This guide covers PS5, PS5 Pro, PS5 Digital and PS4 - and the two generations use different menus, so the steps are kept separate below. Pick the one that matches your console.
You'll need a Lobby Max account with Activate already clicked and both DNS addresses copied. New to Lobby Max? Start with the Getting Started guide first.
⚠️ Important: Activation registers your network, not your device. Set up this console on the same internet connection you activated from.
Get Your DNS Addresses
Open the Lobby Max dashboard on a phone or PC on the same network your PlayStation uses. Find the Set up your gaming device card and copy your Primary DNS and Secondary DNS.
Keeping the dashboard open on your phone while you type saves you from re-entering addresses - the on-screen keyboard on both PS5 and PS4 is slow work.
Set DNS on PS5
Settings → Network → Settings → Set Up Internet Connection.
- Choose your home Wi-Fi, or LAN if you're wired
- Select Advanced Settings
- IP Address Settings: Automatic
- DHCP Host Name: Do Not Specify
- DNS Settings: Manual
- Primary DNS: your Primary DNS address
- Secondary DNS: your Secondary DNS address
- MTU: Automatic
- Proxy Server: Do Not Use
- Select Next to test the connection
💡 Tip: On an already-registered network, you reach Advanced Settings by highlighting the network and pressing the Options button (the small button with three lines), not by selecting it. This is the most common "I can't find DNS settings on PS5" question.
Set DNS on PS4
Settings → Network → Set Up Internet Connection.
- Choose Wi-Fi or Wired (on Wi-Fi, pick your network)
- Select Custom
- IP Address Settings: Automatic
- DHCP Host Name: Do Not Specify
- DNS Settings: Manual
- Primary DNS: your Primary DNS address
- Secondary DNS: your Secondary DNS address
- MTU: Automatic
- Proxy Server: Do Not Use
- Select Next to test the connection
⚠️ Important: Choosing Easy instead of Custom skips the DNS screen entirely and silently keeps your ISP settings. If you never saw a DNS option, you took Easy - start the wizard again and choose Custom.
Power Cycle Properly
A full power cycle clears the console's DNS cache:
- Unplug the console from wall power (not just standby)
- Wait the full 30 seconds
- Plug it back in and power on
PS4 users can restart normally, but the full cycle is more reliable - the cache clears completely, and that's often the difference between "nothing changed" and "done."
Pick Your Region and Verify
Back in the Lobby Max dashboard, pick your region under Choose your server - your connection should show Active and the server Connected.
Then launch the game and confirm the matchmaker sees your chosen region. The definitive check is the in-game location readout - see Check Your Location for the exact steps.
Troubleshooting
DNS Error or failed connection test? Almost always a typo. Re-enter both addresses carefully, or restart the wizard.
Can't find DNS Settings on PS5? On an already-registered network, press the Options button on the network name instead of selecting it - Advanced Settings is behind that menu.
Test passes but the location doesn't change? Work through this order:
- Disable IPv6 on the router. The PS5 and PS4 have no console-level IPv6 toggle - if your ISP forces IPv6, the console resolves through the ISP's resolver and we never see the query. It's usually a five-to-ten minute job in the router admin panel, and the menu varies by router brand
- Did you power cycle - unplugged from the wall for the full 30 seconds?
- Does the dashboard show Active?
- Are the phone/PC you activated from and the console on the same network? A guest Wi-Fi will not be covered
Worked before, not now? Your network likely changed. Open the dashboard and click Re-activate - your device settings stay valid.
Want to revert? Run the wizard again and choose Easy (or Automatic settings) - DNS goes back to your ISP in about thirty seconds.