Though the internet is meant to be open and unrestricted, there are many cases where websites are geo-restricted, or blocked by a firewall. So, if you’ve recently come across a website that you want to access but which is blocked for you, worry not, we have the solutions for you. Here is how to unblock a webpage from behind a firewall.

There are multiple ways you can use to unblock webpages from behind a firewall. We are taking a look at all of them individually, and you can use the table of contents below to navigate through this article and try out any (or all) of these methods to unblock websites on your devices.

  • Open Blocked Sites by Directly Visiting the IP AddressUnblock a Webpage from Behind a Firewall by Switching from Wi-Fi to Mobile DataVisit a Cached Version of the WebsiteSwitch to the Mobile/Desktop Site

  • SafariGoogle ChromeTry Accessing the Site in a Different LanguageOpen Blocked Websites Using a VPN ServiceUser Proxy Servers to Unblock a WebsiteUse the Tor Browser to Unblock a SiteAccess Blocked Sites by Restarting Your ModemUnblock Websites with Smart DNS Services

  • SafariGoogle Chrome

1. Open Blocked Sites by Directly Visiting the IP Address

Quite possibly the easiest way to unblock websites from behind a firewall is by visiting their IP addresses directly. This works in cases where the block has been applied to a domain name, which is mostly the case. Here’s how you can visit blocked websites using their IP addresses.

  • Next up, copy the IP address and paste it into your browser.

Voila! You would now be directed to the site and access it even if the domain name has been blocked.

A network administrator may restrict certain websites with a firewall to prevent them from being accessed, whether for protection from malicious content or to save bandwidth. If you figure out that a web page has been blocked due to such restrictions, you can sometimes unblock it by switching from Wi-Fi to mobile data.

  • Simply turn-off WiFi on your device, and turn on mobile data. Once your device is connected with cellular data, try accessing the website and see if it works for you now.

Obviously, this applies to devices that have a SIM card (or e-SIM). However, even if you’re using a device that doesn’t have it’s own cellular modem, you can create a local hotspot from your smartphone and use that to connect your devices.

Times when a site is down or has been blocked but you still need to access it, you can switch to the cached version to retrieve some information from it. For those unaware, the cache is basically an older version of a site that Google stores as a backup and allows access to only limited number of pages. It shows olders versions of text-based sites that you can visit without needing to log in.

  • This will open up the ‘About this result’ pop-up. Here, you can click on ‘Cached’ to view the cached version of the website.

4. Switch to the Mobile/Desktop Site

While it’s not a full-on solution per se, many a time you can unblock a site by switching to a mobile or desktop version of the site. You may notice that not both versions of the site are blocked. Here’s how to switch between mobile/desktop versions of a website in some of the most popular browsers.

Switch mobile/desktop sites in Safari on iOS/iPad OS

Switch mobile/desktop sites in Safari on Mac

  • Open Safari. Now, click on ‘Safari’ in the menu bar, and click on ‘Preferences’. Alternatively, you can use the keyboard shortcut ‘command + ;’ to open preferences.

  • In the Preferences window, click on the ‘Advanced’ tab.

  • Here, enable the ‘Show Develop menu in menu bar’ option.

  • Now, click on the ‘Develop’ option in the menu bar and select ‘User Agent’. Here, you can choose iPhone or iPad to switch to the mobile version of a website.

Google Chrome

Switch mobile/desktop sites in Chrome on iOS

Switch mobile/desktop sites in Chrome on Android:

Switch mobile/desktop sites in Chrome on Mac/PC

  • Now, click on the three dot menu icon in the right corner of the inspect window, and go to ‘More Tools‘. Here, select ‘Network Conditions’.

  • In the section marked ‘User Agent’, disable the checkmark next to ‘Use browser default’ and then click on the dropdown box labelled ‘Custom’.

  • You can now choose a mobile user agent, and switch to the mobile website.

5. Try Accessing the Site in a Different Language

Another pretty simple yet quite effective way to unblock a site from behind a firewall is to access the site in a different language for a different region. For example, by changing your country to India and your language to Hindi, you may be able to bypass the restriction. The whole point I’m trying to make is that not all versions of the site may be blocked at once. Therefore, switching to a different version could often do the trick for you.

A VPN (Virtual Private Network) has long been a trusted bet for opening blocked websites. What makes it so efficient is the ability to let you mask your real IP address behind a fake one. Thus, it becomes painless to access blocked or geo-restricted sites. For example, if you connect to a US-based VPN server, you will be able to access the geographically restricted sites that are available only in the US. Moreover, VPNs are easy to set up and can also prevent your ISP (Internet Service Provider) from throttling your bandwidth.

7. User Proxy Servers to Unblock a Website

Proxy servers are also up to the mark when it comes to opening blocked websites. In terms of functionality, proxy servers are designed to act as middlemen between you and the web. When you send connection requests to a proxy server, it forwards them to the website on your behalf using its own IP address. Thus, bypassing geo-blocks becomes plain-sailing. It’s worth noting that a proxy server can return results a lot faster if they have been archieved in the server’s local cache. Since proxy servers don’t use encryptions, they also do not tend to interfere with your online speeds.

The privacy-centric Tor browser can also come in super handy in letting you unblock a site. If you are wondering how it works, let me tell you that it smartly hides users’ locations so that they can browse the web without having to deal with censorship.

Just like a proxy or VPN, Tor conceals your real IP address behind a new IP address assigned to you. By passing your traffic through secure relay servers, the Tor browser not only safeguards your privacy but also facilitates hassle-free access to websites even if they are blocked.

In some cases, your modem may assign you a “Dynamic IP address” which is temporary and remains valid only for a session. So, if you run into a site that is blocked, you can overcome this issue by using a new IP address generated by your modem. And the quickest way to get it done is by just rebooting your modem. Give this nifty trick a shot to see if it gets the job done for you.

10. Unblock Websites with Smart DNS Services

A Smart DNS (Domain Name Server) allows you to hide your real DNS address which is assigned to you by your ISP (Internet Service Provider). As your DNS address consists of information that reveals your actual geo-location, replacing the DNS address with a new address where the content is available can help you bypass geo-blocks.