What is Proxy?
Proxy means having the authority to represent someone else. We have heard more about proxy when it comes to computers. This is done to hide the true destination of the requested data so that the internet user does not have to know the real location from which the data is coming. A proxy server may act as a link or a gateway between the client’s system and the internet service provider’s system. It may change the IP address or route packets of data coming from other systems back to the client’s system through a connection to the internet.
Basic Web Proxy
A basic web proxy is a simple server that receives requests for web pages from internet clients and forwards them to the right location. Another type is a reverse proxy. This is the usual system that most website operators use today. The third type of proxy is the IIS or Internet Information Service Provider proxy. linked here
Transparent Proxy
A transparent proxy passes requests to the destination through an IP address in the network that has been changed. When the request goes through this kind of proxy, the IP address is not visible to the client. A proxy that intercepts requests is called a proxy that performs filtering. It is used to screen out or filter out requests that should be rejected.
Simple IP spoofing involves inserting an IP address into the TCP/IP protocol. Some IP changing software may also be used to change the IP address on a network level. IP spoofing intercepts and passes requests by masquerading as another user. Some IP changing software and IP changing software do this with the aid of an ILS or Internet Load Balancing module.
Most of these IP changing software work by checking the header field sent by the client before passing it to the ILS or IP layer. If it detects that there is something wrong in the client’s header, it will return an error message. The client, however, can determine what kind of error it is. Based on this information, it can decide whether to continue or retry the request.
ICMP Echo Requests/ ICMP Echo Reply
On the other hand, ICMP Echo Request and ICMP Echo reply protocols are used for filtering. These ICMP Echo requests go from one proxy server to another and request information from the proxy server. ICMP Echo requests can be either local or remote in nature. For example, when a proxy server receives a local request, it may reply by returning a response or by forwarding the request for further processing.
The main server, on the other hand, responds to requests coming from any other IP address. Therefore, most of the time the main server serves requests locally. However, some proxy servers support round-trip request mode. This mode allows a single IP address to serve multiple web pages. This feature is especially useful for testing purposes.
Zone Alarm
There are a number of factors that affect how proxy servers deliver requests. However, not all factors are necessary for successful operation. Some of these factors are beyond the control of end-users, such as the amount of bandwidth provided by the ISP. End users can often avoid these problems by installing more powerful firewalls. Firewalls such as Zone Alarm allow IP filtering and blocking of web traffic. Although this software has been used to block proxy servers by many leading corporations, it is still beneficial for people who regularly use the internet and for those who want to test their own systems.
In addition to allowing IP filtering, a proxy server must also support Ip quoting. Ip quoting is a means to filter outgoing IP addresses by authenticating each IP address before sending it to the destination. This is usually achieved through SSL or SSLv3 connections that reuse the same Certificate Authority certificate.
One problem with using internal network resources to route requests is overload. Certain IP addresses are frequently used because of their bandwidth efficiency. If a proxy server receives a large number of requests, its performance will degrade. To prevent this from happening, servers often use a cache to store responses and make them available for the next request. The cache has limitations, however. If a cache filled with old data becomes too full, the server will slow down.
In summary, there are two primary ways of using a proxy server: either directly or indirectly. A proxy server that routes requests to an IP address uses Ip quoting to avoid collisions in the cache and to save bandwidth. A proxy that behaves as an IP proxy server and receives requests from the local network can be configured to save bandwidth by caching the requests before forwarding them to the right IP address. By using a cache and Ip quoting, we achieve the efficiency of a regular proxy but with the security and scalability of a layer 7 proxy. We can protect our website from malicious attacks and increase our network’s performance at the same time.
