What does a proxy server mean and why do you need it

Proxy server can be translated into Russian literally as a bridge or intermediary. It is not a program, but rather a network node that you can connect to by configuring your network configuration properly.

What do you mean, a proxy and why do you need one?

As such, a proxy server in the concept of an ordinary inhabitant is an additional node in the connection between the user and a particular node in the network. At the same time, the appearance of a new link in the chain negatively affects the ping, speed of connection, speed of downloading data or uploading them to the site. In fact, this is true – a proxy does indeed significantly reduce the maximum possible speed compared to a normal connection. But at the same time, installing a proxy server offers a lot of advantages. Among them:

  • the ability to remain anonymous online;
  • access resources that cannot be visited using a normal connection;
  • With a proxy, you can keep your confidential data safe from fraudsters.

These are the main advantages of a proxy server. Whereas blocking used to be a rare phenomenon, today it is very common to find bans on the network. Residents of Russia and Ukraine suffer most from this. All kinds of state prohibitions for the residents of another country are found everywhere. Installation through a proxy connection makes it easy to bypass the lockout. In this case, the user’s ip will become different – the proxy will replace it. The site will see not a resident of Ukraine or Russia, but, say, Uruguay, the United States, etc. These IP addresses are not locked and will be accessed. If desired, you can change the address to a different one depending on the type of proxy, you can choose several options.

What kind of proxies are there

What does a proxy server mean and why do you need it

There are several types and subtypes of proxies. They can be divided by characteristics and complexity of installation. The characteristics are offered:

  • secure servers;
  • fast proxy;
  • proxy for certain programs;
  • authorization proxy, etc.

For example, a working proxy server for telegrams offers the possibility to use all its functionality to get safe access to telegrams. There are analogues adapted for Skype, mail clients, etc.

Especially popular are all sorts of extensions for browsers, with which you can safely surf sites on the network. In addition, it is the most convenient and easy to install and operate option.

Secure proxy offers the user additional information protection schemes and a new level of anonymity. These servers use both inbound and outbound encryption.

Fast proxy are adapted to work when it is necessary to get high speed download and upload, good ping for quick response from the site. Finally, private proxy servers, as a rule, require payment for their functionality and can work only after authorization. Despite the need to pay for such a service, the user can get excellent connection characteristics, additional features, such as encryption, for their own money.

There are also differences in the type of installation.

Proxy installation features

They can be conditionally divided into complex and simple ones. The complexities include manual configuration of the connection, automatic, use of individual programs.

Manual setup involves entering data to be connected by the user himself. It is often necessary to check the proxy connection settings many times before getting the result. This type of configuration is suitable for people who are familiar with network technology. It’s a little easier to set up in automatic mode. However, in this case you do not need to type in the data yourself, but you need to find and download the configuration file, which you then need to provide the operating system that reads the data and change its current connection settings.

Using programs can also seem complicated. Installing them is no different from other applications, however, in most cases the user will have to work with the command line after enabling them. This means, at a minimum, that you need to know and be able to use DOS commands or commands that are relevant for running the proxy server configuration on your home computer.

The latter option is the most popular and widespread. It implies using proxy server extension for browsers. And almost all modern and popular browsers allow you to install such applications, and offer a huge variety of them, so that the user can choose the best for themselves.

Quotation: Some browsers already have a built-in proxy function.

Proxy extensions for browsers

What does a proxy server mean and why do you need it

The easiest way to install a proxy. To do this, you need to go to your browser and open the page with available extensions for installation. Entering the necessary word (proxy) we will get the result – several extensions. You can select and install any of the suggested ones.

Quotation: You should not install multiple proxy extensions, as this may cause the PC to slow down or cause conflicts between extensions.

The expansion proxy should be selected correctly. To do this, you need to measure the speed of the Internet in the normal network connection. Then you should check the selected extensions one by one. By comparing the test results, we can highlight the fastest one.

When comparing extensions, you should pay attention to the following points:

  • Download and upload speed;
  • the possibility of changing the ip address;
  • Ping connection for proxy extensions is extremely important.

Download and download speed directly determines the time for which the user can download information from the network or upload it from his computer to the site.

Ping defines the time for the server to respond to user requests. If the speed is a value, which is the higher the better, the better, with a ping on the contrary: the better value is the lower value. For example, ping 150 will be extremely uncomfortable, and ping 30 is optimal even for playing online games.

It is not possible to determine exactly how normal speed and pinging losses can be – in most cases this depends on the user’s current connection.

The best proxy extensions assume a loss of speed from 10 to 50% of the original one, depending on the type of connection to the PK network, the target site and many other factors. The ping value should be within 80 ms. Above will be undesirable, because in this case it would be uncomfortable to work with the site.

Finally, the main function of the proxy is the ability to spoof the real ip address. If this does not happen, you should change the selected extension to another one.

You should check and change the proxy. This is not a problem, and the use of a proxy, like its replacement, is legitimate. A proxy can be used both at home and at work to bypass system administrator locks.

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