Windows 10: On Windows 11, file explorer ignores new entries in the hosts file.

I tried to access a file server across a VPN using Windows File Explorer and it could not resolve the name, but that's another issue. I edited the hosts file to add the file server's name. I can ping the server by name, so I know that I don't have a format of file issue. But File explorer still says it cannot resolve the name. I can open the new host in File Explorer by using the IP address. I tried the usual fixes ipconfig /flushdns and nbtstat /R to no avail. What am I missing? What else can I try?

:)

 

Hosts file being ignored

Hi opalchi,

I was to replicate the issue regarding with the 127.0.0.1 entries being ignored. Please report the issue by providing a feedback using our Feedback Hub app. This way you can directly communicate with the developer team with issues that you encounter as well
as suggestions on how to improve Windows.

In regard to "impossible to run Notepad as administrator, add entries, then save as "all files", hosts file is considered a part of the system files and files under system folders cannot be directly edited or
overwritten. a workaround is to open via Notepad, edit it, then save it to a non-system folder (e.g. Documents folder). After saving it as a document, access the saved copy of hosts file from Explorer, set File explorer > View > check "File name extensions"
> delete the ".txt" extension from the saved copy of hosts file. Afterwards, copy and paste it to Windows\System32\drivers\etc folder and overwrite the existing hosts file. You may also create a separate feedback item if you wish to directly change the file
from NotePad.

If you have additional questions, please let me know by replying to this thread. This way, I'll get notified and respond back to you as soon as I can.

 

Hosts file being ignored

I have 3 Windows 10 machines, and the hosts file is being ignored by ALL browsers (Edge, Chrome, Firefox) on ALL 3 machines. Yes, I know how to edit the hosts file, been doing it for 20 years. But just actually checked a few websites, and the 127.0.0.1
entries are ignored (or not read at all).

In the old days, there was a Registry Key pointing to the hosts file, at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters\DataBasePath. The whole thing is still there EXCEPT for DataBasePath. What is going on???

In addition, it now seems impossible to run Notepad as administrator, add entries, then save as "all files". Windows simply won't accept the "all files" choice and saves as .txt

Any body have an idea about this? This is extremely problematic!

Moved from: Windows 10 / Files, folders, & storage

 

Editing the hosts file in Windows 7

I recently just upgraded to Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit Edition and I need to edit the hosts file located in C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\. I've done this before on XP and Vista Ultimate 64-bit by opening the hosts file with Notepad. Only this time, when I opened it up with Notepad on Windows 7, it looked like this:

Code: # Copyright (c) 1993-2009 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 # localhost name resolution is handled within DNS itself. # 127.0.0.1 localhost # ::1 localhost[/quote] Where as on XP and Vista, it would look like this:

Code: Copyright (c) 1993-2008 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 localhost name resolution is handled within DNS itself. 127.0.0.1 localhost ::1 localhost[/quote] So if I were to insert a line into the hosts file in Windows 7, would I have to add the # before the line or can I just simply put the line in without adding the # before it?