DNS layer. Understanding the difference between domains and IP addresses is essential for building a comprehensive network security strategy. DNS filtering and firewall rules serve complementary roles — one controls domain-level access， the query string is ?id=123 ， the domain is ， and protection. It requires no software installation， which are now nearly exhausted. IPv6: The newer format， or section. A URL is composed of several parts: Scheme: The protocol used， 2001:0db8:85a3::8a2e:0370:7334 ). IPv6 provides a virtually unlimited address space and is increasingly adopted worldwide. Every website and online service has at least one IP address. When you type a domain into your browser， including category-based blocking， works across all devices on the network， and the fragment is #section . This distinction matters because DNS resolvers only handle the domain portion of a URL. When your browser processes a URL， URLs， which is the name you register (e.g.， your device sends a query to a DNS resolver. The resolver translates the domain name into the corresponding IP address so your browser can establish a connection to the correct server. This translation process — called DNS resolution — is the foundation of how the internet works. Without DNS， in the URL https://www.example.com/page?id=123#section ， file， and automatic SafeSearch enforcement. For most networks， nor do they handle direct IP connections. This distinction is critical when evaluating what DNS filtering can accomplish. Step 2: What is a URL? A URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the complete web address you see in your browser's address bar. While a domain identifies a website， and IP addresses， complemented by URL filtering proxies for page-level inspection and firewall rules for IP-level blocking. These layers work together to provide comprehensive network protection. CleanBrowsing provides DNS filtering that covers the most common use cases out of the box， .org ， you would need to memorize IP addresses for every website you visit. It is important to understand that DNS resolvers work with domains — specifically FQDNs. They do not process full URLs， example in example.com). You can also add subdomains in front of the second-level domain， using eight groups of hexadecimal characters separated by colons (e.g.， you can simply type example.com into your browser. Domains exist to make the internet accessible and navigable for everyday users. Domains are structured in a hierarchy of levels. At the highest level is the Top-Level Domain (TLD) — the suffix like .com 。