Proxies and reverse proxies are both intermediaries that manage network traffic, but they serve distinct roles within a network:
Proxy (Forward Proxy): Acts as a gateway between a client (e.g., web browser) and the internet. Proxies manage client-side requests, potentially masking client identity, enforcing access controls, or improving performance.
Reverse Proxy: Sits in front of one or more web servers, intercepting client requests and routing them to the appropriate backend server. Reverse proxies provide load balancing, security, and caching.
How They Work
Proxy: A client directs its requests to the proxy server. The proxy then makes the request to the external server on the client's behalf. The response is relayed back through the proxy to the client.
Reverse Proxy: Clients send requests as if communicating directly with the origin web server. The reverse proxy intercepts these requests, potentially distributes them across multiple backend servers, and returns the server's response to the client.
Benefits
Proxies
Anonymity: Can hide client IP addresses.
Access Control: Filter web traffic, block content, or enforce usage policies.
Caching: Improve content delivery performance by storing commonly accessed data.
Reverse Proxies
Load Balancing: Distribute incoming requests across multiple servers, preventing overload and improving response times.
Security: Protect backend servers from direct attacks and add web application firewall (WAF) capabilities.
Caching: Cache static content to offload backend servers.
Common Use Cases
Proxies
Bypassing geographic restrictions
Monitoring and filtering employee internet usage
Web scraping
Reverse Proxies
Protecting websites and APIs from malicious traffic
Optimizing website performance
Enabling seamless scaling of web applications
Other Terms
Proxy: Forward proxy, gateway proxy, intermediary
Reverse Proxy: Load balancer (sometimes, as reverse proxies often include this functionality)