Updating the hosts file

The hosts file contains IP address and host name mapping information. You must manually update the hosts file if there is no fully-qualified domain name for the Information Manager appliance. You must also manually update the hosts file if you do not use a Domain Name System (DNS) server. You must add the IP address and host name information that is relevant to Information Manager and to the collectors that collect event data. Host names must be fully-qualified domain names.

See Before you install collectors.

To update the hosts file

1. Navigate to the directory of the hosts file as follows:

   • On Windows, the hosts file is located in C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\etc folder.

   • On UNIX, the hosts file is located in the /etc directory.

2. Use a text editor, such as Notepad for Windows, or vi for UNIX, to open the hosts file.

3. Add the IP address and host name entries for the Information Manager appliance. Follow the instructions that are provided in the hosts file to add IP address and host name mapping information to the file.

   Use a tab between the IP address and host name.

4. After you have added the IP address and host name, save and close the file.

   You should ensure that the text editor that you use did not add a file extension.