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- Apr 17, 2009
- Messages
- 1,699
What's that, you say? You're tired of spyware, ads, and other threats from the interwebs? Well, worry no more, because you've got the HOSTS file.
But Prisoner, what is this hosts file and why should I have one?
Well, I'll tell you.
The Hosts file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. This file is loaded into memory (cache) at startup, then Windows checks the Hosts file before it queries any DNS servers, which enables it to override addresses in the DNS. This prevents access to the listed sites by redirecting any connection attempts back to the local (your) machine. Another feature of the HOSTS file is its ability to block other applications from connecting to the Internet, providing the entry exists.
In other words, before any connection is made, this file is quickly checked. This can be used to save time by pointing URL's to the technical servers. However, we're going to use it to block some bad seeds.
First, download this file: http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.zip
Unzip it, and run mvps.bat, which will patch your hosts file.
We could stop here, but there are a few times when it might block a site you actually want to visit, such as a torrent searcher or image hosting site.
That's where Hostsman comes in.
Download Hostsman at http://abelhadigital.com/
Once installed, right click the system tray icon and go to options.
Here are the settings you should have:
System: Disable DNS Client Service.
Update: Disable it. This way it won't add sites you delete.
Once you start it, choose show window, click hosts on the tops menu, and check for updates.
If at any point a site you want gets blocked, open Hostsman, click open hosts, and use the find feature to find and remove any references to the site in question.
This is very, very good security. It will block about 95% of ads and malicious script, if not more. It blocks access to sites known to host malware or have privacy issues. Since it cuts them off at the source rather then hiding them, your internet experience will be faster as a result.
But Prisoner, what is this hosts file and why should I have one?
Well, I'll tell you.
The Hosts file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. This file is loaded into memory (cache) at startup, then Windows checks the Hosts file before it queries any DNS servers, which enables it to override addresses in the DNS. This prevents access to the listed sites by redirecting any connection attempts back to the local (your) machine. Another feature of the HOSTS file is its ability to block other applications from connecting to the Internet, providing the entry exists.
In other words, before any connection is made, this file is quickly checked. This can be used to save time by pointing URL's to the technical servers. However, we're going to use it to block some bad seeds.
First, download this file: http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.zip
Unzip it, and run mvps.bat, which will patch your hosts file.
We could stop here, but there are a few times when it might block a site you actually want to visit, such as a torrent searcher or image hosting site.
That's where Hostsman comes in.
Download Hostsman at http://abelhadigital.com/
Once installed, right click the system tray icon and go to options.
Here are the settings you should have:
System: Disable DNS Client Service.
Update: Disable it. This way it won't add sites you delete.
Once you start it, choose show window, click hosts on the tops menu, and check for updates.
If at any point a site you want gets blocked, open Hostsman, click open hosts, and use the find feature to find and remove any references to the site in question.
This is very, very good security. It will block about 95% of ads and malicious script, if not more. It blocks access to sites known to host malware or have privacy issues. Since it cuts them off at the source rather then hiding them, your internet experience will be faster as a result.
