Just if case you don’t know, the Hosts file is where you can manually enter a hostname and an IP address pair, thereby bypassing the DNS server. This can be pretty useful in certain situation, especially for anyone in IT.

The path to the Hosts file in Windows 7 is the same as usual:

%systemroot%\system32\drivers\etc\

where %systemroot% is usually c:\windows unless you installed Windows on a different partition. By default, you cannot see these hidden folders since they are system folders.

To show hidden folders in Windows 7, press the ALT key while in Explorer to bring up the File menu. Click on Tools and then Folder Options.

Click on the View tab and then click on the Show hidden files, folders, and drives radio button under Hidden files and folders.

Now navigate to the directory above and open the hosts file and make your changes.

Note that this method for editing the Hosts file will not work. You will get a message saying you do not have permission to save in this location.

In order to edit it, you have to click on Start, type in Notepad and then right-click on Notepad and choose Run as Administrator.

Now navigate to the drivers/etc folder again and make sure to choose All files for File Types otherwise you won’t see the Hosts file.

Make your changes to the Hosts file and click File and Save to save all changes. Now you will not get the error about not being able to modify the Hosts file. Enjoy!

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Windows 7 – Edit the Hosts file

Case in point. IE 8 will now show you this annoying little message (almost like an ad) whenever you type something into the address bar:

Download Windows Search to improve history and favorites results

Thanks buddy, but maybe I don’t care about Windows Search! Maybe it’s not the best search tool in the world and hence I have not installed it on my computer. But that won’t stop Microsoft from forcing you to use it.

The official web page for this message on Microsoft Support only gives you two solutions to fix this problem: Download Windows Search and Enable Windows Search. Wow. You’re kidding me right.

What’s even more ridiculous about this is that there is a way to disable it, but they don’t tell you. Oh and wait till you hear how it has to be disabled, probably the most forced down your throat thing you’ve ever heard of.

So in order to get rid of this message, you have to click on the link at least once and then wait for 7 days to pass before it goes away!!! Have you heard of anything more retarded?

Personally, I don’t think Microsoft should be treating us like babies who don’t know how to use their computers. If Windows Search was so fabulous that we would die without it, we would have read about it on blogs, websites, etc.

If you don’t want to wait 7 days, you can try a few other things. Click on Start, type CMD and open the command prompt. Now type in the following:

[REG ADD "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Search" /v CurrentVersion /t REG_SZ /d 99 /f ]

This should work for Windows Vista and Windows 7. It may not work for Windows Server 2008 though.

The only other way to disable it is to disable auto complete in IE. I personally don’t like to do that because I use auto complete quite a bit. But if you don’t care, you can go to Internet Options, Content tab, click on Settings, and then uncheck the autocomplete entries.

Anyway, not the best solution, but works. Otherwise, just sit there for 7 days until the stupid message goes away!

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Remove “Download Windows Search to improve history and favorite results” in IE 8

However, if you buy an upgrade edition of Windows 7, then you have to have to perform the fresh install by first starting the setup from within Windows XP. Confused?

The reason this is important is because if you do it incorrectly, you will end up with the following error code:

The following failure occurred while trying to use the product key: Code: 0xC004F061

You can receive this error code for several reasons:

1. You popped in the Windows 7 DVD while logged into your current OS and then restarted the computer. You then used the upgrade product key during the install.
2. You performed what is called a keyless custom install or a clean install of Windows 7 and used the upgrade product key.
3. Windows 7 determines that the Windows Anytime Upgrade product key is not valid.

Here’s how you can solve each of these problems and get Windows 7 up and running properly.

To fix the first issue, you have to log onto your computer and start the install from within the OS. Do NOT restart your computer because that becomes a clean install.

For the second issue where you already went ahead and did a clean install by accident, you’re kind of in a crappy situation. There are only two ways to fix it: either use a Full Package Product key or install the previous OS and then go the installation again from within the new OS.

I have also heard that you might be able to call Microsoft and give them the product key for your old OS and they will give you a new product key for Windows 7 without you having to reinstall the old OS, so give that a shot.

If Windows determines the product key is invalid, you’ll have to use a Full Package Product key. This usually means the product key is fake or used for piracy.

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Error code 0xC004F061 when trying to activate Windows 7 or Vista

You can get the the User Account Control Settings dialog by click on the Start button and typing uac into the search box. Then click the link to to change the UAC settings.

Here you can now move the slider to four different settings:

• Always Notify
• Notify me only when programs try to make changes to my computer
• Notify me only when programs try to make changes to my computer (do not dim my desktop)
• Never Notify

This is where you can turn off or disable UAC in Windows 7. However, I would recommend not turning it off completely since they now give you a selection of choices so that you don’t have a pop-up message every time you make some small change to your computer.

The Always Notify setting will always pop up a message any time you install a program or when a program tries to make a change to the computer. Also, any change it Windows settings will bring up a UAC box.

The second setting in my bullet list will notify you only when programs try to make changes, not when you install a program or when you make changes to your Windows settings.

The third setting is the same as the second, but your desktop will not be dimmed! The dimming is called secure desktop. You can also disable secure desktop using a registry hack so that it does not affect which UAC setting you decide to go with. I would recommend this setting for most people.

The last setting, Never Notify, will never warn you about anything, including changes to your Windows settings. Not good if you end up getting malware or something like that. Enjoy!

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Windows 7 – How to configure UAC (User Account Control)