It's a proxy or proxy server, is a software program for servers which acts as an intermediary between the server and the client via the internet. Without an intermediary, a customer would be able to make a request for every resource straight to the server and the server would serve any requested resources directly to customer. While this procedure is easy to understand and apply using proxy servers, it does offer advantages such as greater performance as well as privacy, security and much more. As a layer of pass-through, the proxy functions as a security protector of the internet between servers and clients.




In general, the system of hardware for servers as well as software to install proxy servers is commonly referred to in the context of proxy servers. In this post, we'll focus on proxies typically understood as software, and ones that work to complement web servers. You will get a breakdown of two kinds of proxies: a forward proxy and a reverse proxy. reverse proxy. Each type has its own usage scenario, which is often misunderstood because of the naming conventions that are similar.




This article will give you an understanding of what proxy servers and subtypes of them are, and what they can accomplish for typical configurations. Through this article, you can identify the scenarios in which an effective proxy is beneficial, and choose the best option between forward and reverse proxy options for each circumstance.



Understanding Forward Proxies



In other words a forward proxy or an open proxy is a representative of the client that is trying to send an internet request to an origin server. In this scenario the entire attempt to send requests from the client will be made by the forward-proxy. In this situation the forward proxy acting in place of the client will review the request. First, it will determine what authorization the user has to make requests through this specific forward proxy. It then will reject the request as well as forward it to the server that originally sent it. The client isn't able to establish a direct connection to the internet; it will only be able to connect to what the forward proxy gives its access.




The most common applications for forward proxy servers is greater privacy or anonymity on the internet. Forward proxy can be used to connect to the internet lieu of a client, and can use an alternative IP address that is different from the IP address that was originally assigned to the client.




Depending on how they were established in the past, forward proxy servers can offer a range of services and permit you to:




Beware of ad-tracker.


Circumvent surveillance.


You can spot limitations based on your geographic location.




Forward proxies can also be used to secure systems that are centralized and have permission-based access for instance, in a workplace. When all internet traffic passes through a common forward proxy, administrators can restrict access to certain users to the internet, which is blocked by a standard firewall. Instead of putting firewalls in place to protect the client layer that could be comprised of a variety of computers with different user and environment, a firewall can be placed at the front proxy layer.




Be aware that forward proxy servers require manual configuration for use, however reverse proxies will be ignored in the eyes of the customer. Based on whether or not an IP address from the customer is transmitted to the origin server through this forward proxy, security and anonymity can be granted, or left unnoticed.




There are a variety of options to investigate for forward proxy options:




Apache is an well-known open-source web server, which provides forward-looking proxy features.


Nginx: Another well-known open-source server for web hosting with forward proxy functions.


Squid is an open-source forward proxy that utilizes the HTTP protocol. This option doesn't include an entire web server service. We've got a guide on how to install Squid proxy for private connection to Ubuntu 20.04.


Dante Forward Proxy that utilizes the SOCKS protocol instead of HTTP which makes it better appropriate for scenarios such as with peer-to-peer traffic. You can also look at how to create a Dante proxy to connect privately using Ubuntu 20.04



Understanding Reverse Proxies



Reverse proxy is an agent for web servers, which handles any requests that are received by clients on behalf of. This web server may comprise one server or even multiple servers. It can also function as an application server such as Gunicorn. In any of these scenarios, a request could come from a client on the internet. In the majority of cases the request will be sent directly to the server hosting the information the user requires. Reverse proxy is an intermediary, separating Web servers and direct interactions with the open internet.




From a client's viewpoint, which is the user's perspective using reverse proxy isn't any different than connecting directly to your webserver. It's the same thing, however the client isn't able to tell the distinction. The customer makes a request for an item and receives it with no additional configurations that need to be done by the customer.




Reverse proxy proxies may offer some features, including:




A centralized layer of security to protect the server.


Controlling traffic inbound based on rules that you set up.


A new feature for caching has been added.




Central security is an advantage of both forward and reverse proxy solutions, reverse proxies provide this service to this level of an internet server, and not to that layer of the internet server, which is called client. Instead of focusing on the maintenance of firewalls at the web server layer that may contain multiple servers with various configurations, the majority of firewall security could be focused on this layer. Additionally, getting rid of the necessity of interfacing with firewalls and also interacting with client requests off of web servers lets them concentrate on the needs of their customers.




If there are multiple servers that are running reverse proxy the reverse proxy handles the way requests are routed to which server. There are many web servers providing the same content however, they each serve different kinds of resources, or some mixture of the two. These servers may use the HTTP protocol similar to a traditional web server, however they may include applications server protocols like FastCGI. It is also possible to set up reverse proxy servers to redirect clients to specific servers depending on the requested resource or to adhere to specific rules regarding traffic load.




Reverse proxies can also take advantage of their placement in front of web servers, by offering caching capabilities. Large static files can be set with caching rules to stop the server from getting hit every time a request is made, with certain solutions providing the option to provide static files directly without touching the web servers in any manner. In addition, the reverse proxy could be able to handle compressing these files.




The well-known Nginx web server is an extremely popular reverse proxy service. However, Apache is also a reverse proxy solution, the Apache webserver is equipped with reverse proxy function as an added option. Apache in contrast to Nginx was designed initially for and was designed specifically for reverse proxy functions.



Differentiating Forward Proxy and reverse Proxy Use Examples



Because "forward" along with "reverse" are ascribed to an impression of directionality and a false comparison with "incoming" and "outgoing" traffic. These labels can confuse because both types of proxies handle the flow of requests as well as responses. A better approach to distinguish between forward and reverse proxy services is to consider the requirements of the application you're developing.




A reverse proxy is useful in designing an application that is able to provide web-based applications on the internet. They represent your web servers throughout all interactions on the internet.




A forward proxy is helpful when placed in front of client traffic for your personal use or in a work environment. They are a representation of your traffic every time you connect to the internet.




The use case distinction as opposed to focusing only on similar naming conventions will assist you in eliminating confusion.



Conclusion



This article explains the definition of a proxy, with the two main kinds being forward proxy and reverse proxy. Application scenarios that are practical and a review of useful characteristics were used to determine forward proxies and reverse proxy. If you're interested in knowing more about how to implement proxy servers, check out our tutorial on how you can set up Nginx as a reverse and web server proxy with Apache on one Ubuntu 20.04 server.



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