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Automating a change of proxy server

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by phil.s.rose

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We currently run Internet Explorer 5.0 on several hundred PC's in the organisation. We need to change the current connection to point to our new proxy server (eg current connection is to server1 needs to be changed to server2). Is there any way thiscould be automated (maybe by changing the registry setting).
I know it would be relativly simple to e-mail each user with step by step instructions to manualy change the setting. But if there is a simple (and easy!) way to automate it It would makea more elegant solution.

3 replies

by joseph moore

The proxy settings are in:
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings]

ProxyEnable = 1 -- turns the using proxy flag on.
ProxyServer = xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx:xx -- IP address and port of your proxy
ProxyOverride = *.domain.com; *.domain2.com -- lists all domains you want your users to NOT use the proxy for to connect (like internal web sites)

For example, this script will set a few domain names in the ProxyOverride setting:

REGEDIT4

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings]

"ProxyOverride"="*.yahoo.com;*.cnn.com; 10.*.*.*; *.mydomain.com"

So, set up a single workstation to the way you want it, then go to the location in the Registry, and choose Registry -> Export Registry File.

Then, you can have the user login scripts do the import. Just copy the .REG file (the exported Registry piece) onto your domain controllers Netlogon share (or Sysvol share if you run Win2K Domain Controllers with Active Directory). Then, in the logon scripts, add this line:

CALL REGEDIT /S MYREGFILE.REG

That is all there is too it. The REG file will be "silently" imported into the users workstation Registry. It will do the import without prompting if it should do it; it will also NOT say what it did. That way, the users don't know what happened.

Hope this helps.

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