Is there a way to 'include' a separate file in /etc/hosts?

Question

Is there any way to 'include' another file within the /etc/hosts file? Particularly I want to include a non-protected (-rw-rw-rw) file so I can easily edit it in something like TextMate without having to issue sudo vi /etc/hosts

I'm on OS X, but as far as I know, this should be relevant in other *nix OSs.

Solution 1

I do not believe there is any way to include other files into a hosts file.

Would it be possible to make /etc/hosts group-writable by a group that only includes you (and any other users who need to edit it)?

Solution 2

Keep a hosts.base file and then write a simple script to build a complete, combined hosts file with that hosts.base file and the other files you want to include. You can cron it or execute on demand.

Comments

[DWilliams]

Wouldn't this be a security risk if it were even possible?

[lawnmowerlatte]

Probably, but I thought it was worth asking.

[pion]

See also superuser.com/questions/381138/…

[bogeymin]

This is how I do it for local development. I keep a separate file for each project in a specific location, and run a script that combines the base with the project files.

[fuxes]

@bogeymin do you have a snippet of how that script looks like?