diff --git a/config-cli/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/cli/OverrideUtilTest.java b/config-cli/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/cli/OverrideUtilTest.java
index 8eb1861e20..bcc41e8e73 100644
--- a/config-cli/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/cli/OverrideUtilTest.java
+++ b/config-cli/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/cli/OverrideUtilTest.java
@@ -79,7 +79,8 @@ public void buildOptions() {
                 "unixSocketFile",
                 "useWhiteList",
                 "server.sslConfig.clientTrustCertificates",
-                "server.sslConfig.serverTrustCertificates"
+                "server.sslConfig.serverTrustCertificates",
+                "disablePeerDiscovery"
         );
 
         final Map<String, Class> results = OverrideUtil.buildConfigOptions();
@@ -304,7 +305,7 @@ public void convertTo() {
     @Test
     public void initialiseNestedObjects() {
 
-        Config config = new Config(null, null, null, null, null, null, true);
+        Config config = new Config(null, null, null, null, null, null, true,true);
 
         OverrideUtil.initialiseNestedObjects(config);
 
@@ -315,6 +316,7 @@ public void initialiseNestedObjects() {
         assertThat(config.getKeys()).isNotNull();
         assertThat(config.getPeers()).isEmpty();
         assertThat(config.getAlwaysSendTo()).isEmpty();
+        assertThat(config.isDisablePeerDiscovery()).isTrue();
 
     }
 
diff --git a/config-migration/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/builder/ConfigBuilder.java b/config-migration/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/builder/ConfigBuilder.java
index 7b26f8c441..0d823897b2 100644
--- a/config-migration/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/builder/ConfigBuilder.java
+++ b/config-migration/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/builder/ConfigBuilder.java
@@ -284,7 +284,7 @@ public Config build() {
             forwardingKeys = Collections.emptyList();
         }
 
-        return new Config(jdbcConfig, serverConfig, peerList, keyData, forwardingKeys, toPath(workDir, unixSocketFile), useWhiteList);
+        return new Config(jdbcConfig, serverConfig, peerList, keyData, forwardingKeys, toPath(workDir, unixSocketFile), useWhiteList,false);
     }
 
 }
diff --git a/config/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/Config.java b/config/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/Config.java
index dca376a3c3..57df24cce5 100644
--- a/config/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/Config.java
+++ b/config/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/Config.java
@@ -56,13 +56,17 @@ public class Config extends ConfigItem {
     @XmlAttribute
     private final boolean useWhiteList;
 
+    @XmlAttribute
+    private final boolean disablePeerDiscovery;
+    
     public Config(final JdbcConfig jdbcConfig,
                   final ServerConfig serverConfig,
                   final List<Peer> peers,
                   final KeyConfiguration keyConfiguration,
                   final List<String> alwaysSendTo,
                   final Path unixSocketFile,
-                  final boolean useWhiteList) {
+                  final boolean useWhiteList,
+                  final boolean disablePeerDiscovery) {
         this.jdbcConfig = jdbcConfig;
         this.serverConfig = serverConfig;
         this.peers = peers;
@@ -70,6 +74,7 @@ public Config(final JdbcConfig jdbcConfig,
         this.alwaysSendTo = alwaysSendTo;
         this.unixSocketFile = unixSocketFile;
         this.useWhiteList = useWhiteList;
+        this.disablePeerDiscovery = disablePeerDiscovery;
     }
 
     private static Config create() {
@@ -77,7 +82,7 @@ private static Config create() {
     }
 
     private Config() {
-        this(null, null, null, null, null, null, false);
+        this(null, null, null, null, null, null, false,false);
     }
 
     public JdbcConfig getJdbcConfig() {
@@ -108,4 +113,8 @@ public boolean isUseWhiteList() {
         return this.useWhiteList;
     }
 
+    public boolean isDisablePeerDiscovery() {
+        return disablePeerDiscovery;
+    }
+
 }
diff --git a/config/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/JaxbConfigFactory.java b/config/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/JaxbConfigFactory.java
index 34e866c219..38de05ed03 100644
--- a/config/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/JaxbConfigFactory.java
+++ b/config/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/JaxbConfigFactory.java
@@ -20,9 +20,9 @@
 public class JaxbConfigFactory implements ConfigFactory {
 
     private static final Set<PosixFilePermission> NEW_PASSWORD_FILE_PERMS = Stream
-        .of(PosixFilePermission.OWNER_READ, PosixFilePermission.OWNER_WRITE)
-        .collect(Collectors.toSet());
-    
+            .of(PosixFilePermission.OWNER_READ, PosixFilePermission.OWNER_WRITE)
+            .collect(Collectors.toSet());
+
     @Override
     public Config create(final InputStream configData, final List<KeyData> newKeys) {
 
@@ -33,12 +33,12 @@ public Config create(final InputStream configData, final List<KeyData> newKeys)
         if (Objects.nonNull(config.getKeys()) && !newKeys.isEmpty()) {
             try {
                 final List<String> newPasswords = newKeys
-                    .stream()
-                    .map(KeyData::getConfig)
-                    .map(KeyDataConfig::getPassword)
-                    .map(Optional::ofNullable)
-                    .map(pass -> pass.orElse(""))
-                    .collect(Collectors.toList());
+                        .stream()
+                        .map(KeyData::getConfig)
+                        .map(KeyDataConfig::getPassword)
+                        .map(Optional::ofNullable)
+                        .map(pass -> pass.orElse(""))
+                        .collect(Collectors.toList());
 
                 if (config.getKeys().getPasswords() != null) {
                     config.getKeys().getPasswords().addAll(newPasswords);
@@ -47,11 +47,11 @@ public Config create(final InputStream configData, final List<KeyData> newKeys)
                     Files.write(config.getKeys().getPasswordFile(), newPasswords, APPEND);
                 } else if (!newPasswords.stream().allMatch(""::equals)) {
                     final List<String> existingPasswords = config
-                        .getKeys()
-                        .getKeyData()
-                        .stream()
-                        .map(k -> "")
-                        .collect(Collectors.toList());
+                            .getKeys()
+                            .getKeyData()
+                            .stream()
+                            .map(k -> "")
+                            .collect(Collectors.toList());
                     existingPasswords.addAll(newPasswords);
 
                     this.createFile(Paths.get("passwords.txt"));
@@ -66,16 +66,17 @@ public Config create(final InputStream configData, final List<KeyData> newKeys)
 
         }
 
-        if(createdNewPasswordFile) {
+        if (createdNewPasswordFile) {
             //return a new object with the password file set
             return new Config(
-                config.getJdbcConfig(),
-                config.getServerConfig(),
-                config.getPeers(),
-                new KeyConfiguration(Paths.get("passwords.txt"), null, config.getKeys().getKeyData()),
-                config.getAlwaysSendTo(),
-                config.getUnixSocketFile(),
-                config.isUseWhiteList()
+                    config.getJdbcConfig(),
+                    config.getServerConfig(),
+                    config.getPeers(),
+                    new KeyConfiguration(Paths.get("passwords.txt"), null, config.getKeys().getKeyData()),
+                    config.getAlwaysSendTo(),
+                    config.getUnixSocketFile(),
+                    config.isUseWhiteList(),
+                    config.isDisablePeerDiscovery()
             );
         } else {
             //leave config untouched since it wasn't needed to make a new one
@@ -86,7 +87,7 @@ public Config create(final InputStream configData, final List<KeyData> newKeys)
     //create a file if it doesn't exist and set the permissions to be only
     // read/write for the creator
     private void createFile(final Path fileToMake) throws IOException {
-        if(Files.notExists(fileToMake)) {
+        if (Files.notExists(fileToMake)) {
             Files.createFile(fileToMake);
             Files.setPosixFilePermissions(fileToMake, NEW_PASSWORD_FILE_PERMS);
         }
diff --git a/config/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/ValidationTest.java b/config/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/ValidationTest.java
index 4a9cf5c2f0..82464b4d1c 100644
--- a/config/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/ValidationTest.java
+++ b/config/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/config/ValidationTest.java
@@ -101,7 +101,7 @@ public void invalidAlwaysSendTo() {
 
         List<String> alwaysSendTo = Arrays.asList("BOGUS");
 
-        Config config = new Config(null, null, null, null, alwaysSendTo, null, false);
+        Config config = new Config(null, null, null, null, alwaysSendTo, null, false,false);
 
         Set<ConstraintViolation<Config>> violations = validator.validateProperty(config, "alwaysSendTo");
 
@@ -120,7 +120,7 @@ public void validAlwaysSendTo() {
         
         List<String> alwaysSendTo = Arrays.asList(value);
 
-        Config config = new Config(null, null, null, null, alwaysSendTo, null, false);
+        Config config = new Config(null, null, null, null, alwaysSendTo, null, false,false);
 
         Set<ConstraintViolation<Config>> violations = validator.validateProperty(config, "alwaysSendTo");
 
diff --git a/grpc-service/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/grpc/StreamObserverTemplate.java b/grpc-service/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/grpc/StreamObserverTemplate.java
index 9edfcbd629..5ee50f53f7 100644
--- a/grpc-service/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/grpc/StreamObserverTemplate.java
+++ b/grpc-service/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/grpc/StreamObserverTemplate.java
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 package com.quorum.tessera.api.grpc;
 
+import com.quorum.tessera.node.AutoDiscoveryDisabledException;
 import io.grpc.stub.StreamObserver;
 import java.util.Objects;
 import javax.validation.ConstraintViolationException;
@@ -23,6 +24,9 @@ public void handle(StreamObserverCallback callback) {
             observer.onNext(r);
             observer.onCompleted();
 
+        } catch(AutoDiscoveryDisabledException ex) {
+            observer.onError(io.grpc.Status.PERMISSION_DENIED
+                    .withDescription(ex.getMessage()).asRuntimeException());
         } catch (ConstraintViolationException validationError) {
             observer.onError(io.grpc.Status.INVALID_ARGUMENT
                     .withCause(validationError)
diff --git a/grpc-service/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/grpc/StreamObserverTemplateTest.java b/grpc-service/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/grpc/StreamObserverTemplateTest.java
index e567f43c87..6decf70e1d 100644
--- a/grpc-service/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/grpc/StreamObserverTemplateTest.java
+++ b/grpc-service/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/grpc/StreamObserverTemplateTest.java
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 package com.quorum.tessera.api.grpc;
 
+import com.quorum.tessera.node.AutoDiscoveryDisabledException;
 import io.grpc.Status;
 import io.grpc.StatusRuntimeException;
 import io.grpc.stub.StreamObserver;
@@ -15,6 +16,7 @@
 import static org.mockito.Mockito.mock;
 import static org.mockito.Mockito.verify;
 import static org.mockito.Mockito.verifyNoMoreInteractions;
+import static org.mockito.Mockito.when;
 
 public class StreamObserverTemplateTest {
 
@@ -76,7 +78,6 @@ public void executeValidationError() {
     @Test
     public void executeOtherError() {
 
-
         Throwable exception = new Throwable("OUCH");
 
         template.handle(() -> {
@@ -87,4 +88,34 @@ public void executeOtherError() {
         verify(observer).onError(exception);
 
     }
+    
+    
+    @Test
+    public void executeAutoDiscoveryDisabled() {
+    
+        List<StatusRuntimeException> results = new ArrayList<>();
+        doAnswer((iom) -> {
+            results.add(iom.getArgument(0));
+            return null;
+        }).when(observer)
+                .onError(any(StatusRuntimeException.class));
+
+        final String exceptionMessage = "Sorry Dave I cant let you do that";
+        
+        AutoDiscoveryDisabledException exception = mock(AutoDiscoveryDisabledException.class);
+        when(exception.getMessage()).thenReturn(exceptionMessage);
+        
+
+        template.handle(() -> {
+            throw exception;
+        });
+
+        StatusRuntimeException result = results.stream().findAny().get();
+
+        assertThat(result.getStatus().getCode()).isEqualTo(Status.PERMISSION_DENIED.getCode());
+
+        assertThat(result.getStatus().getDescription()).isEqualTo(exceptionMessage);
+
+        verify(observer).onError(result);
+    }
 }
diff --git a/jaxrs-service/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/exception/AutoDiscoveryDisabledExceptionMapper.java b/jaxrs-service/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/exception/AutoDiscoveryDisabledExceptionMapper.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..2c7cafb3f0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/jaxrs-service/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/exception/AutoDiscoveryDisabledExceptionMapper.java
@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+package com.quorum.tessera.api.exception;
+
+import com.quorum.tessera.node.AutoDiscoveryDisabledException;
+import javax.ws.rs.core.Response;
+import javax.ws.rs.ext.ExceptionMapper;
+import javax.ws.rs.ext.Provider;
+
+@Provider
+public class AutoDiscoveryDisabledExceptionMapper implements ExceptionMapper<AutoDiscoveryDisabledException> {
+
+    @Override
+    public Response toResponse(AutoDiscoveryDisabledException exception) {
+        return Response.status(Response.Status.FORBIDDEN)
+                .entity(exception.getMessage())
+                .build();
+    }
+
+}
diff --git a/jaxrs-service/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/exception/AutoDiscoveryDisabledExceptionMapperTest.java b/jaxrs-service/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/exception/AutoDiscoveryDisabledExceptionMapperTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..7c4e8905ff
--- /dev/null
+++ b/jaxrs-service/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/api/exception/AutoDiscoveryDisabledExceptionMapperTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+package com.quorum.tessera.api.exception;
+
+import com.quorum.tessera.node.AutoDiscoveryDisabledException;
+import javax.ws.rs.core.Response;
+import static org.assertj.core.api.Assertions.assertThat;
+import org.junit.Before;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+public class AutoDiscoveryDisabledExceptionMapperTest {
+
+    private AutoDiscoveryDisabledExceptionMapper mapper;
+
+    @Before
+    public void onSetUp() {
+        mapper = new AutoDiscoveryDisabledExceptionMapper();
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    public void handleAutoDiscoveryDisabledException() {
+        String message = ".. all outta gum";
+        AutoDiscoveryDisabledException exception = 
+                new AutoDiscoveryDisabledException(message);
+
+        Response result = mapper.toResponse(exception);
+        
+        assertThat(result.getStatus()).isEqualTo(403);
+        assertThat(result.getEntity()).isEqualTo(message);
+    }
+
+}
diff --git a/jaxrs-service/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/jaxrs/JaxrsITConfig.java b/jaxrs-service/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/jaxrs/JaxrsITConfig.java
index 36895b1ded..c0b5cdbd2c 100644
--- a/jaxrs-service/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/jaxrs/JaxrsITConfig.java
+++ b/jaxrs-service/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/jaxrs/JaxrsITConfig.java
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ public Config config() {
         
         Path unixSocketFile = mock(Path.class);
                 
-         Config config = new Config(jdbcConfig,serverConfig,Collections.EMPTY_LIST,keyConfiguration,Collections.EMPTY_LIST,unixSocketFile,false);
+         Config config = new Config(jdbcConfig,serverConfig,Collections.EMPTY_LIST,keyConfiguration,Collections.EMPTY_LIST,unixSocketFile,false,false);
         
         return config;
     }
diff --git a/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/core/config/ConfigService.java b/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/core/config/ConfigService.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..75607ec1d1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/core/config/ConfigService.java
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+package com.quorum.tessera.core.config;
+
+import com.quorum.tessera.config.Config;
+
+public interface ConfigService {
+    
+    Config getConfig();
+     
+}
diff --git a/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/core/config/ConfigServiceImpl.java b/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/core/config/ConfigServiceImpl.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..4dab98c8b0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/core/config/ConfigServiceImpl.java
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+package com.quorum.tessera.core.config;
+
+import com.quorum.tessera.config.Config;
+import java.util.Objects;
+
+
+public class ConfigServiceImpl implements ConfigService {
+    
+    private final Config config;
+
+    public ConfigServiceImpl(Config initialConfig) {
+        this.config = Objects.requireNonNull(initialConfig);
+    }
+
+    @Override
+    public Config getConfig() {
+        return config;
+    }
+
+}
diff --git a/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/node/AutoDiscoveryDisabledException.java b/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/node/AutoDiscoveryDisabledException.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..4fa228db97
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/node/AutoDiscoveryDisabledException.java
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+package com.quorum.tessera.node;
+
+import com.quorum.tessera.exception.TesseraException;
+
+public class AutoDiscoveryDisabledException extends TesseraException {
+
+    public AutoDiscoveryDisabledException(String message) {
+        super(message);
+    }
+
+}
diff --git a/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/node/PartyInfoServiceImpl.java b/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/node/PartyInfoServiceImpl.java
index 977ae6e3c5..3242e10ccc 100644
--- a/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/node/PartyInfoServiceImpl.java
+++ b/tessera-core/src/main/java/com/quorum/tessera/node/PartyInfoServiceImpl.java
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 
 import com.quorum.tessera.config.Config;
 import com.quorum.tessera.config.Peer;
+import com.quorum.tessera.core.config.ConfigService;
 import com.quorum.tessera.key.KeyManager;
 import com.quorum.tessera.key.exception.KeyNotFoundException;
 import com.quorum.tessera.nacl.Key;
@@ -13,18 +14,27 @@
 import java.util.HashSet;
 import java.util.Objects;
 import java.util.Set;
+import java.util.function.Predicate;
 
 import static java.util.stream.Collectors.toSet;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
 
 public class PartyInfoServiceImpl implements PartyInfoService {
 
     private final PartyInfoStore partyInfoStore;
 
+    private final ConfigService configService;
+        
+    private static final Logger LOGGER = LoggerFactory.getLogger(PartyInfoServiceImpl.class);
+    
     public PartyInfoServiceImpl(final PartyInfoStore partyInfoStore,
-                                final Config configuration,
+                                final ConfigService configService,
                                 final KeyManager keyManager) {
         this.partyInfoStore = Objects.requireNonNull(partyInfoStore);
-
+        this.configService = Objects.requireNonNull(configService);
+        
+        final Config configuration = configService.getConfig();
         final String advertisedUrl = configuration.getServerConfig().getServerUri().toString();
 
         final Set<Party> initialParties = configuration
@@ -50,6 +60,26 @@ public PartyInfo getPartyInfo() {
 
     @Override
     public PartyInfo updatePartyInfo(final PartyInfo partyInfo) {
+        
+        if(configService.getConfig().isDisablePeerDiscovery()) {
+            
+            PartyInfo currentPartyInfo = getPartyInfo();
+            
+            if(!Objects.equals(currentPartyInfo.getParties(), partyInfo.getParties())) {
+                final String message = String.format("Parties found in party info from %s are different.", partyInfo.getUrl());
+                throw new AutoDiscoveryDisabledException(message);
+            }
+            
+            Predicate<String> matchUrl = u -> Objects.equals(u, partyInfo.getUrl());
+            
+            if(!currentPartyInfo.getParties().stream()
+                    .map(Party::getUrl)
+                    .anyMatch(matchUrl)) {
+                final String message = String.format("Peer %s not found in known peer list", partyInfo.getUrl());
+                throw new AutoDiscoveryDisabledException(message);
+            }
+
+        }
 
         partyInfoStore.store(partyInfo);
 
diff --git a/tessera-core/src/main/resources/tessera-core-spring.xml b/tessera-core/src/main/resources/tessera-core-spring.xml
index 8deb5d1623..5cb06afb38 100644
--- a/tessera-core/src/main/resources/tessera-core-spring.xml
+++ b/tessera-core/src/main/resources/tessera-core-spring.xml
@@ -39,9 +39,7 @@
         <constructor-arg ref="resendPartyStore" />
         <constructor-arg ref="transactionRequester" />
         <constructor-arg ref="partyInfoService"/>
-        <constructor-arg>
-            <bean class="com.quorum.tessera.node.PartyInfoParser" factory-method="create"/>
-        </constructor-arg>
+        <constructor-arg ref="partyInfoParser" />
         <constructor-arg ref="p2pClient"/>
     </bean>
 
@@ -69,15 +67,13 @@
 
     <bean name="partyInfoService" class="com.quorum.tessera.node.PartyInfoServiceImpl">
         <constructor-arg ref="partyInfoStore"/>
-        <constructor-arg ref="config"/>
+        <constructor-arg ref="configService"/>
         <constructor-arg ref="keyManager"/>
     </bean>
 
     <bean name="partyInfoPoller" class="com.quorum.tessera.node.PartyInfoPoller">
         <constructor-arg ref="partyInfoService"/>
-        <constructor-arg>
-            <bean class="com.quorum.tessera.node.PartyInfoParser" factory-method="create"/>
-        </constructor-arg>
+        <constructor-arg ref="partyInfoParser" />
         <constructor-arg ref="resendPartyStore" />
         <constructor-arg ref="p2pClient"/>
     </bean>
@@ -139,6 +135,11 @@
 
     <bean id="config" factory-bean="cliDelegate" factory-method="getConfig"/>
 
+    <bean id="configService" class="com.quorum.tessera.core.config.ConfigServiceImpl">
+        <constructor-arg ref="config" />
+    </bean>
+    
+    
     <bean name="naclFactory" class="com.quorum.tessera.nacl.NaclFacadeFactory" factory-method="newFactory"/>
 
     <bean name="nacl" factory-bean="naclFactory" factory-method="create"/>
diff --git a/tessera-core/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/core/config/ConfigServiceTest.java b/tessera-core/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/core/config/ConfigServiceTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..ac87f27de7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tessera-core/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/core/config/ConfigServiceTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+
+package com.quorum.tessera.core.config;
+
+import com.quorum.tessera.config.Config;
+import static org.assertj.core.api.Assertions.assertThat;
+import org.junit.After;
+import org.junit.Before;
+import org.junit.Test;
+import static org.mockito.Mockito.*;
+
+
+public class ConfigServiceTest {
+    
+    private ConfigService configService;
+    
+    private Config config;
+    
+    @Before
+    public void onSetUp() {
+        config = mock(Config.class);
+        configService = new ConfigServiceImpl(config);
+    }
+    
+    @After
+    public void onTearDown() {
+        verifyNoMoreInteractions(config);
+    }
+    
+    @Test
+    public void getConfig() {
+        assertThat(configService.getConfig()).isSameAs(config);
+    }
+    
+}
diff --git a/tessera-core/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/node/PartyInfoServiceTest.java b/tessera-core/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/node/PartyInfoServiceTest.java
index 4110993c1f..0da37a321d 100644
--- a/tessera-core/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/node/PartyInfoServiceTest.java
+++ b/tessera-core/src/test/java/com/quorum/tessera/node/PartyInfoServiceTest.java
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 import com.quorum.tessera.config.Config;
 import com.quorum.tessera.config.Peer;
 import com.quorum.tessera.config.ServerConfig;
+import com.quorum.tessera.core.config.ConfigService;
 import com.quorum.tessera.key.KeyManager;
 import com.quorum.tessera.key.exception.KeyNotFoundException;
 import com.quorum.tessera.nacl.Key;
@@ -21,10 +22,10 @@
 import java.util.stream.Stream;
 
 import static java.util.Collections.*;
+import java.util.stream.Collectors;
 import static java.util.stream.Collectors.toList;
 import static java.util.stream.Collectors.toSet;
-import static org.assertj.core.api.Assertions.assertThat;
-import static org.assertj.core.api.Assertions.catchThrowable;
+import static org.assertj.core.api.Assertions.*;
 import static org.mockito.Mockito.*;
 
 public class PartyInfoServiceTest {
@@ -37,6 +38,8 @@ public class PartyInfoServiceTest {
 
     private Config configuration;
 
+    private ConfigService configService;
+
     private KeyManager keyManager;
 
     private PartyInfoService partyInfoService;
@@ -47,30 +50,44 @@ public void onSetUp() {
         this.partyInfoStore = mock(PartyInfoStore.class);
         this.configuration = mock(Config.class);
         this.keyManager = mock(KeyManager.class);
+        this.configService = mock(ConfigService.class);
+
+        when(configService.getConfig()).thenReturn(configuration);
 
-        final ServerConfig serverConfig = new ServerConfig("http://localhost", 8080, 50521, null, null,null, null);
-        doReturn(serverConfig).when(configuration).getServerConfig();
+        final ServerConfig serverConfig = new ServerConfig("http://localhost", 8080, 50521, null, null, null, null);
+
+        when(configuration.getServerConfig()).thenReturn(serverConfig);
 
         final Peer peer = new Peer("http://other-node.com:8080");
-        doReturn(singletonList(peer)).when(configuration).getPeers();
+        when(configuration.getPeers()).thenReturn(singletonList(peer));
 
         final Set<Key> ourKeys = new HashSet<>(
-            Arrays.asList(
-                new Key("some-key".getBytes()),
-                new Key("another-public-key".getBytes())
-            )
+                Arrays.asList(
+                        new Key("some-key".getBytes()),
+                        new Key("another-public-key".getBytes())
+                )
         );
         doReturn(ourKeys).when(keyManager).getPublicKeys();
+
+        this.partyInfoService = new PartyInfoServiceImpl(partyInfoStore, configService, keyManager);
     }
 
     @After
     public void after() {
-        verifyNoMoreInteractions(partyInfoStore, keyManager, configuration);
+        //Called in constructor
+        verify(keyManager).getPublicKeys();
+        verify(configuration).getPeers();
+        verify(configuration).getServerConfig();
+
+        verify(partyInfoStore, atLeast(1)).store(any(PartyInfo.class));
+
+        verifyNoMoreInteractions(partyInfoStore);
+        verifyNoMoreInteractions(keyManager);
+        verifyNoMoreInteractions(configuration);
     }
 
     @Test
     public void initialPartiesCorrectlyReadFromConfiguration() {
-        this.partyInfoService = new PartyInfoServiceImpl(partyInfoStore, configuration, keyManager);
 
         final PartyInfo partyInfo = new PartyInfo(URI, emptySet(), singleton(new Party("http://other-node.com:8080")));
         doReturn(partyInfo).when(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
@@ -85,9 +102,6 @@ public void initialPartiesCorrectlyReadFromConfiguration() {
 
         verify(partyInfoStore).store(any(PartyInfo.class));
         verify(partyInfoStore, times(3)).getPartyInfo();
-        verify(keyManager).getPublicKeys();
-        verify(configuration).getPeers();
-        verify(configuration).getServerConfig();
 
         //TODO: add a captor for verification
     }
@@ -95,8 +109,6 @@ public void initialPartiesCorrectlyReadFromConfiguration() {
     @Test
     public void registeringPublicKeysUsesOurUrl() {
 
-        this.partyInfoService = new PartyInfoServiceImpl(partyInfoStore, configuration, keyManager);
-
         final ArgumentCaptor<PartyInfo> captor = ArgumentCaptor.forClass(PartyInfo.class);
 
         verify(partyInfoStore).store(captor.capture());
@@ -105,25 +117,23 @@ public void registeringPublicKeysUsesOurUrl() {
         verify(configuration).getServerConfig();
 
         final List<Recipient> allRegisteredKeys = captor
-            .getAllValues()
-            .stream()
-            .map(PartyInfo::getRecipients)
-            .flatMap(Set::stream)
-            .collect(toList());
+                .getAllValues()
+                .stream()
+                .map(PartyInfo::getRecipients)
+                .flatMap(Set::stream)
+                .collect(toList());
 
         assertThat(allRegisteredKeys)
-            .hasSize(2)
-            .containsExactlyInAnyOrder(
-                new Recipient(new Key("some-key".getBytes()), URI),
-                new Recipient(new Key("another-public-key".getBytes()), URI)
-            );
+                .hasSize(2)
+                .containsExactlyInAnyOrder(
+                        new Recipient(new Key("some-key".getBytes()), URI),
+                        new Recipient(new Key("another-public-key".getBytes()), URI)
+                );
     }
 
     @Test
     public void updatePartyInfoDelegatesToStore() {
 
-        this.partyInfoService = new PartyInfoServiceImpl(partyInfoStore, configuration, keyManager);
-
         final String secondParty = "http://other-node.com:8080";
         final String thirdParty = "http://third-url.com:8080";
 
@@ -137,16 +147,12 @@ public void updatePartyInfoDelegatesToStore() {
         verify(partyInfoStore).store(thirdNodePartyInfo);
         verify(partyInfoStore, times(3)).store(any(PartyInfo.class));
         verify(partyInfoStore, times(2)).getPartyInfo();
-        verify(keyManager).getPublicKeys();
-        verify(configuration).getPeers();
-        verify(configuration).getServerConfig();
+        verify(configuration, times(2)).isDisablePeerDiscovery();
     }
 
     @Test
     public void getRecipientURLFromPartyInfoStore() {
 
-        this.partyInfoService = new PartyInfoServiceImpl(partyInfoStore, configuration, keyManager);
-
         final Recipient recipient = new Recipient(new Key("key".getBytes()), "someurl");
         final PartyInfo partyInfo = new PartyInfo(URI, singleton(recipient), emptySet());
         doReturn(partyInfo).when(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
@@ -154,11 +160,7 @@ public void getRecipientURLFromPartyInfoStore() {
         final String result = partyInfoService.getURLFromRecipientKey(new Key("key".getBytes()));
         assertThat(result).isEqualTo("someurl");
 
-        verify(partyInfoStore).store(any(PartyInfo.class));
         verify(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
-        verify(keyManager).getPublicKeys();
-        verify(configuration).getPeers();
-        verify(configuration).getServerConfig();
     }
 
     @Test
@@ -166,80 +168,109 @@ public void getRecipientURLFromPartyInfoStoreFailsIfKeyDoesntExist() {
 
         doReturn(new PartyInfo("", emptySet(), emptySet())).when(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
 
-        this.partyInfoService = new PartyInfoServiceImpl(partyInfoStore, configuration, keyManager);
-
         final Key failingKey = new Key("otherKey".getBytes());
         final Throwable throwable = catchThrowable(() -> partyInfoService.getURLFromRecipientKey(failingKey));
         assertThat(throwable).isInstanceOf(KeyNotFoundException.class).hasMessage("Recipient not found");
 
-        verify(partyInfoStore).store(any(PartyInfo.class));
         verify(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
-        verify(keyManager).getPublicKeys();
-        verify(configuration).getPeers();
-        verify(configuration).getServerConfig();
     }
 
     @Test
     public void diffPartyInfoReturnsFullSetOnEmptyStore() {
         doReturn(new PartyInfo("", emptySet(), emptySet())).when(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
 
-        this.partyInfoService = new PartyInfoServiceImpl(partyInfoStore, configuration, keyManager);
-
         final PartyInfo incomingInfo = new PartyInfo("", emptySet(), NEW_PARTIES);
 
         final Set<Party> unsavedParties = this.partyInfoService.findUnsavedParties(incomingInfo);
 
         assertThat(unsavedParties)
-            .hasSize(2)
-            .containsExactlyInAnyOrder(NEW_PARTIES.toArray(new Party[0]));
+                .hasSize(2)
+                .containsExactlyInAnyOrder(NEW_PARTIES.toArray(new Party[0]));
 
-        verify(partyInfoStore).store(any(PartyInfo.class));
         verify(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
-        verify(keyManager).getPublicKeys();
-        verify(configuration).getPeers();
-        verify(configuration).getServerConfig();
+
     }
 
     @Test
     public void diffPartyInfoReturnsEmptySetOnFullStore() {
         doReturn(new PartyInfo("", emptySet(), NEW_PARTIES)).when(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
 
-        this.partyInfoService = new PartyInfoServiceImpl(partyInfoStore, configuration, keyManager);
-
         final PartyInfo incomingInfo = new PartyInfo("", emptySet(), NEW_PARTIES);
 
         final Set<Party> unsavedParties = this.partyInfoService.findUnsavedParties(incomingInfo);
 
         assertThat(unsavedParties).isEmpty();
 
-        verify(partyInfoStore).store(any(PartyInfo.class));
         verify(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
-        verify(keyManager).getPublicKeys();
-        verify(configuration).getPeers();
-        verify(configuration).getServerConfig();
+
     }
 
     @Test
     public void diffPartyInfoReturnsNodesNotInStore() {
         doReturn(new PartyInfo("", emptySet(), singleton(new Party("url1"))))
-            .when(partyInfoStore)
-            .getPartyInfo();
-
-        this.partyInfoService = new PartyInfoServiceImpl(partyInfoStore, configuration, keyManager);
+                .when(partyInfoStore)
+                .getPartyInfo();
 
         final PartyInfo incomingInfo = new PartyInfo("", emptySet(), NEW_PARTIES);
 
         final Set<Party> unsavedParties = this.partyInfoService.findUnsavedParties(incomingInfo);
 
         assertThat(unsavedParties)
-            .hasSize(1)
-            .containsExactlyInAnyOrder(new Party("url2"));
+                .hasSize(1)
+                .containsExactlyInAnyOrder(new Party("url2"));
 
-        verify(partyInfoStore).store(any(PartyInfo.class));
         verify(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
-        verify(keyManager).getPublicKeys();
-        verify(configuration).getPeers();
-        verify(configuration).getServerConfig();
+
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    public void updatePartyInfoDelegatesToStoreAutoDiscoveryDisabled() {
+
+        when(configuration.isDisablePeerDiscovery()).thenReturn(true);
+
+        Set<Party> parties = Stream.of("MyURI", "MyOtherUri")
+                .map(Party::new).collect(Collectors.toSet());
+
+        PartyInfo partyInfo = new PartyInfo("MyURI", EMPTY_SET, parties);
+
+        when(partyInfoStore.getPartyInfo()).thenReturn(partyInfo);
+
+        PartyInfo forUpdate = new PartyInfo("UnknownUri", EMPTY_SET, parties);
+        try {
+            partyInfoService.updatePartyInfo(forUpdate);
+            failBecauseExceptionWasNotThrown(AutoDiscoveryDisabledException.class);
+
+        } catch (AutoDiscoveryDisabledException ex) {
+            verify(configuration).isDisablePeerDiscovery();
+            verify(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
+        }
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    public void updatePartyInfoDelegatesToStoreAutoDiscoveryDisabledDifferentParties() {
+
+        when(configuration.isDisablePeerDiscovery()).thenReturn(true);
+
+        Set<Party> parties = Stream.of("MyURI", "MyOtherUri")
+                .map(Party::new).collect(Collectors.toSet());
+
+        PartyInfo partyInfo = new PartyInfo("MyURI", EMPTY_SET, parties);
+
+        when(partyInfoStore.getPartyInfo()).thenReturn(partyInfo);
+
+        Set<Party> otherParties = Stream.of("OtherURI", "OtherUri")
+                .map(Party::new).collect(Collectors.toSet());
+        
+        PartyInfo forUpdate = new PartyInfo("MyOtherUri", EMPTY_SET, otherParties);
+        try {
+            partyInfoService.updatePartyInfo(forUpdate);
+            failBecauseExceptionWasNotThrown(AutoDiscoveryDisabledException.class);
+
+        } catch (AutoDiscoveryDisabledException ex) {
+            verify(configuration).isDisablePeerDiscovery();
+            verify(partyInfoStore).getPartyInfo();
+        }
+
     }
 
 }