DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_BAD_CONFIG: The DNS configuration is invalid
The probe finished and concluded the device's DNS configuration itself is broken — a bad resolver address, a corrupted network profile, or conflicting settings from a VPN.
Short answer
The probe finished and concluded the device's DNS configuration itself is broken — a bad resolver address, a corrupted network profile, or conflicting settings from a VPN.
What DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_BAD_CONFIG means
Unlike NXDOMAIN, this points at the client, not the domain. Chrome is reporting that the machine's DNS setup cannot serve lookups reliably regardless of which hostname is requested.
Causes and fixes, most likely first
A manually set resolver address is wrong or the server is offline. Set DNS back to automatic, or to a known-good public resolver, and reconnect the interface.
A VPN client left stale DNS settings behind after disconnecting. Reconnect and cleanly disconnect the VPN, or reset the network adapter to clear leftover resolver entries.
A corrupted network profile after an OS update. Reset the network stack, then re-join the network.
How to stop it happening again
Keep resolver settings automatic on client machines unless there is a specific reason not to.
Check your own domain
If an external lookup returns healthy records, the domain is fine and the fault is confirmed to be local configuration.
Frequently asked questions
Is DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_BAD_CONFIG a website problem?
Almost never. It reports that the device's own DNS configuration is unusable, so the same error appears for many sites at once.