[Memo] Methods to Access Google (Updated)

June 13: Updated with a new available IP, though it is uncertain how long it will remain functional.

In the past, people mostly used this technique to access websites like Facebook and YouTube. Now, unfortunately, even Google must be accessed using this method.

Recently, I discovered that entering http://www.google.com.hk directly no longer allows access to Google Search. It is important to realize how serious the absence of Google is for academic research; many useful academic materials, especially foreign language resources, rely on Google for searching. Subjectively speaking, in the field of academia, it is impossible for Baidu to catch up with Google—it cannot even hope to compare.

Searching online, I found that I am not the only one facing this problem. There have even been rumors such as “Google completely withdrawing from China? Hong Kong domain google.com.hk cannot be opened!” and similar speculations. Regardless of the facts, I still need to use Google. If direct access is not possible, I must find another way.

Actually, this method is an old story. While direct access to http://www.google.com.hk fails, one can directly access certain Google IPs, such as 203.208.46.177, 203.208.46.178, 203.208.46.146, and 173.194.127.19. After finding a working IP, you can modify the hosts file located in the C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc directory. (In Windows 8, you cannot modify this file directly with Notepad; you need to copy the file to a non-system directory, modify it, and then copy it back to overwrite the original file.)

Add the following lines to the hosts file:

173.194.127.19 www.google.com.hk
173.194.127.19 google.com.hk
173.194.127.19 www.google.com
173.194.127.19 google.com

This way, you can use http://www.google.com.hk to access Google. No matter how the search engine landscape changes, the necessity of using Google remains unchanged.