Host file install for Windows

From HostBaby Wiki

The 'host file install' is a way to start using our Wizard website creator without changing where your domain name currently points.

Step 1

We'll need to start up the Notepad program, so click the Start button on the lower left of your screen:

Step 2

... then look for something like Programs or All Programs then Accessories and finally Notepad:

Step 3

The Notepad program will appear as a blank white window. Click the File menu item then select Open...:

Step 4

From the Open dialog box, navigate to My Computer then the C: drive

Step 5

In the C drive let's now look for a folder named something like Windows or WinXP or even WinNT, depending on which

version of Windows you have on your computer

Step 6

Within the Windows folder, look for another folder named system32 and enter that

Step 7

Within the system32 folder, look for another folder named drivers and enter that

Step 8

Within the drivers folder, look for another folder named etc and enter that:

Step 9

Within the etc folder, you won't see any files listed because Notepad (by default) looks for Text Documents(.txt)

so click on the Files of type box and select the All Files option

Step 10

With the All Files option selected, you'll see the hosts file listed. Select that.

Step 11

Your hosts file should look very similar to what's below. We'll need to go to the very bottom of the file and add a brand new

line:

Step 12

At the very bottom of the file copy+paste the line that we sent you instead of the

67.139.134.232 wizard.yourdomain.com

example below

Step 13

Now that we've added the new line, we'll need to save the changes. Click on the File menu item at the top, then Save. After saving,

you can close the Notepad window.

IMPORTANT! You will need to reboot your computer for this change to go into effect

After your computer restarts, open your browser and go to http://wizard.yourdomain.com/hostbaby (substitute

'yourdomain' with your website name). Make sure that your browser does not insert 'www' into the URL. If it does, you'll need to

delete them. Bookmark the login so it's easy to come back to. And let us know if you get stuck!

Step 14

After your computer is restarted, open your browser and type the following into your URL bar

http://wizard.yourdomain.com/

(substitute your website name for 'yourdomain.com')

You should see the "Coming Soon" page. This where you can view your site every time you publish.

To work on your domain, go to http://wizard.yourdomainname.com/hostbaby

Make sure not to use 'www' when you look at your domain. Sometimes browsers are tricky and will insert it when you are not looking :)