Do you know the Hosts file and the functions it performs in Windows? If you are a completely novice user in this operating system, you may not know of its existence, although, if you have ever installed a tool to which you later want block your communication with the respective servers for upgrade purposes, then you will be familiar with this interesting file.
Now in order to perform some small editing on this Hosts file Previously, you have to try to locate the place where you are, this being one of the easiest tasks that can be presented. To do this, there are two methods to follow, one of them representing a series of sequential steps while the other, a simple command with the application of a trick to perform in a single step.
Why edit the content in the Hosts file?
At the beginning we had suggested it briefly, although now we will explain a little better what this file can do in our favor and benefit. Suppose for a moment that you have installed the latest version of Adobe Photoshop; Well, when some time passes, a new update will be proposed, which will be downloaded and installed automatically on your Windows computer. If for some reason you do not want this update to take place then you must place a small block between your computer and the Adobe servers, something that you can well do with the firewall configuration if you know perfectly well the IP addresses you want to block.
If not, then you can order the block using a generic IP, which means that the software (in this case, Adobe Photoshop) will seek to communicate with its servers and when it finds a generic (false) ip, simply you will not be able to verify whether or not such update exists. We have suggested this example although, at the same you can apply it to any other tool you want to block.
First alternative to locate the Hosts file in Windows
As a first alternative we will try to locate the place where this Hosts file is located, which can be applied for both Windows 7 and its most recent versions of the operating system. The place where this file is located is as follows:
C: WindowsSystem32driversetc
In this path we will find the file «Hosts«, Which has no extension whatsoever, this being the reason why you will be able to notice that within the column« type »it appears only with this name. The main problem is not in the location of the file but rather, in the way to open it to make any edition of its content. If, for example, we choose it with the right mouse button and order it to be opened with our "notepad", the file will open and even accept any type of modifications we wish to make. The problem occurs when we want to save it, because at that time we will be asked to use another name instead of the original, which is not what we want to do.
We suggest that you follow the steps below so that you can perform an edit of the "Hosts" file using notepad:
- Start your Windows session.
- Press the Start Menu button.
- In the search field write «Memo pad«.
- From the displayed results choose it with the right mouse button.
- Now select its execution with administrator privileges.
- When the «Memo pad»Select the option«File-> Open«.
- Find the file «Hosts»Using the window but heading towards the route we suggested above.
By operating in such a way, we will have the possibility to open the "Hosts" file, perform any type of editing and also, save it with the modifications made. This is because we have opened the "notepad" with administrator permissions.
Second alternative to open the "Hosts" file in Windows
If you are looking for a better alternative to locate and open the "Hosts" file then the one that we will offer you at this moment will please you; all we need to do is perform the following steps:
- Start your Windows 7 session.
- Click on the button «Start Menu«.
- In the search space type the following:
notepad% windir% system32driversetchosts
- Immediately you have use of the following key combination:
Ctrl + Shift + ENTER
With these simple steps that we have carried out, a small confirmation window will immediately open, which we must accept. Once done, the "hosts" file will open with the "notepad", being able to edit it and later save it without any additional action.