Forward Proxy vs Reverse Proxy | System Design | High Level Design

Welcome to a concise guide on Forward Proxy vs. Reverse Proxy! Join me as I explain the differences and use cases of these two types of proxies in network architecture.

What is a Forward Proxy?
A forward proxy acts as an intermediary between a client and the internet. It makes requests to external servers on behalf of the client, hiding the client's IP address and providing additional functionalities like caching, content filtering, and anonymity.

Key Features of Forward Proxy
1. Anonymity: Hides the client’s IP address, making it difficult for external servers to trace the client.
2. Access Control: Can restrict access to certain websites or content based on rules.
3. Caching: Stores frequently accessed content to reduce bandwidth usage and improve response times.
4. Security: Helps protect the internal network by filtering malicious content and blocking unsafe websites.

What is a Reverse Proxy?
A reverse proxy sits between external clients and internal servers, handling requests on behalf of the servers. It forwards client requests to the appropriate server and returns the server's response to the client, often without the client knowing which server actually processed the request.

Key Features of Reverse Proxy
1. Load Balancing: Distributes incoming traffic across multiple servers to ensure optimal performance and avoid server overload.
2. Security: Acts as a shield for internal servers, preventing direct access by clients and protecting against threats.
3. SSL Termination: Manages SSL encryption and decryption, offloading this task from backend servers.
4. Caching: Improves performance by caching responses from servers, reducing the load on the backend.

In a corporate network, a forward proxy might be used to filter and control employee access to the internet. On the other hand, a reverse proxy could be used by an online retail website to distribute incoming traffic across multiple servers, ensuring the site remains responsive during high traffic periods.

Follow ‪@ReactifyLabs‬ for more

Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Meta, Netflix, Google


#consistency
#strongconsistency
#eventualconsistency
#consistencymodels
#SystemDesign
#SoftwareArchitecture
#SystemArchitecture
#DesignPatterns
#ScalableSystems
#DistributedSystems
#MicroservicesArchitecture
#LargeScaleSystems
#TechDesign
#SystemScaling
#PerformanceEngineering
#DesignThinking
#ArchitecturalDecisions
#HighAvailability
#SystemOptimization
#CloudArchitecture
#InfrastructureDesign
#NetworkDesign
#DatabaseDesign
#SystemReliability
#FencingTokens
#DistributedSystems
#TechTutorial
#LearnWithMe
#Programming
#TechExplained
#SoftwareEngineering
#Scalability
#FaultTolerance
#ConcurrencyControl
#DistributedDatabases
#Consistency#SystemDesign #ForwardProxy #ReverseProxy #Networking #TechTutorial #LearnWithMe #Programming #TechExplained #Security #LoadBalancing #Caching #WebArchitecture