Blocking Unwanted ads & banners with a Hosts File
What it does ...
You can use MVPS HOSTS file to block ads, banners, 3rd party Cookies, 3rd party page counters, web bugs, and even most hijackers. This is accomplished by blocking the connection(s) that supplies these little gems. The Hosts file is loaded into memory (cache) at startup, so there is no need to turn on, adjust or change any settings with the exception of the DNS Client service (see below). Windows automatically looks for the existence of a HOSTS file and if found, checks the HOSTS file first for entries to the web page you just requested. The 0.0.0.0 (prefix) is considered the location of your computer, so when an entry listed in the MVPS HOSTS file is requested on a page you are viewing, your computer thinks 0.0.0.0 is the location of the file. When this file is not located it skips onto the next file and thus the ad server is blocked from loading the banner, Cookie, or some unscrupulous ActiveX, or javascript file.
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HOSTS File - Frequently Asked Questions
MVPS BLOG
Download MVPS HOSTS file [ Freeware ]
Or you can Manually Update it yourself using the Text Version
Important Notice
In most cases a large HOSTS file (over 135 kb) tends to slow down the machine.
To resolve this issue (manually) open the "Services Editor"
Start | Run (type) "services.msc" (no quotes)
Win8 users - from the Charms Bar, select: Search (type) run and select Run (left pane) and (type) "services.msc" (no quotes)
Scroll down to "DNS Client", Right-click and select: Properties - click Stop
Click the drop-down arrow for "Startup type"
Select: Manual, click Apply/Ok and restart.
For more details please see:
http://winhelp2002.mvps.org/hosts.htm
Manual Install Instructions
Always backup the existing file prior to replacing with a newer version.
You can simply copy the included HOSTS file to the proper location.
Windows 10/8/7/Vista/XP = C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC
Note: the above locations are for the default paths (Windows folder location)
When prompted to overwrite select Yes
For more detailed instructions please review the following:
How To: Download and Extract the HOSTS file
http://winhelp2002.mvps.org/hosts2.htm
Removal Instructions
http://winhelp2002.mvps.org/uninstall.htm
First time users - In the event you do not wish to continue using the MVPS HOSTS file, you can simply delete the existing HOSTS file and rename HOSTS.MVP to HOSTS (no 3-letter extension)
Next - reset the DNS Client service that you should have disabled when installing the MVPS HOSTS file.
Open the "Services Editor"
Start | Run (type) "services.msc" (no quotes)
Win8 users - from the Charms Bar, select: Search (type) run and select Run (left pane) and (type) "services.msc" (no quotes)
Scroll down to "DNS Client", Right-click and select: Properties
Click the drop-down arrow for "Startup type"
Select: Automatic then click Apply/Ok and restart.
Regular users - You can simply delete the existing HOSTS file, then download the default Microsoft HOSTS file that shipped with your Windows version. [DefaultHosts.zip] Extract (unzip) and place the included HOSTS file in the default location.
http://winhelp2002.mvps.org/DefaultHosts.zip
Note: the below locations are for the typical default paths (Windows folder location)
Windows 10/8/7/Vista/XP = C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC
Next - reset the DNS Client service (see above) that you should have disabled when installing the MVPS HOSTS file.
Note: none of the included files make any changes to the Registry or install any additional
files to the Operating System.
[or]
How do I reset the hosts file back to the default?
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;972034
Additional