Including Port numbers in %systemroot%\system32\drivers\etc\hosts File

Question

Is it possible to include port numbers in hosts file? Reason that I'm asking is because I have sites that I'm trying to migrate from one hosting server to another, and the sites are pointing to an old SQL server that uses the standard TCP/IP port (1433). On the new server, the SQL Server port is different, and I don't want to change the connection strings for these sites.

Thank you!

Answer 1

You can configure an alias in the SQL Configuration Management tool. Is designed to cover exactly this scenario.

Answer 2

This is not possible in the host file. DNS doesn't know anything about port numbers.

Answer 3

The hosts file translates host names to IP addresses (and vice-versa). You can't include port numbers.

Answer 4

You could set up a router to do port forwarding at the new site, and—if not already routed through the router, then give the router's address as the new host.

Answer 5

If this helps anyone I definded mine as follows, in the hosts file:

xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx  MyServer

The MyServer works on a specific port.

The when SQL Server 2005 management studio asks for 'server name' when creating a connection, I entered 'Myserver,1234' where 1234 was the port number.

Since it remembers them in a drop down for next time, this was good enough for me.