Introducing Proxy Sites

An proxy is also known as an application called a proxy acts in the role of an intermediary the server and client on the internet. Without the proxy, a customer could submit a request for a service directly from a server and the server could serve the requested resource directly back at the requester's. While this approach is straightforward to understand and implement but using proxies provides advantages such as increased performance, privacy, security, and more. As a pass-through layer, the proxy acts as a guardian for the internet between servers and clients.

In general, the combination of server hardware and installed proxy software is often called proxy servers. This article will focus on proxy servers that are typically described as software and when referring to web servers. This article will give a detailed breakdown of two types: the forward proxy and reverse proxy. reverse proxy. Each type has its own usage situation, and it is frequently confused due to the same terms.

This article will provide you with details about what proxy services and subtypes, as well as how they function in a variety of configurations. After reading this article, you will be able to recognize the situations in which using proxy services is advantageous, and select the right solution between reverse and forward proxy depending on the situation.

Understanding Forward Proxies

The forward proxy also referred to an open proxy is a proxy for a user who wishes to send an internet request to the server that originated it. In this scenario the entire process of sending requests made by the user will instead be transmitted through the forward proxy. A forward proxy, acting instead of the client, will look into the request. It will then determine if this client has the right to transmit requests via this particular forward proxy. Then, it decides to reject any request, or send it to the source server. The client has no direct access for the web. It is able to access only the information that forward proxy allows the client to connect.

A popular use for forward proxies is increased privacy or security when using the internet. Forward proxy allows access to the internet on behalf of a client and in this way, it could use a different IP address than the IP address used by the client.

Based on the way it has been configured, based on the way it's configured, forward proxy may provide you with different features based the way it's configured, which allows you to:

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  Do not be a victim of ad tracking.
  
  
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  Circumvent surveillance.
  
  
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  Recognize the restrictions based on your location.
  
  

Forward proxies can also be used to secure systems which are centralized as well as permission-based access in workplaces. If all internet traffic flows through an open forward proxy, an administrator is able to grant only a few clients access to the internet by the standard firewall. Instead of establishing firewalls for the client layer which could comprise a range of machines that have different environments and types of users, a firewall could be installed at this intermediate layer of forward proxy.

It is essential to note that forward proxies need to be manually set up for use while reverse proxies will be hidden from the user. Depending on the type of IP address of the user who is transferred to the origin server via the forward proxy Privacy and anonymity could be granted or denied.

There are a variety of possibilities to think about when it comes to forward proxy services.

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  Apache A well-known open source web server that provides forward proxy functions.
  
  
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  Nginx: Another popular open-source web server with the ability to forward-proxy.
  
  
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  Squid: A no-cost forward proxy using the HTTP protocol. This doesn't offer the entire web server. We have an article on how to build a Squid proxy to connect privately on Ubuntu 20.04.
  
  
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  Dante is a forward proxy that utilizes the SOCKS protocol instead of HTTP and HTTP, making it more suitable for applications like peer-to-peer communication. It is also possible to learn how to set up Dante proxy to allow private connections on Ubuntu 20.04
  
  

Understanding Reverse Proxies

A reverse proxy functions as a representative of a web server that handles the incoming requests of clients on its behalf. Web servers can comprise one or more servers. Also, it could become an application-server such as Gunicorn. In any of these scenarios the request will be made via the web at large. In the majority of cases, the request will be sent directly to the webserver with the resources that the user seeks. Reverse proxy acts as an intermediary, separating this webserver from direct communication with the open internet.

From the perspective of a user the experience of interacting with reverse proxy isn't different from communicating with an internet server directly. It's basically the same, but the client can't be able to discern the difference. The client makes a request for the resource, and is then provided with it, with no further configuration needed from the client.

Reverse proxies provide features like:

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  Security centralized on webservers.
  
  
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  Controlling traffic that is incoming based on rules you set.
  
  
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  New caching functionality has been added.
  
  

While centralized security is an advantage of both forward and reverse proxy servers, reverse proxy servers provide this benefit only to that layer on the webserver and not to those who are on the client side. Instead of maintaining firewalls on the layer of web servers, that could include multiple servers and various configurations, the majority of firewall security is targeted to the reverse proxy layer. Furthermore, the removal of the burden of working with a firewall and connecting with requests from customers off of web servers enables them to concentrate on the requirements of their clients.

If there are multiple servers using reverse-proxies, the reverse proxy is also responsible for the direction of which requests are directed towards which servers. Multiple web servers could be running within the same system, offering different types of resources or a combination of the two. They may use the HTTP protocol as a traditional web server, but they could also be outfitted with application server protocols like FastCGI. It is possible to set up reverse proxy to direct visitors to specific server according to the service requested, or to adhere to specific rules pertaining to the load of traffic.

Reverse proxies may also benefit from their placement on top of web servers, as they provide caching capabilities. The large static resources can be created by using caching rules in order to avoid needing to connect with web servers for each request. Certain software solutions let you directly serve static assets without having to connect with the webserver even once. Additionally the reverse proxy is capable of handling the compression of these assets.

The popular Nginx web server functions as a highly regarded reverse proxy service. While Apache is also a reverse proxy solution however, the Apache web server also has reverse proxy capabilities, however, it's a separate feature available to Apache in contrast to Nginx was designed initially to focus upon the feature of reverse proxy.

Distinguishing Forward and Reverse Proxy Use

Since "forward" or "reverse" are ascribed to the notion of directionality, and false comparisons with "incoming" and "outgoing" traffic the labels could be confusing as both types of proxy services handle requests and responses. The best way to differentiate between forward and reverse proxy services is to look at the needs of the application you're developing.

Reverse proxy can be useful when building a solution to deliver web-based apps over the internet. They serve as your web servers for any interaction you make on the web.

Forward proxy can be useful when placed before users for personal use, or in an office setting. They serve as a representation of the traffic of your client whenever you interact on the internet.

The practice of separating by use case, instead of focusing solely on the most common naming conventions will make sure that you don't get confused.

Conclusion

This article explains the meaning of a proxy, focusing on the two primary kinds, namely forward proxy and reverse proxy. Practical examples of use and a look at advantageous features were used to differentiate forward proxies and reverse proxies. If you're looking to know more about the advantages of proxies, you can read our guide on how to configure Nginx as an internet server and reverse proxy within Apache on one Ubuntu 20.04 Server.

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