What is the "WinHTTP Web Proxy Auto-Discovery Service (WinHttpAutoProxySvc)" system service on Windows Server 2008? Can I disable "WinHTTP Web Proxy Auto-Discovery Service"?

"WinHTTP Web Proxy Auto-Discovery Service (WinHttpAutoProxySvc)" is a Windows Server 2008 service that implements the client HTTP stack and provides developers with a Win32 API and COM Automation component for sending HTTP requests and receiving responses. In addition, WinHTTP provides support for auto-discovering a proxy configuration via its implementation of the Web Proxy Auto-Discovery (WPAD) protocol.

Detailed information on "WinHTTP Web Proxy Auto-Discovery Service" service:

Service name: WinHttpAutoProxySvc
Display name: WinHTTP Web Proxy Auto-Discovery Service
Execution command: 
   C:\Windows\System32\svchost.exe -k LocalService
Dependencies: 
   DHCP Client
Impacts:
   IP Helper

"WinHTTP Web Proxy Auto-Discovery Service" service is provided by the svchost.exe program, see "svchost.exe Executable Program on Windows Server 2008" for details.

Disabling "WinHTTP Web Proxy Auto-Discovery Service" service should not cause any issues on running Windows Server 2008. If you are not writing programs using the WinHTTP API, you can disable "WinHTTP Web Proxy Auto-Discovery Service" to improve system performance and security.

⇒List of Services on Windows Server 2008

⇒⇒Windows Server 2008 Tutorials