hosts file

[JIP]

Just saw a reference to a hosts file, and it says the filename must be in
capitals, i.e HOSTS. Is that so, and why?

Cheers

[Vernon Hardapple]

You're using Windows?

JIP wrote:
> Just saw a reference to a hosts file, and it says the filename must be in
> capitals, i.e HOSTS. Is that so, and why?
>
> Cheers
>
>

[David H. Lipman]

From: "JIP" <JIP@thatplace.com>

| Just saw a reference to a hosts file, and it says the filename must be in
| capitals, i.e HOSTS. Is that so, and why?
|
| Cheers
|

In Win32 environments the filenames; hosts and HOSTS are the same and are interpreted
equally.

In Unix/Linux and in NFS the filenames; hosts and HOSTS are different and are interpreted
in their lowercase form, (Ex., etc/hosts)

--
Dave
http://www.claymania.com/removal-trojan-adware.html
http://www.ik-cs.com/got-a-virus.htm

[AvianFlux]

So, upper-, lower-cased lettered hosts file make no difference on a
Windows XP machine? What is NFS?

[David H. Lipman]

From: "AvianFlux" <neomoniker@hotmail.com>

| So, upper-, lower-cased lettered hosts file make no difference on a
| Windows XP machine? What is NFS?

I should have said Win32/Win64. However, that covers the present Windows OS's including
WinXP and WinXP/64.

NFS - Networking File System -- A standard for TCP/IP file sharing in heterogeneous systems

--
Dave
http://www.claymania.com/removal-trojan-adware.html
http://www.ik-cs.com/got-a-virus.htm

[JIP]

Thanks

[Doc]

"JIP" <JIP@thatplace.com> wrote in
news:424ae64f$0$26488$ed2e19e4@ptn-nntp-reader04.plus.net:

> Just saw a reference to a hosts file, and it says the filename must be
> in capitals, i.e HOSTS. Is that so, and why?
>
> Cheers
>
>


I don't know whether it makes a difference or not (appears not to in
winME here), but why take a chance ? All MS info says to use capitals but
it seems to be critical in SOME circumstances only. Again, why take a
chance ?

--
Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving
safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in
broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out and loudly proclaiming
"WOW, WHAT A RIDE"

[David H. Lipman]

From: "Doc" <postmaster@[127.0.0.1]>


| I don't know whether it makes a difference or not (appears not to in
| winME here), but why take a chance ? All MS info says to use capitals but
| it seems to be critical in SOME circumstances only. Again, why take a
| chance ?
|
| --
| Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving
| safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in
| broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out and loudly proclaiming
| "WOW, WHAT A RIDE"

I do know !

HOSTS and hosts are the same file and are interpreted equally on; Win9x/ME, NT4, Win2k,
WinXP and Win2003 Server.

The statemant "...to be critical in SOME circumstances..." is false.

Prove it to yourself. The hosts file is in the directory pointed to by the envronmental
variable %windir% therefore by default it is %windir%\hosts = c:\windows\hosts

Create a file called 'hosts' and save it in c:\windows.
Now create a file called HOSTS and save it in c:\windows. The result, 'hosts' will be
overwritten and replaced by 'HOSTS'.

In Unix/Linux it would be ./etc/hosts
Now if you create a file and called it HOSTS and saved it in ./etc
you will have in the ./etc folder a 'hosts' file and a 'HOSTS' file. Both will exist. The
same goes for folders.

In Unix/Linux the folder /pub is not the same as /PUB
Example: ftp://ftp.3com.com/ where you'll see both.
They might point to the same place but they are two distinctly different folders.
On a Windows platorm you can't create \pub if \PUB already exists.


--
Dave
http://www.claymania.com/removal-trojan-adware.html
http://www.ik-cs.com/got-a-virus.htm

[Ian JP Kenefick]

On Thu, 31 Mar 2005 16:04:27 GMT, "David H. Lipman"
<DLipman~nospam~@Verizon.Net> wrote:

Here are the specific vulnerabilities made famous by high profile
Blaster and Sasser worms respectivly. Both of these cause your system
to reboot. Not because the virus reboots your system but it's the way
Windows is set up. In the event of rpc service or lsass service
failure your system recovers these by rebooting. This is done by
design. The virus exploits this in order to make sure it is run every
time windows runs.

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sec.../MS03-026.mspx
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sec.../MS04-011.mspx
--

Regards,
Ian Kenefick
www.ik-cs.com/got-a-virus.htm

[JIP]

I wasn't planning to take a chance, I just wanted an explanation!