How to Set a Proxy With Netsh

Netsh is a command-line utility released by Microsoft for Windows computers. It lets you alter the network configuration of a system your account has administrative access to, using the command line. Although the Netsh tool has been available for some time, the Windows 7 and Windows 2008 Server versions of the utility have been enhanced to support new features and commands. One such feature is the winhttp context option, which allows you to modify the system's HTTP settings, such as its proxy server.

Step 1

Log into the Windows 7 or Windows 2008 Server computer with an administrative account.

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Step 2

Open the Start menu by clicking the Windows logo on the taskbar and then type "Command Prompt" (all typing without the quotation marks).

Step 3

Press and hold "Ctrl" and "Shift" and "Enter" on the keyboard. You will be asked to confirm running the application with administrator privileges. Click "Yes."

Step 4

Type "netsh winhttp set proxy proxy-server=

bypass-list=" and replace

with the Internet Protocol or hostname and port of your proxy server. A typical such address is "192.168.2.3:8080." Replace with a partial matching list of domains for which the proxy server is not used. For example, if your local domain is "somenetwork.net," you could allow all "somenetwork.net" addresses to be accessed without using the proxy by entering "*.somenetwork.net."

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