DNS Client/Hosts File

[NeilJ]

I've read disabling DNS Client & using a good Hosts file provides safer &
faster web browsing. I'm using IE7. Just thought I would check with people
that know what they're doing before I go messing around with something I'm
not sure of. Any expert advice is appericated.
Thanks,
NJ

 

[Robert L. \(MS-MVP\)]

To use hosts file, you need to manually enter all information. Hosts file
may be used in a special case. For example, www.chicagotech.net has two
public Ip addresses, you want to go to one of them always. Then you may want
to use hosts file to point to the IP..

--
Bob Lin, MS-MVP, MCSE & CNE
Networking, Internet, Routing, VPN Troubleshooting on
http://www.ChicagoTech.net
How to Setup Windows, Network, VPN & Remote Access on
http://www.HowToNetworking.com

 

[Anteaus]

Worth mentioning that the "DNS Client" doesn't PROVIDE you with DNS. It just
caches DNS requests. Sometimes this can be a disadvantage, particularly if
you run your own local DNS server.

For <5 hosts I'd just use the (LM)HOSTS files. For a larger network use the
MS DNS Server if you have a Windows Server. If not, dnsmasq (Linux) or
MaraDNS (Windows) are free alternatives.