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Display Name (?):

WinHTTP Web Proxy Auto-Discovery Service

Short Name (?):

WinHttpAuthProxySvc

Executable (?):

svchost.exe

Library (?):

winhttp.dll

Depends On (?):

None.

Supports (?):

None.

Description (?):

Implements the Web Proxy Auto-Discovery (WPAD) protocol for Windows HTTP Services (WinHTTP). WPAD is a protocol to enable an HTTP client to automatically discover a proxy configuration. If this service is stopped or disabled, the WPAD protocol will be executed within the HTTP client's process instead of an external service process; there would be no loss of functionality as a result.

OS (?):

2000 Server, Vista Server

Startup (?):

Default	Home	Workstation	Server	Minimal	Tweaked	Automatic
Manual	Manual	Manual	Automatic	Disabled	Disabled	Disabled

Explanation (?):

The WinHTTP Web Proxy Auto-Discovery Service extends Web proxy auto discovery (WPAD) outside of a client program. This is a complex way of saying that this service will look for a proxy server, which alleviates the task from a web browser (such as Internet Explorer). My guess is that only Windows native browsers, such as Internet Explorer and Windows HTTP APIs, will use this external service. My assumption is that this service exists as a security feature to do auto discovery under credentials more advanced than the user so that it can properly configure the user's network settings. This service is not needed so I would suggest setting it to manual, unless you know you need it. If this service is not running then the web client will use its own internal proxy auto-discovery so no functionality should be lost.