A proxy, also known as a proxy is also referred to as a proxy server. is software that acts as an intermediary between a client and server over the internet. If there was no proxy in place, the user would send a request for any resource directly to the server and servers would serve direct to users who requested the resource. While this approach is straightforward to comprehend and use using proxy servers could provide advantages including increased performance, privacy and security, etc. As an additional layer of pass-through proxy servers function as a security guard for the internet between servers and clients.

The consensus is that the system of hardware for servers, paired with proxy software is also often called proxy servers. However, this article will concentrate on proxies traditionally defined as software, and more specifically in relation to servers on the internet. We will present a summary of the two major types of proxy services: a forward proxy and reverse proxy. reverse proxy. Each kind has a distinct usage, which can be confusing due to the same namestamp.

This article will provide you with an understanding of what proxies and their subtypes are, as well as their importance for the most common setups. After reading this article you'll be able recognize the situations where you could benefit by a proxy and make the right alternative between reverse proxy or forward proxy in any given scenario.

Understanding Forward Proxies

Forward proxy sometimes called open proxy, sometimes referred to as open proxy is a proxy for users who wish to send a request via the internet to a source server. In this instance, any request sent by the client will rather be handled by an forward proxy. A forward proxy in the place of the client will examine the request. It will first determine whether the client is authorized to accept requests through this specific forward proxy. Then, it will either deny any request, or redirect it to the server that originated it. The client is not allowed direct access to the internet. it is only capable of accessing the information that forward proxy grants it access to.

The most popular reasons for forward proxy is greater privacy or security on internet. A forward proxy is able to access the internet in lieu of an individual client, and could use an alternative IP address in comparison to the original IP address used by the client.

Depending on how it's been configured depending on how it's set up forward proxy could provide a range of options and let you:

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  Avoid tracking ads.
  
  
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  Circumvent surveillance.
  
  
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  Determine restrictions based on geolocation.
  
  

Forward proxies are also used in systems to provide central security as well as permission-based access to the internet, for instance at a workplace. In the event that all internet traffic passes through an open forward proxy layer, an administrator is able to restrict access to only certain clients to the internet, which is filtered by an common firewall. Instead of having firewalls on the client layer which may involve many machines with varying user configurations, firewalls could be placed at on the front proxy layer.

Be aware that forward proxies should be set up manually for be used, while reverse proxies can be disregarded in the eyes of the user. According to the kind of IP address the client's connection to the server that originated it through the forward proxy, security and privacy can be granted or made more transparent.

There are many possibilities to consider when deciding on forward proxy options:

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  Apache is an well-known open-source web server which provides forward proxy capabilities.
  
  
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  Nginx is another popular open-source webserver, which comes with forward proxy capability.
  
  
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  Squid: A free and open forward proxy open source that uses an HTTP protocol. The option does not include the whole web server. We recommend you read our guide on the best way to set up Squid proxy to allow private connections on Ubuntu 20.04.
  
  
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  Dante is an forward proxy that utilizes the SOCKS protocol instead of HTTP which makes it appropriate for situations such as peer-to-peer connections. It is also possible to learn how to set up an Dante proxy to allow private connections in Ubuntu 20.04
  
  

Understanding Reverse Proxies

Reverse proxy is the web server, which handles requests from customers on behalf of the server. It can be used as a single server or as a series of servers. Additionally, it can contain an application server such as Gunicorn. In any of these situations the request will be made via the web in general. Most of the time the request is made directly to the web server along with all the information the user requires. A reverse proxy serves as an intermediary, separating your server from communications with the web's public.

From a consumer's point viewpoint from the perspective of a client, using reverse proxy is not different from connecting to an internet server direct. It's functionally identical, however clients aren't aware of the distinction. The client makes a request for the resource and is then granted access without any additional configuration required on the part of the client.

Reverse proxies provide various features, including:

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  A central layer of security to protect the server.
  
  
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  The direction of traffic that is according to rules you can set up.
  
  
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  A new feature to cache has been added.
  
  

Central security is a benefit of both forward and reverse proxy services, reverse proxies give this benefit only to the server layer, only the layer that clients use. Instead of focusing on the maintenance of firewalls at the server layer that could contain multiple servers with different configurations, the majority of firewall security could be directed at the reverse proxy layer. In addition, eliminating the burden of interacting with firewalls and interacting with requests from clients that are not on web servers lets them focus solely on meeting the needs of their customers.

In the event of multiple servers being hosted through a reverse proxy the reverse proxy handles the routing of requests towards the servers. Multiple servers may be serving the same resource, providing different types of resources or a mix of both. They may utilize an HTTP protocol to function as a standard web server, but they may also include application server protocols such as FastCGI. You can set up reverse proxy that routes clients to specific servers based on the requested source, and to observe specific rules regarding traffic load.

Reverse proxies also can benefit from their position prior to web servers by providing the ability to cache. Large static files can be set with caching rules that prevent getting to web servers for every time you request. There are options that provide an option to serve static content directly without having to communicate with the webserver in any way. Additionally, reverse proxy can help compress these assets.

The well-known Nginx webserver is known as a very popular reverse proxy choice. Although Apache web server does have reverse proxy capabilities, Apache web server is able to use the ability to reverse proxy as an added feature for Apache However, Nginx was originally designed to focus on reverse proxy functionality.

Distinguishing Forward Proxy from Reverse Proxy Examples

Since "forward" and "reverse" are associated with an impression of directionality and inaccurate comparisons to "incoming" or "outgoing" traffic and can be confusing since both kinds of proxies handle requests and respond. A better approach to distinguish between forward and reverse proxy servers is to look at the requirements of the application that you are building.

Reverse proxy is an important element in the creation of a method to run websites on the internet. They serve as servers during any interaction through the Internet.

Forward proxy is useful in displaying customer information for your own use, or even in a workplace. They are a way to display the information of your client every time you interact with them on the internet.

A distinction based on use cases instead of focusing on naming conventions that are similar will help avoid confusion.

Conclusion

In this article, we clarified the meaning of a proxy with two types, the forward and the reverse proxy. Practical applications and an exploration of beneficial attributes were used to determine forward proxies as well as reverse proxies. If you're interested exploring the benefits for proxy servers read our guide on how you can configure Nginx as an internet server and reverse proxy within Apache on an Ubuntu 20.04 Server.

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