HOSTNAME.EXE
Summary
Windows Hostname utility - displays the hostname of the current computer.
HOSTNAME.EXE is the 1265th most commonly executed Windows program in EchoTrail's dataset, observed 1,135 times across enterprise environments. It typically runs from C:\Windows\SysWOW64 and it is most often launched by powershell.exe.
Behavior
Top Paths
- C:\Windows\SysWOW6474.36%
- C:\Windows\System3223.08%
- C:\...2.47%
- C:\Users\...0.09%
Top Hashes (SHA256)
- 27beda21bd353284260f10c4c1c644f81ebd4bef38915187f25b935ee987a37538.19%
- 379cba8d0a1288e316126ac75a354c03be76a61ead6bd5ec6c72ed7da3dc49d922.11%
- a651dc6de099bbb2dbad082fd4d61c6d6a759d6dff4d95fcb00686be403627dd15.95%
- b8da5a3ae4371e63dfd2f468e29cc23aa6f98a6a357a67955996f8f61e58fba18.86%
- 76bfa38d580c3b2982c4f78df7c7ccbcc6a9383753e34f9968727bac7b53b6b25.7%
- 45a9da2241c0cd50b647b77d4b6aff35b7b4732de9e6c0458db6f4a360e6da853.06%
- 72261af9305cd08e78fcfc6f083b2e057bfd73b8a423da2fadc5a6a02a8973402.37%
- 1bff2907c456f99277f45f9b2a21b1b3f11f6c01587d9e6d6f0b2b5f1472fe921.12%
- c992e93be921a11e753e73b58cf1d416cfe76fa2343ea5372b8d1041b91c05370.92%
- ef6c46a2e5270853a3e47a064a726a76ff0b2aa5a1bbacb895e7142d5c1167100.89%
Process Ancestry
Top Grandparents
- jumpcloud-agent.exe84.97%
- Asusgiftbox.exe6.07%
- svchost.exe5.22%
- explorer.exe2.37%
- WmiPrvSE.exe0.95%
- cmd.exe0.37%
- Taskmgr.exe0.05%
Top Children
- conhost.exe100%
Rare or environment-specific process names are omitted from ancestry tables. Percentages are of all observed relationships.
Security Analysis
What does HOSTNAME.EXE normally do?
Simple utility that prints the computer name. Used in scripts and troubleshooting.
When is HOSTNAME.EXE suspicious?
Part of an enumeration chain with whoami, ipconfig, systeminfo, net.
How do attackers abuse HOSTNAME.EXE?
Basic reconnaissance command used by attackers to orient themselves after gaining access. Minimal standalone risk but common in enumeration scripts.
Detection guidance
Flag as part of enumeration chains rather than in isolation.
False positive notes
Extremely common in scripts, logon processes, and troubleshooting.
MITRE ATT&CK techniques
Related Processes
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Data from EchoTrail's dataset of ~346M Windows process executions. Last extracted 2026-08-04.