What is a proxy and how to learn how to use it

Proxy can be defined as a special network technology, through which you can access previously blocked resources for the user.

What is a proxy?

If you do not start the proxy server, the computer and all programs installed on it will use a normal Internet connection.

In other words, the computer and software will connect directly to the sites or application servers installed on the PC. As a result of direct access to the server sites will receive data about the real ip address – a unique identifier, which determines the exact location and other personal data of the user. Thus, we can’t talk about the possibility of keeping our own anonymity in the normal connection. In addition, there is another problem – both the owners of various applications, their servers, and site administrators can easily block access to their resources.

If you run the program through a proxy or use a proxy connection instead of the normal connection, a new link in the chain will appear – the data from the program will not go directly to its servers, as well as the user will not send requests and receive responses directly from the target host in the network. All data – requests and answers to them will first be sent to the proxy server and from there will be sent to the recipients.

Quote: The proxy can be translated into Russian as an intermediary, buffer, layer. This name accurately reflects the main function of the technology.

Using a proxy server will allow you to mask data, personal information of the user, his actual IP address or location when using a proxy server will not be able to see third parties – the same resource administrators, software owners or servers.

Thus, you can exclude the possibility of blocking the visitor by ip address. Another advantage of running a proxy server is that it can even bypass the blocking enabled by the user’s ISP.

Nevertheless, anonymity in a network by means of a proxy server will be mediocre – at great desire, presence of the specialised equipment, the experts possessing necessary skills, to calculate the person using proxy, it is possible.

Quote: It should be noted that a proxy only gives relative anonymity to the network.

Significant differences between a proxy and a VPN

The two most popular ways to bypass the locks and maintain anonymity on the network today are two ways of bypassing them. That’s it. (Laughs)

• using a proxy server;
• VPN

Proxy connection will bypass the lock. However, a similar feature is offered by VPN, which is more technically advanced

The advantage of VPN is the ability to get high access speed, high security for their data, good level of anonymity. The downside is that you have to pay for such opportunities.

Therefore, if you need a technique that will bypass the blocking of sites, you need a simple and straightforward way to configure and install, and still need to turn to the proxy.

Even when using a paid proxy, they have an advantage over a paid VPN: in most cases, a proxy will be much cheaper, but not much inferior to the functionality and capabilities of the VPN.

Types and types of proxy servers

Proxy connection implies the possibility to use one of several available types and types. Tonight’s proxy is divided by:

• CGI is a proxy specially adapted for surfing over the network. In most cases, it is easy to set up and install. The principle of work is to visit a specialized site, enter the target address of the node in the network, which the user wants to visit, but in normal connection does not have access to it. The disadvantage of this type is to name frequent problems with the correct display of pages:
• setting http proxy implies changing the network connection configuration in the operating system itself. Plus – provides connection of the entire PC, all software installed on it via proxy. Minus – to enable the normal connection, the settings must be changed again;
• SHTTP – proxy, which uses encryption and thereby increases the level of user data protection and anonymity. The advantage is the ability to view protected sites;
• The difference between http and soks proxy is that the latter have additional data protocols. This may be relevant when it is necessary to adapt the proxy to the work of several different programs transmitting and receiving data from the network.

How to use a proxy

In order to use a proxy, you will need to know its address and port, and then enter these values into the connection settings of the operating system itself on your computer.

There are several sites where you can find very impressive lists of actual proxy servers and data to connect to them.

Quote: Keep in mind that free proxies can often be slow or non-working.

In order to connect to a proxy server, it is necessary to write down or copy data for connection to it – port and address.

Next you should go to the OS settings. To do this, open the start, parameters and go to “Network” and “Internet”, where the section proxy will be found.

We need to activate the proxy connection block manually and we need to enter the data in it, remembering to press the “Save” button after all the data has been entered.

You can simply disable the proxy server by deactivating this option.

If you use an operating system version of windows 7 or older, to enter the settings you need to press the combination of Win (button with the icon windows)+R, in the window that opens enter inetcpl. cpl. Or you can open the control panel and find browser properties or browser properties in it.

In the opened window we find the connection tab and go to the settings. There we write down the data to connect to the proxy. It is switched off as before: by deactivating the “use proxy” option.

For a Mac operating system, you must go to the system settings, under “Network”. Then select “Current connection” and select “Extended”. Next, open the proxy tab and select the types of servers you want to use. Next, type in the address of the proxy server for each of the selected types and save the changes made.

As with Windows, you can disable proxy by simply unchecking the selected servers.

How to set up a proxy on an android – anyone can, once you set up the connection on your PC. On the phone it is done in the same way.

Open the wi-fi settings, hold your finger on the active connection or open the context menu, then go to the advanced settings and find the item related to the proxy settings. Next, let’s use the manual configuration mode. As usual, we enter data to connect to the proxy server, save the changes made.

If you need to disable the proxy, go back to the settings, find the item with the proxy and deactivate it.