maza

maza start | stop | update | status | --help

maza is a local ad blocker written in Bash that works by modifying /etc/hosts. It points advertising and tracking domains to 127.0.0.1, so connections to them fail in every browser and application on the system.By default it downloads Peter Lowe's (pgl.yoyo.org) ad server list. Another list, such as Steven Black's hosts file, can be used by setting URL_DNS_LIST_CUSTOM at the top of the script. Blocked entries are written between Maza start and end markers, so stop removes them without touching the rest of the hosts file.

start

Download the blocklist and add it to /etc/hosts (same as update).

Remove the Maza block from /etc/hosts and empty the generated dnsmasq list.

Download the latest blocklist, apply ignore and custom lists, and rewrite the Maza block in /etc/hosts.

Show whether blocking is enabled.

Show usage.

~/.config/maza/ignore

Domains never to block (one per line). Created with safe defaults such as localhost.

Extra domains to block (one per line).

Generated list in dnsmasq format (address=/domain/127.0.0.1), for use with a local dnsmasq server to also block subdomains.

Requires root/sudo access, Bash 4+ and curl (macOS also needs GNU sed as gsed). The hosts file does not support wildcards, so subdomains are only blocked through the dnsmasq output. It does not back up /etc/hosts; the author recommends copying it first. Cannot block ads served from the same domain as content. Browsers using DNS over HTTPS may bypass the hosts file.

maza was created in 2020 by Andros Fenollosa as a simple, local Bash alternative to Pi-hole. It reached the top of Hacker News shortly after release.

pihole(1), hosts(5), hostctl(1), dnsmasq(8), unbound(8)

Source code · Homepage