Unable to block msn.com using host file

[Cooky]

Does anyone know if msn.com is hardcoded into windows so that it cannot be blocked?
I listed both msn.com and www.msn.com in my host file w/ 127.0.0.1, reopen the browser, and even flushed the dns cache. Both IE and Firefox still somehow connect me to their website.

Could someone please tell me if you could block the site via the host file?
I'm running Win XP SP2.

thanks.

 

[mobilecommand]

I think this is the order of name resolution on a windows pc

cache
wins server
broadcasting
lmhosts
hosts
Dns

Basically you are looking to your localhost for a web server and it does not find one.. So windows continues to search the above name resolution order till it finds what it needs or times out and gets nothing.. So since you are not running a web server local it keeps going.. Now

Your best bet if you run internal dns to make a new zone msn.com and make a new "a" record and point www to something else.. Once your dns server resolves msn.com it will not foward to the root hints and resolve to the proper address

Mind you if you run your own dns server doing the above will disable it for all users..

If you are not running you own dns you can try to disable the network at the router "Pinging www.msn.com.nsatc.net [207.68.172.234]"

Doing the above could lock you out of any other internet services on that net

other then that you are looking into some proxy, web filtering software..

 

[Cooky]

Thank you for your quick reply.

I am aware of the solutions that mobilecommand has suggested and I know how to complete the necessary steps, but could somebody please tell me why my host file can block any other websites, except msn.com?

Here's part of my host file:
127.0.0.1 localhost
127.0.0.1 msn.com
127.0.0.1 acestats.com
127.0.0.1 www.acestats.com

As of now, I cannot access acestats.com, but msn.com shows up in my browser. I tried 2 other different Windows machines and this is the only machine that behaves this way...really weird.