DirectAccess asking for proxy credentials

I just love DirectAccess. It enables me to connect to my company network from any location and any internet provider.

But lately, since I started using Windows 8, I encountered a problem. If there was no problem then I wouldn't be writing this, would I ;)

The problem is related to proxy servers. Whenever I go to the place, where I need to enter proxy server to get access to the internet and then later remove this proxy, DirectAccess client starts to prompt me to enter proxy credentials!? The final result of this problem is that I can't connect to my company’s network using DirectAccess.

So I started digging and found this workaround. I tested it on my notebook and it worked. I cannot guaranty that this solution is universal and that it will work for all. I also can’t guarantee that by doing this we don’t “brake” something else. This is my finding, I don't say it's correct one but it makes my DirectAccess work again?

I found registry key under which few latest proxy addresses are stored:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\iphlpsvc\Parameters\ProxyMgr

And now my solution:
- Export registry key ProxyMgr in case we need it later (link: How to export registry key).
- Remove (delete) all registry keys under registry key ProxyMgr (see on the picture below).

- All I needed to do next was to restart the computer and my DirectAccess started working again.

This is it for today and have fun!

Internal URL's instead of IE Searches

A day or two ago I tried to reach our company's internal web site using short name in Internet Explorer 10 and was constantly diverted to my favorite search engine site.

By short name I mean that I entered InternalWebSiteName (without http:// in-front of it) in the address bar like shown in example below.

After entering InternalWebSiteName, I hit enter and was always diverted to my favorite search engine search results :(

Now here are two tips how to avoid this and reach internal web sites by it's short names. Quick and easy :)

Tip 1:
Enable setting in IE. Setting is hidden under:
IE \ Tools \ Internet Options \ Advanced.
Enable 'Go to an intranet site for a single word entry in the Address bar'.

Tip 2:
Just type a forward slash '/' after the InternalWebSiteName. That will send it out as an URL.

This is it for today and it's so easy.

Have fun!