Howto: Edit your Host file in Vista

gavin — Tue, 13 May 2008 19:10:26 +0000

By default, if you try to modify your hosts file in Vista, it will not let you save it. Thanks to Vistas new UAC feature, it tells you that you don’t have permission. To successfully modify the hosts file you will need to run notepad.exe as Administrator and then open the file using notepad.

Browse to Start -> All Programs -> Accessories
Right click “Notepad” and select “Run as administrator”
Click “Continue” on the UAC prompt
Click File -> Open
Browse to “C:\Windows\System32\Drivers\etc”
Change the file filter drop down box from “Text Documents (*.txt)” to “All Files (*.*)”
Select “hosts” and click “Open”
Make the needed changes and close Notepad. Save when prompted.

Note: I have tried using other text editors to make my Host file edits but notepad.exe is the only one I have been successful with.

technoratica » Host file

Howto: Edit your Host file in Vista