Windows 2000 hosts file

Since some program from my workstation has altered this registry key, the default hosts file was completely ignored. This kind of application will attempt to disable the 'hosts' file because some people use this file in order to cancel all the connections to some hosts with bad reputation.

All the above information can be found on Microsoft's web site. This is a big file: finding the useful information took me about 1 hour.

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How quickly will I get my solution? We can't guarantee quick solutions - Experts Exchange isn't a help desk. Example - the following entry 0. This also prevents the server from tracking your movements. Using a well designed HOSTS file can speed the loading of web pages by not having to wait for these ads, annoying banners, hit counters , etc.

This also helps to protect your Privacy and Security by blocking sites that may track your viewing habits, also known as "click-thru tracking" or Data Miners.

In case you're wondering Another great feature of the HOSTS file is that it is a two-way file, meaning if some parasite does get into your system usually bundled with other products the culprit can not get out call home as long as the necessary entries exist.

Special Note: new Windows 10 users This was done to resolve a slowdown issue that occurs with the change Microsoft made in the "TCP loopback interface" in Win8. This change in the prefix should not affect everyday users. You can use the "Replace" function in Notepad to convert the entries, or either of these freeware utilities see below has an option for converting the entries from "0.

This download includes a simple batch file mvps. For more information please see the Windows version that applies to you When you run the mvps. Once updated you should see another prompt that the task was completed. Allow the change Microsoft has done it again If you upgraded recently to Windows 10 version , most likely you will be unable to make any changes to the DNS Client, as it is grayed out.