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Create a new Windows hosts file

Applicable for: Windows

Create a new Windows hosts file

  1. Press the Windows + R keys to open the Run dialog box.

  2. Type in the following text, and then press Enter.

    %systemroot% \system32\drivers\etc
  3. Right-click the hosts file, and select Rename.

  4. Type the following text and then press Enter:

    Hosts.old
  5. In the etc folder, right-click on the blank space and select New > Text Document.

  6. Type the following text and then press Enter:

    hosts
  7. Click Yes to confirm.

  8. Right-click the hosts file and then click Open With or Open.

  9. Double-click Notepad from the list of programs.

  10. Copy the following text to the file:

    • For Windows 11/10/8/7:

              # Copyright (c) 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
              # 127.0.0.1 localhost
              # ::1 localhost
  11. On the File menu, select Save.

  12. On the File menu, select Exit.

DocID: v72822654
Last modified: 04/24/2025

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