The Hulu Error 301 is one of the many problems that Hulu customers face. Sometimes, the code is accompanied by the following message, which does little to no good to help:

“Sorry, we encountered an error playing this video. Please try restarting the video or select something else to watch.”

Users complained that even after going for something else, they ended up seeing the same error.

If you’re in the same boat, you’ve come to the right place. The solutions described in this article helped many Hulu users get rid of the error for good.

What Is the Hulu Error Code 301?

The 301 Hulu error is a wide-ranging problem. Basically, it’s an indication that your device is failing to communicate with Hulu’s servers. The error can show up on any device, whether you’re using the Hulu app or streaming on your web browser.

There are different causes of this issue, from a bad internet connection to a corrupt browser cache.

How to Get Rid of the Hulu Error 301

The Hulu error 301 doesn’t have a single fix. You have to resolve the underlying cause of the problem on your system before you’re able to stream again. So, follow the solutions we’ve laid out, and we’re certain one of them will help you get rid of the issue for good.

Check your network connection

Your network connection is the first thing you should look at. Whether you’re streaming on your web browser or with the Hulu app, a bad internet connection can mess things up. So, try visiting other web pages to confirm that you have a working connection.

Restart your system

Rebooting your OS can fix the problem for you, just as it did for other users. When you reboot your PC, you’re not only restarting your browser or the Hulu app but also shutting down any other application or process that might be getting in the way.

Restart your devices

If your router has been on for a while, try power cycling it and other devices and check whether the problem goes away. For many users, it was a simple fix. It’s possible that multiple setups are now clogged up and the connection is stuck. Restarting your devices will reinitialize everything, and this will likely get rid of the error.

To power cycle your router, press and hold its power button until it goes off. Don’t just reset it. Go a step further and disconnect it if it’s connected to a power source. Turn off your system as well and wait a few seconds.

Now, restart your system and check whether the problem persists.

Update your browser

If you’re getting the error while streaming on your web browser, it’s possible that you’re using its obsolete version. Try updating it and check whether the problem continues. If that doesn’t work, move on to the next solution.

Clear your browser’s cache

Your browser saves certain information and media so that it can load web pages faster in the future. This data is known as its cache. The cache, over time, could become problematic, especially when it’s too large, and cause different problems. This is why it’s recommended that you clear it from time to time.

If you don’t know how to clear your browser’s cache, we’ll guide you.

Clear your cache in Mozilla Firefox:

  1. Launch Mozilla Firefox.
  2. Once the browser opens, click the three horizontal lines (the menu icon) in the top-right corner, and then select Options.
  3. Click Privacy and Security in the left pane.
  4. Scroll down to the History section, and then click the Clear History button under it.
  5. In the Clear Recent History window, uncheck every other option except Cache and then click Clear Now.

Clear your cache in Google Chrome:

  1. Launch Google Chrome.
  2. After the browser opens, click on the three dotted lines in the top-right corner.
  3. Once the menu drops down, click on More tools.
  4. Select Clear Browsing Data after the submenu flies out. You can also press the Ctrl, Shift, and Delete keyboard buttons together to open the Clear Browsing Data window.
  5. When the Clear Browsing Data window pops up, check Cached Images and Files and any other option you would like to delete, select a time range at the top of the window, and then click Clear Data.

Clear your cache in Microsoft Edge:

  1. Click the three dotted lines in the top-right corner of the browser and then select Settings.
  2. Locate Choose What to Clear in the settings list and click it.
  3. Check the Cached Data and Files option and click Clear.

Clear your cache in Safari:

  1. Launch Safari.
  2. Go to the menu bar and click on Safari.
  3. Select Preferences.
  4. From the tabs across the top of the screen, select Privacy.
  5. Click on “Manage website data”.
  6. Now, select Remove All.

Adjust your date and time

The wrong date and time settings can also trigger the error. So, make sure your date and time settings are correct and check other important details, such as your region. Here is what you should do:

  1. Go to the right of your taskbar and right-click on the date and time display.
  2. Once the context menu appears, click on “Adjust date/time”.
  3. After the Date & time interface of Windows Settings opens, turn on the switches for “Set time automatically” and “Set time zone automatically”.
  4. Also, click on the “Sync now” button under “Synchronize your clock”.
  5. You can now check whether Hulu can connect properly.

Update Windows

Windows updates fix a lot of issues. You might be using an obsolete Windows build that isn’t configured to support the Hulu app or even some components of your network infrastructure. To make sure this isn’t the issue, check for available updates for your system and install them. These are the steps you need to follow:

  1. Click on the Start button and select the cog icon in the Start menu to summon the Settings app. You can also press the Windows and I keyboard buttons to launch the application.
  2. Once the home page of the app opens, click on Update & Security.
  3. Once you see the Update & Security interface, stay in the Windows Update tab and click on the Check for Updates button.
  4. If there are available updates for your PC, allow Windows Update to download them.
  5. Once Windows Update finishes downloading the updates, click on the Restart Now button to allow it to reboot your PC and install the updates.
  6. Your computer will restart several times as the updates are being installed.
  7. After the system boots to your desktop environment, run the Hulu app or try streaming on your browser.

Other network troubleshooting steps

If the methods above don’t resolve the problem, then let’s dive deeper to find and fix other problems that might be triggering the error 301 on Hulu.

Use a static DNS

Every ISP provides DNS parameters that point to their DNS servers. The job of the DNS server is to resolve human-friendly alphanumeric URLs to their numeric IP addresses. Some DNS servers are incompetent and do a bad job. It’s possible that the server provided by your ISP is experiencing downtime or doesn’t have what it takes to do the job.

Migrate to a competent public DNS server, such as Google’s, and see if that will resolve the problem. The process is easy and straightforward. Here are the steps you should follow:

  1. Tap the Windows + S keyboard shortcut or click on the magnifying glass in the taskbar.
  2. After the search bar opens, type “control panel” (no quotes).
  3. Click on Control Panel in the search results.
  4. Click on Network and Internet once the home page of the Control Panel opens.
  5. After the Network and Internet page appears, click on Network and Sharing Center.
  6. Go to the left pane of the Network and Sharing Center interface and click on “Change adapter settings”.
  7. Once the Network Connections interface opens, right-click your current connection and click on Properties.
  8. After the dialog box appears, stay in the Networking tab, click on Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4), and then click on the Properties button below it.
  9. When you see the Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) Properties dialog, check the box next to “Use the following DNS server addresses.”
  10. Now, enter 8.8.8.8 in the “Preferred DNS server address” box and 8.8.4.4 in the “Alternate DNS server” box.
  11. Click on the OK button in every open dialog box.
  12. Check for the problem.

Flush your DNS cache

When the DNS server matches your URLs to IP addresses, the data is stored on your system so that your computer doesn’t have to look for the same IP address multiple times. The data is stored in the DNS cache. Sometimes, the cache might cause issues if certain IP addresses have been updated on the Internet or if the cache itself is corrupt.

In this case, you’ll have to clear the DNS cache and allow your system to rebuild it. The steps below will show you how to do that:

  1. Tap the Windows + S keyboard shortcut or click on the magnifying glass in the taskbar.
  2. After the search bar opens, type “command” (no quotes).
  3. Once Command Prompt shows up in the results, right-click it, and then select Run as Administrator from the context menu.
  4. Click on Yes once the User Account Control dialog requests permission to allow the Command Prompt to make changes to your computer.
  5. Type the command line below into the black screen once the elevated Command Prompt window opens, and then hit Enter:

ipconfig /flushdns

  1. Restart your PC and check if Hulu can run without problems.

Temporarily disable your firewall program

Your firewall program is responsible for vetting the network traffic that flows in and out of your system. If it considers a connection to be a security risk, it will block it. Sometimes, firewall applications take things too far and block legitimate connections when they catch a whiff of irregularity. This could be the reason you are seeing the error when you try to stream with Hulu.

Disable the firewall program to check whether this is true. If you use Windows Firewall, these are the steps you should follow:

  1. Tap the Windows + S keyboard shortcut or click on the magnifying glass in the taskbar.
  2. After the search bar opens, type “firewall” (no quotes).
  3. Once the search results appear, click on Firewall & Network Protection.
  4. After the Firewall & Network Protection window appears, click on Domain Network and toggle off the switch for Windows Defender Firewall.
  5. Click on Private Network and toggle off the switch for Windows Defender Firewall.
  6. Click on Public Network and toggle off the switch for Windows Defender Firewall.
  7. You can now try streaming on Hulu to check if the error shows up again.

If you use a different firewall program, you can check the Internet to find out how you can disable it.

Reset the Winsock component

The Winsock component is a DLL file that contains network configurations. It serves as the library that connects your apps to the system’s network infrastructure. This means that your applications have to interface with this Dynamic Link Library file if they’re going to establish any form of internet connection.

The Winsock component, like any other Windows component, isn’t immune to glitches. It can become corrupt or act up from time to time due to software conflicts. Confirm that it isn’t the cause of this particular problem by resetting it. When you run the reset command, Windows replaces the component with a working version.

The steps below will show you the process:

  1. Tap the Windows + S keyboard shortcut or click on the magnifying glass in the taskbar.
  2. After the search bar opens, type “command” (no quotes).
  3. Once Command Prompt shows up in the results, right-click it, and then select Run as Administrator from the context menu.
  4. Click on Yes once the User Account Control dialog requests permission to allow Command Prompt to make changes to your computer.
  5. Type the command line below into the black screen once the elevated Command Prompt window opens, and then hit Enter:

netsh winsock reset

  1. After the command executes successfully, reboot your system and check if the error surfaces again.

Reset your hosts file

Your hosts file is another system component that holds network configurations. Like the DNS cache, it keeps information concerning URLs and their host IP addresses. If it accumulates the wrong configurations over time, it will begin to act up and cause problems, and Hulu can be a victim.

So, reset the file and check if you can get back to streaming. The following steps explain the process in detail:

  1. Press and hold the Windows key, and then tap the E key to open File Explorer.
  2. Click on This PC in the left pane of the window.
  3. Open your main drive where Windows is installed. This is normally Drive (C:).
  4. Once the drive opens, double-click on the Windows folder.
  5. Open the System32 folder, then double-click the Drivers folder.
  6. Now, open the Etc folder.

Note that you can use the letter of the drive where Windows is installed on your PC in place of “C.”

  1. In the “ETC” folder, look for the Hosts file, right-click it, click on Rename, and then change its name to “Hosts.old” (no quotes).
  2. Next, search for Notepad using the search bar next to the Start menu, and then click on the app once it appears in the results.
  3. Once Notepad launches, copy and paste the following text into the new note:

# Copyright © 1993-2006 Microsoft Corp.

#

# This is a sample HOSTS file used by Microsoft TCP/IP for Windows.

#

# This file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. Each

# entry should be kept on an individual line. The IP address should

# be placed in the first column followed by the corresponding host name.

# The IP address and the host name should be separated by at least one

# space.

#

# Additionally, comments (such as these) may be inserted on individual

# lines or following the machine name denoted by a ‘#’ symbol.

#

# For example:

#

#      102.54.94.97     rhino.acme.com          # source server

#       38.25.63.10     x.acme.com              # x client host

# localhost name resolution is handled within DNS itself.

#       127.0.0.1       localhost

#       ::1             localhost

  1. Now, navigate to the top-left corner of the window, click on File, and then choose the “Save as” option.
  2. Once the “Save as” dialog comes up, browse to the etc folder where you renamed the old Hosts file, and then save this current note as Hosts.
  3. Close Notepad, restart your computer, and then check for the error.

Update your network adapter driver

The network adapter is the hardware device in charge of hooking you up to the Internet. Its driver controls its communication with your operating system. This means the device becomes useless without the driver.

Your network adapter driver receives regular updates that allow the network adapter to communicate better with your OS and other applications, especially if they’ve received updates themselves. This allows the network adapter to understand and handle requests that it hasn’t been given in the past.

If the driver is out of date or corrupt, it will fail in its duties to send requests to the network adapter and interpret them. This could be the reason for the error you’re struggling with.

Update your network device’s driver and check whether the problem persists. You can either use the Device Manager or a third-party application to do this.

Use the Device Manager

Follow these steps to use the Device Manager:

  1. Press the Windows and R keys together to open Run.
  2. Into the text box, type “devmgmt.msc” (no quotes) and click OK to open the Device Manager.
  3. Locate and expand Network Adapters.
  4. Right-click your network controller and click Update or Update Driver Software.
  5. Choose the “Search automatically for updated driver software” option to allow Windows to search for the latest network adapter driver for your computer on the internet and install it.

If you want to use the “Browse my computer for driver software” option, make sure you download the updated software from the manufacturer’s website to a folder on your computer.

  1. After installing the driver, restart your computer and try connecting to Hulu.

Use Auslogics Driver Updater

Auslogics Driver Updater is a program that is fortified with different helpful features geared at keeping every device driver on your system up to date. It makes sure you don’t have to suffer the stress of dealing with device driver problems and other issues that they might cause.

The program is designed to scan for faulty drivers, whether they’re out of date or corrupt. When it identifies these drivers, it allows you to install their official updates immediately. You can also back up old versions so that you can easily roll back whenever compatibility issues occur with any update.

These steps will show you how to install and use Auslogics Driver Updater:

  1. Open this web page.
  2. Click on the Download button once the page loads.
  3. Allow your browser to save the setup file.
  4. The download process should be complete in a few seconds, as the file is less than 20 megabytes.
  5. After your browser notifies you that the download is complete, run the installer.
  6. Click on the Yes button in the User Account Control window.
  7. The setup wizard will now come up.
  8. Choose your preferred language in the drop-down menu.
  9. Go to the Installation Directory box and select the folder where the app will be installed.
  10. After that, use the options beside the checkboxes to decide whether you want the program to launch when Windows starts, whether you want it to create a desktop shortcut, and whether you want to send reports to the program’s developers.
  11. Once you’ve applied your preferred settings, click on the “Click to install” button.
  12. The application will launch and look for problematic drivers once the installation process is complete.

If it doesn’t start on its own, launch it from the Start menu or double-click its desktop shortcut. Click on the Start Scan button after it opens.

  1. Auslogics Driver Updater will provide the details of the outdated, missing, or broken device drivers found during the scan. Your network driver will be included in the list if it’s problematic.
  2. Your next move is to click on the Update button after the scan is complete.
  3. Allow the program to download and install updated driver software.
  4. You can go for the paid version of the program if you want multiple driver updates to happen simultaneously.
  5. Reboot your PC and check for the Hulu error.

Perform a Clean Boot

A third-party startup program or service might be causing the error. Startup applications typically load whenever your system boots and continue to run in the background. To troubleshoot the issue, in this case, you have to prevent these programs and services from loading and then try streaming with Hulu. You’re starting your system in a Clean Boot state when you prevent these apps from running.

If Hulu starts working without problems after disabling the startup applications, then you have confirmed that one of them is the problem. We’ll be showing you how to perform a Clean Boot and isolate the responsible program.

Follow these steps:

  1. Right-click on the Start button and click on Run or tap the Windows and R keyboard buttons simultaneously.
  2. After the Run dialog box opens, type “msconfig” (no quotes), and then tap the Enter key.
  3. After the System Configuration dialog window appears, go to the Services tab.
  4. Under the Services tab, tick the checkbox beside “Hide all Microsoft services,” then click on the Disable All button. The services on the list (except core Microsoft services) will now be disabled from automatically launching when your system starts.
  5. Now, move over to the Startup tab and click on Open Task Manager.
  6. The link will take you to the Startup tab of the Task Manager.
  7. Go to each startup program in the tab, right-click it, and click on Disable. Make sure you do this to every program on the list.
  8. Now, close the Task Manager and click on OK in the System Configuration dialog window.
  9. Reboot your system.

After your computer comes on, try running the streaming service. If the problem doesn’t occur again, then you have to find the service or program that is behind the error.

To do that, enable the services one after the other. Note that after enabling each service, you have to restart your system and check for the error. Continue going through the services and programs until the error shows up again. The last app you’ll enable before this happens is what you’re looking for.

If you don’t have the stamina to enable program after program, you can cut the stress of the endeavour in half by following these steps:

  1. Launch the System Configuration dialog window and switch to the Services tab.
  2. Enable half (the top half) of the services on the list and click on the OK button.
  3. Restart your system and check for the error.
  4. If the error comes up, then one of the services in the top half is the culprit. Go to the Services tab of System Configuration again, disable the services in the tab, and then check only the top-half services one by one until the issue resurfaces.
  5. If you don’t experience the problem, however, then move over to the next half of the services and check for the issue.
  6. Go to the startup programs next, and then check them by halves until you determine which item is responsible for the problem.

Conclusion

While some of these solutions are lengthy, you’ll forget the stress once you’ve got rid of the error.

Expert tip: Junk files and broken registry keys are bad for your computer, yet they’re among the common elements that go unnoticed. That’s why you notice glitches here and there and don’t understand their origins. You can put an end to the annoying problems by installing Auslogics BoostSpeed. The program will help you prevent many problems by regularly getting rid of unneeded files and corrupt keys in the system registry.

If you have any questions or want to share your thoughts, please use the comments section below.