Edit & Restore Windows Hosts File And Block Websites With Host Mechanic

Host Mechanic is a portable application to edit, delete and restore the Windows default hosts file. This application makes it easy to add entries to Windows hosts file; you won’t have to navigate to system32/drivers/etc folder every time just to add new domains and change mapped IPs. All you need is to launch the application, enter the domain followed by IP address to add the domain entry to hosts file. Moreover, it lets you restore the Windows hosts file and block websites by mapping them with localhost. For those who aren’t familiar with hosts file, it allows users and authenticated applications to map domains with defined IPs to either block the access or boost the access speed.

To modify the host file, launch Host Mechanic, enter the IP address and the host address. Click Add to Host to insert the mapped entry into Windows hosts file. The Restore Default Host File lets you restore the previously used hosts file. Underneath the restore option, you have Delete Host File option to remove the hosts file.

It must be noted that the hosts file can be vulnerable to malicious attacks due to its role in domain name resolution. Blocking access to servers by redirecting them to the local host i.e. 127.0.0.1, may have security implications. This is because 127.0.0.1 is accessible only by the host system. While host mechanic provides an easy mechanism for editing the host file, you can also check out the manual method for editing the host file  here. Host Mechanic works on Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8.

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