How do I reset the hosts file back to the default?

View products that this article applies to.

Problem description

This article helps you reset the hosts file back to the default.

To have us reset the hosts file back to the default for you, go to the "Fix it for me" section. To reset the hosts file back to the default yourself, go to the "Let me fix it myself" section.

Back to the top

Fix it for me

To reset the hosts file back to the default automatically, click the Fix it button or link. Click Run in the File Download dialog box, and then follow the steps in the Fix it wizard.

Fix this problem
Microsoft Fix it 50267

Note this wizard may be in English only; however, the automatic fix also works for other language versions of Windows.

Note If you are not on the computer that has the problem, you can save the automatic fix to a flash drive or to a CD, and then you can run it on the computer that has the problem.

Next, go to the "Did this fix the problem?" section.

Back to the top

Let me fix it myself

To reset the hosts file back to the default, follow these steps:

Click Start, click Run, type %systemroot% \system32\drivers\etc, and then click OK.

Note If you are using 64 bit version of Windows, type %systemroot% \SysWOW64\drivers\etc.
Rename the hosts file to hosts.bak.

Create the new default hosts file. To do this, follow these steps:

Right-click an open space in the %WinDir%\system32\drivers\etc folder, point to New, click Text Document, type hosts, and then press ENTER.
Click Yes to confirm that the file name extension will not be txt.
Open the new created hosts file in a text editor, for example, in the Notepad.

Copy the following text to the file:

For Windows XP or Windows Server 2003

# Copyright (c) 1993-1999 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

127.0.0.1       localhost

For Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008

# Copyright (c) 1993-2006 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

127.0.0.1       localhost
::1             localhost

For Windows 7

# Copyright (c) 1993-2006 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 handle within DNS itself.
#       127.0.0.1       localhost
#       ::1             localhost

Save and close the file.

Back to the top

Did this fix the problem?

Check whether the problem is fixed. If the problem is fixed, you are finished with this article. If the problem is not fixed, you can contact support (http://support.microsoft.com/contactus) .

Back to the top