The Hosts file in Windows 10/8/7, is used to map host names to IP addresses. If for some reason, you find that your Hosts file has been compromised and that some malicious entries have been added, you can if you wish, reset Hosts file back to default.
Reset Hosts file in Windows 10
The subtle differences between 32-bit and 64-bit Windows present so many intricacies and pitfalls that even Microsoft employees seem to have trouble getting it right. I just stumbled upon a KB article that describes how to reset the hosts file to its original state. The topic alone is funny enough. How to Edit the Windows 10 Hosts File. To edit the HOSTS file we need to use a method that allows us to save the file to it’s original location, which is: C: Windows System32 Drivers etc. Sep 19, 2019 This guide shows you how to edit the hosts file in Windows 10 and Windows 8.1 easily without any additional system tools. The hosts file is an important system file which maps the host/site names with its IP addresses. Edit Your Windows 10 Host File as an Administrator The HOSTS file is normally stored in a plain text file in the Windows System folder and can be modified for a variety of use cases. For that just click File and then Save as. But there is a tiny problem here. The file cannot be modified directly. So, you need to save it to any other location and name it hosts. Step-5: Now you just have to simply copy or cut the file and paste it at the correct location, C: Windows System32 Drivers etc. Sudo nano /etc/hosts. The hosts file in Linux and Windows is the same so you edit it the same way. Blocking Ads with the Hosts file. So far I have just covered the basic function of the hosts file, but you can do some advanced things with a hosts file, like blocking ads in your browser for example.
The Hosts file in Windows 10/8/7 is located at the following location:
C:WindowsSystem32driversetc
To reset the Hosts file, open File Explorer, type the following in the address bar and hit Enter:
%systemroot% system32driversetc
Rename the Hosts file to hosts.bak. You may be required to take ownership of the file first.
Next, create a new default Hosts file. To do so, open a new Text file named hosts in the folder %WinDir%system32driversetc folder.
Hosts File Windows 10 Example
Copy-paste the following text into the notepad file:
Hosts File Location Windows 10
Save the text file.
Download default Windows Hosts file
Alternatively, if you wish you can download the default Hosts file of Windows 10/8/7 by clicking here. Extract the contents and place the Hosts file in your C:WindowsSystem32driversetc folder. You may be asked for permissions to replace it.
HostsMan is good freeware utility that lets you add, remove the entries and generally lets you manage the Hosts File in Windows easily. Go here to see how you can Lock, Manage, Edit Hosts File in Windows.
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