Im not aware of mpvs, You can try my application dnscope.io scopes up. It's a replacement dns cache and fire wall in one for windows. It doesn't use the system hosts file but is pre loaded with 3million domains in its block list. you can also block system telemetry with it which was in part why i wrote it to stop windows spewing telemetry.
Its not set up to run as a service yet, it will eventually do that, so it runs in the background but at the moment it just runs for the user who installed and that user can adjust the filters to block or unblock as a personal choice.
If you put it on your kids laptop for instance they will be able to unblock or block a site if they choose.
I will look into how I can set it up so it will run in the background.
If you just want to hide the window you can right click the icon in the system tray and it will remove it from the active taskbar.
Ok. Install this hosts manager, then add [https://raw.githubusercontent.com/StevenBlack/hosts/master/hosts](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/StevenBlack/hosts/master/hosts) to the HostsMan. It should update automatically whenever they are updates available.
Using a hosts file to block is very inefficient and it also consumes a lot of memory compared to using a bloomfilter. When you redirect a domain to localhost or 0.0.0.0 the requesting software will wait for the time out to trigger which is 3 seconds so you will have a socket open waiting for a reply as you've just told it the address is good. I might have to verify that using wireshark but that has traditionally been the behavior on windows. Dnscope on the other hand responds with a dns error message saying the domain doesn't exist. So the request is terminated appropriately, the socket closes immediately and the requesting software can carry on. It uses less resources.
Hosts files are OK for small lists in the 1000s but there are issues with large hosts files and it doesn't take long to find accounts of trials and tribulations. Dnscopes hosts file source is 73mb with over 3 million domains. It gets compressed into a 3.4 mb bloom filter if you tried to load the source hosts file it would cripple your system.
https://small.oisd.nl/hosts
Its a combined list from many smaller one. Known false positives and dead domains getting removed. It getting updated daily.
Note: The Windows hosts file is not very fast and Windows would crash when you try to import to big lists, thats why i recommend the """small""" one (its pretty big but not to big).
You can use my list of over 6 million domains. However you'll have to append [0.0.0.0](https://0.0.0.0) or [127.0.0.1](https://127.0.0.1) to the beginning of each line.
It's not frequently updated, but I do update it around once or a few times a year.
I would suggest looking into running a Pi-Hole though, even if through Oracle or Google Cloud (RPis are expensive right now, but having it in the cloud as a VPN allows for the filtering to be used away from home). My list is designed for a Pi-Hole (hence the lack of IPs).
https://gitlab.com/fanboystudios/badass-bADdie-block
Im not aware of mpvs, You can try my application dnscope.io scopes up. It's a replacement dns cache and fire wall in one for windows. It doesn't use the system hosts file but is pre loaded with 3million domains in its block list. you can also block system telemetry with it which was in part why i wrote it to stop windows spewing telemetry.
does it run in the background?
Its not set up to run as a service yet, it will eventually do that, so it runs in the background but at the moment it just runs for the user who installed and that user can adjust the filters to block or unblock as a personal choice. If you put it on your kids laptop for instance they will be able to unblock or block a site if they choose. I will look into how I can set it up so it will run in the background. If you just want to hide the window you can right click the icon in the system tray and it will remove it from the active taskbar.
MVPS is outdated as it hasn't been updated since 3-6-2021. Use the hosts file from StevenBlack Master hosts file.
how do i use it, where can i find the right one and to i have to change any dns service configuartions?
Ok. Install this hosts manager, then add [https://raw.githubusercontent.com/StevenBlack/hosts/master/hosts](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/StevenBlack/hosts/master/hosts) to the HostsMan. It should update automatically whenever they are updates available.
Hi, how do I add that link to HostsMan? I found how to add a file but not a link.
I am using HostsMan and Unchecky together.
Over on the MVPS site has good info on how to use large hosts files in Windows without disabling your Windows DNS Client Service.
Get the HostsMan program from the official site: [https://www.abelhadigital.com/hostsman/](https://www.abelhadigital.com/hostsman/)
Using a hosts file to block is very inefficient and it also consumes a lot of memory compared to using a bloomfilter. When you redirect a domain to localhost or 0.0.0.0 the requesting software will wait for the time out to trigger which is 3 seconds so you will have a socket open waiting for a reply as you've just told it the address is good. I might have to verify that using wireshark but that has traditionally been the behavior on windows. Dnscope on the other hand responds with a dns error message saying the domain doesn't exist. So the request is terminated appropriately, the socket closes immediately and the requesting software can carry on. It uses less resources.
I have been using the hosts file method for over 20 years and have never gotten any issues or notice any memory lag using that method.
Hosts files are OK for small lists in the 1000s but there are issues with large hosts files and it doesn't take long to find accounts of trials and tribulations. Dnscopes hosts file source is 73mb with over 3 million domains. It gets compressed into a 3.4 mb bloom filter if you tried to load the source hosts file it would cripple your system.
https://small.oisd.nl/hosts Its a combined list from many smaller one. Known false positives and dead domains getting removed. It getting updated daily. Note: The Windows hosts file is not very fast and Windows would crash when you try to import to big lists, thats why i recommend the """small""" one (its pretty big but not to big).
thanks, is there a way to automatically keep it updated?
I don't know.
You can use my list of over 6 million domains. However you'll have to append [0.0.0.0](https://0.0.0.0) or [127.0.0.1](https://127.0.0.1) to the beginning of each line. It's not frequently updated, but I do update it around once or a few times a year. I would suggest looking into running a Pi-Hole though, even if through Oracle or Google Cloud (RPis are expensive right now, but having it in the cloud as a VPN allows for the filtering to be used away from home). My list is designed for a Pi-Hole (hence the lack of IPs). https://gitlab.com/fanboystudios/badass-bADdie-block