The term "proxy" refers to a proxy or proxy server. It is piece of software which acts as an intermediary for client and server over the internet. Without proxy servers, a user would send a request for resources directly to the server and it would then serve the resource directly towards the customer. Although this method is easy to grasp and implement but the addition of proxy servers can offer benefits including improved efficiency as well as privacy, security and more. As an additional layer of pass-through, the proxy serves as a guardian to the internet, separating clients from servers.




In general, the bundled system of server hardware that is paired with the software for proxy installation is commonly referred to as proxy servers. This article will focus on proxies typically classified as software, and specifically in relation to web servers. The article will provide a detailed discussion of the two major types of proxies, one being one that is a forward proxy and reverse proxy. reverse proxy. Each kind has its own specific application, and is frequently confused due to the resemblance of namesake convention.




This article will give you an idea of the types of proxies and subtypes and their importance for the common setups. If you've read this article, you'll be able to recognize situations where the use of proxy servers is beneficial, and you can then select the best choice between forward proxy and reverse proxy depending on the circumstance.



Understanding Forward Proxies



Forward proxy, also referred to as open proxy. An open proxy acts as the representative of a user who would like to make an internet-based request to an the server that made it. In this situation, all attempts to send requests from the client's end will instead be routed through the forward proxy. The forward proxy, instead of the client, will examine the request. First, it will verify if the client is authorized to accept requests from this specific forward proxy. It will then reject any request or forward it to its origin server. The client is not able to have direct connection to the internet; it can only reach what forward proxy permits it to access.




The most common reason to use forward proxies is to increase privacy or security on the internet. Forward proxy connects to the internet through clients and, in this manner, it could use an IP address different from the IP of the user.




Based on the way it's configured, forward proxy will grant a number of features and the capability to:




Beware of ads-trackers.


Circumvent surveillance.


Find restrictions that are based on the location you are in.




Forward proxies also are used in systems that provide central security and access based on permissions, such as in a workplace. All internet traffic can pass through a common forward proxy Administrators are able to allow only specific clients access to the internet using a common firewall. Instead of having firewalls in place for the client layer that can involve many machines with different settings, users and environments the firewall is put in an forward proxy layer.




It is important to remember to set forward proxy preferences must be manually setup to allow them to be used in order to use them and reverse proxies are able to not be noticed by the user. Depending on whether an IP address belonging to the user is sent to the origin server via forward proxy privacy and security may be granted or not.




There are a variety of alternatives to take into consideration when considering forward proxy options:




Apache An open source well-known web server with forward proxy functions.


Nginx A renowned open-source server used for web hosting with forward proxy capabilities.


Squid: A free forward proxy that utilizes an HTTP protocol. It's not the full web server system. We recommend our guide on the best method of configuring Squid proxy to allow secure connections within Ubuntu 20.04.


Dante Forward proxy that makes use of the SOCKS protocol instead of HTTP and HTTP, which makes it better suited to scenarios like peer-to-peer traffic. It is also possible to learn how to set up Dante proxy to allow connection to private networks in Ubuntu 20.04



Understanding Reverse Proxies



Reverse proxy acts as an intermediary for a web server, and is able to handle requests from customers for the web server. Web servers can function as a single server, or multiple servers. It could also function as an app server such as Gunicorn. In all cases, an application request comes through the internet in general. The request will typically go directly to the server that hosts what the client is trying to find. A reverse proxy serves as an intermediary to isolate your server from interaction with the internet's open.




From a consumer's point of perspective, using reverse proxy doesn't differ from communicating with the web server directly. It's functionally the same but the client can't discern the distinction. The client requests an item and receives it, without requiring any additional configuration from the user.




Reverse proxy providers provide features like:




The web server is secured centrally.


Directing traffic according to rules you set.


A new feature for caching has been added.




While centralized security is an advantage of both forward and reverse proxy, reverse proxies do this only for the web server layer, but not to the client layer. Instead of maintaining security firewalls in Web server layers that may comprise multiple servers that have different configurations, the bulk of firewall security is directed at the reverse proxy layer. In addition, taking the burden of interacting with firewalls and interfacing with clients' requests off of web servers lets them focus on serving resources.




In the case of multiple servers with a reverse-proxy, the reverse proxy will be also accountable for deciding which requests are directed to which server. There could be multiple web servers running within the server each serving various kinds of resources, or a mix of both. They could be using the HTTP protocol like a traditional web server. They can also include application server protocols like FastCGI. It is also possible to configure reverse proxy settings to redirect the clients towards specific servers depending on the service they require, or to observe certain rules regarding traffic load.




Reverse proxies also can take advantage of their placement over web servers through the capability of caching. The large static files can be configured with caching rules in order to avoid hitting web servers with every request. Some solutions even allowing users to upload static files in a direct manner without linking with the server. In addition, the reverse proxy is able to handle compression of these files.




The well-known Nginx web server is an extremely popular reverse proxy option. While it is a reverse proxy solution, the Apache web server also comes equipped with reverse proxy feature as an additional feature that is available for Apache whereas Nginx was initially designed for and specifically focused on reverse proxy functions.



Differentiating Forward Proxy from reverse Proxy Use Situations



Since "forward" along with "reverse" are associated with an impression of directionality, as well as false comparisons with "incoming" and "outgoing" traffic, these labels can be confusing, because both types of proxies are able to handle requests as well as responses. A different method of distinguishing between forward and reverse proxy servers is to analyze the needs of the application you're developing.




Reverse proxy is a useful tool to use when designing a solution to host web applications on the internet. They are your web servers when you interact with the Internet.




Forward proxy can be useful to use if you're working with clients in front for personal usage or even in a business environment. They represent your client traffic when you interact with the internet.




A distinction based on use case instead of looking at the common naming conventions can assist you in getting rid of confusion.



Conclusion



The article described what a proxy is along with two types being the forward proxy and reverse proxy. Practical examples of use and a discussion of the most effective features were utilized to differentiate forward proxies and reverse proxies. If you'd like to explore the ways to use proxies, we suggest that you read our tutorial on how to set up Nginx as an reverse proxy and internet server using Apache on an Ubuntu 20.04 server.



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