mDNSResponder.exe

You all know that I build a new computer and have installed most of the software that I have been using on my old computer on the new one as well. A quick Task Manager check revealed the file mDNSResponder.exe that was running on my computer which puzzled me at first because I could not identify an application that was using this file.

Digging a bit deeper revealed that mDNSResponder.exe was associated with the Bonjour Service which was located in E:\Program Files\Bonjour. I was not aware that I did install this program which either meant another program did install it or that it was maliciously installed on my system.

According to the search engines mDNSResponder.exe, or the Bonjour Service, is installed with Apple’s iTunes software and Adobe Creative Suite 3 and Creative Suite 3 components. A Knowledge Base article for Adobe Creative Suite 3 explains what Bonjour is all about.

Bonjour is Apple’s open source implementation of zero-configuration networking software. It is used by Adobe Version Cue CS3 client applications to dynamically discover Version Cue Servers on the local network.

And Apple adds:

Bonjour, also known as zero-configuration networking, enables automatic discovery of computers, devices, and services on IP networks. Bonjour uses industry standard IP protocols to allow devices to automatically discover each other without the need to enter IP addresses or configure DNS servers.

Users have two choices. If they want to disable the service and ensure that mDNSResponder.exe is not running anymore when they work with Windows then they should simply disable the Bonjour Service in Windows. The services configuration can be reached by pressing Windows R, typing services.msc and hitting enter. Right-click the Bonjour Service and select to disable the service.

If you want to get completely rid of mDNSResponder.exe and the Bonjour Services do the following: Press Windows R, type cmd and hit enter. Now navigate to the Bonjour directory by issuing the command cd c:\program files\bonjour. Now type mDNSResponder.exe -remove and rename mdsnNSP.dll mdsnNSP.bak. Restart the computer and delete the Bonjour directory afterwards.

If you find out that you do need Bonjour you can install it again by downloading Bonjour from the Apple website.