Web Content Downloads Slowly During SSL Sessions (320037)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 for Windows NT 4.0 SP 1
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 for Windows NT 4.0 SP 2
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01 for Windows 2000 SP 2
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01 for Windows NT 4.0 SP 1
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01 for Windows NT 4.0 SP 2
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 for Windows Millennium Edition SP 1
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 for Windows Millennium Edition SP 2
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 for Windows 98 Second Edition SP 1
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 for Windows 98 Second Edition SP 2
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01 for Windows 98 Second Edition SP 1
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01 for Windows 98 Second Edition SP 2
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 for Windows 2000 SP 1
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 for Windows 2000 SP 2
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01 for Windows 2000 SP 1
This article was previously published under Q320037

SYMPTOMS

When you connect to a secure site over Secure Socket Layer (SSL) and through a proxy server, Web site content may download slower, compared to a direct connection to the same Web site.

CAUSE

Internet Explorer 5.x does not support the use of proxy keep-alives for an SSL session.

When Internet Explorer establishes an SSL session through a proxy server, the Proxy-Connection: Keep-Alive header is not maintained. This causes Internet Explorer to re-negotiate the SSL handshake for every request to a secure site, and this may cause noticeable delays in downloading the content through the proxy server as compared to not using a proxy server.

RESOLUTION

Internet Explorer 5.01

To resolve this problem, either upgrade to Internet Explorer 6 or upgrade to Internet Explorer 5.5 and then obtain the supported fix that is described later in this article. For additional information about how to obtain the latest Internet Explorer 6 service pack, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

328548 How to Obtain the Latest Service Pack for Internet Explorer 6

Internet Explorer 5.5

To resolve this problem, either upgrade to Internet Explorer 6 or obtain the supported fix that is described later in this article. For additional information about how to obtain the latest Internet Explorer 6 service pack, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

328548 How to Obtain the Latest Service Pack for Internet Explorer 6

A supported fix is now available from Microsoft, but it is only intended to correct the problem that is described in this article. Apply it only to systems that are experiencing this specific problem.

To resolve this problem, contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the fix. For a complete list of Microsoft Product Support Services phone numbers and information about support costs, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh;EN-US;CNTACTMS

Note In special cases, charges that are ordinarily incurred for support calls may be canceled if a Microsoft Support Professional determines that a specific update will resolve your problem. The usual support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for the specific update in question.

IMPORTANT: You should install the February, 2003 Cumulative Patch for Internet Explorer before you install this fix. For additional information about this update, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

810847 MS03-004: February, 2003, Cumulative Patch for Internet Explorer

If you installed this fix before you installed the February, 2003 Cumulative Patch for Internet Explorer, you must reinstall this fix.

The English version of this fix has the file attributes (or later) that are listed in the following tables. The dates and times for these files are listed in coordinated universal time (UTC). When you view the file information, it is converted to local time. To find the difference between UTC and local time, use the Time Zone tab in the Date and Time tool in Control Panel. 
   Date         Time   Version            Size    File name
   --------------------------------------------------------------
   17-Dec-2002  20:40  5.50.4924.1700    482,064  Wininet.dll

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, use a transparent proxy configuration. A transparent proxy is a proxy configuration where Internet Explorer has access to the Internet through the proxy/firewall, and Internet Explorer is not configured to use any proxy setting.

The use of the Winsock Proxy Client that is provided with Microsoft Proxy Server 1.0, Microsoft Proxy Server 2.0, and the ISA Firewall Client that is provided with Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration (ISA) Server are examples of what is considered a transparent proxy configuration because these client utilities allow programs to access the Internet without the program knowing that a proxy/firewall is being used.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

This problem was corrected in Internet Explorer 6.0.
Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:10/19/2005
Keywords:kbHotfixServer kbQFE kbenv kbnetwork kbprb KB320037
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