When you connect from your computer to a server on a network, such as the Internet, generally your computer makes a request for contents from that server, and that request is responded to directly by that server by supplying the content requested. This is a sort of direct connection (even though the request might actually have passed through several other computers on the way) since the request for content or resources is directly handled by the server. On the other hand, sometimes your request for contents may be handled by an intermediary server that may in turn request the destination server for contents, and such contents may then be delivered to such intermediary server and then from that intermediary server to your computer. Such an intermediary server is called proxy server in as much as it acts as a proxy on your behalf (or may be, in some circumstances, as a proxy on behalf of the destination server). Thus, a proxy server is like an intermediary server between your computer (the client) and the destination server that has the contents.
So, your computer, as a client, first requests the proxy server for some content, file, service or resource, however that content or service, etc., is not available with the proxy server itself but is with another (destination) server. The proxy server may handle your request for such content or service applying its own filtering rules, and, thereafter it may connect to the destination server for getting that content or service for delivering that to you. Or, the proxy server may even block your request completely or modify your request as per its filtering rules and accordingly the requested content or service may be denied totally or may be provided in a modified form. Sometimes, the proxy server may directly provide the requested contents to you from its own cached copy of the same contents. In this manner, the proxy server hides your computer from the destination server. The destination server does not see your computer and it notices only the proxy server. Accordingly, the proxy server can control all or any of your requests made to the destination server and hides your identity from the latter.
In view of these reasons, a proxy server can be useful for several purposes:
(1) It can make your computer anonymous in as much as the destination server won’t be able to see your computer and will thus not know the IP address of your computer. The destination server will know only the IP address of the proxy server through which your request was routed. This may help you to maintain your privacy and hide your IP address from the destination server. If you’re contacting a large number of destination servers (such as while browsing the Internet) through the proxy server, your identity remains hidden from all such servers. However, the proxy server would still know your identity.
(2) A proxy server can act as “access-control” device to filter contents that a computer can access from other networks such as the Internet. Thus, it can block certain sites. For example, in a school environment or in a company, access to social networking sites may be blocked. Likewise, access to objectionable or offensive sites may be blocked using a proxy server.
(3) It can scan the contents for blocking security threats, such as viruses, malware, spyware, entering the computers in the internal network of a company or in your home network from the Internet or other outside networks.
(4) A proxy server can be used to save bandwidth and speed up delivery of contents. For example, if there are certain web pages that are frequently accessed from Internet, the proxy server may store copies of those web pages in its own cache. So, next time when your computer requests for the same web page, instead of re-fetching that web page from the destination server, it can serve that page to you directly from its own cache. It will thus speed up the content delivery, and at the same time, it will save bandwidth since your internal network may not have to access Internet that often. Of course, the proxy server may keep refreshing the cached web pages from time to time.
(5) Some proxy servers may perform the task of reformatting the web pages in a particular format suitable for a specific audience or device before delivering it to you. For example, a proxy server may reformat or transform a web page in a form that is suitable for a mobile phone.
(6) A proxy server can also be used to check the outbound traffic to enforce company policies, for example, to prevent leakage of sensitive files to rivals or outsiders.
(7) It can also be used to audit the outbound / inbound traffic usage in a specific environment such as a company where employees may be subjected to traffic control and their activity reports or logs may be kept.
(8) A proxy server can be used to block certain sites, as noted above. But, on the other hand, some other proxy server may be used to access blocked sites. For example, if your company has restricted access to a social networking site such as Facebook or Twitter or to a video-sharing site such as YouTube; now, suppose you connect to a proxy server on the Internet whose web address and the IP address are different, this restriction may not apply, and then you can connect to such blocked sites through that proxy server.
(9) A proxy server may bypass regional or country restrictions. For example, Hulu.com may not allow its video contents to be watched by a person who is currently outside the U.S. But, suppose you’re connecting to Hulu.com using a proxy server whose IP address is from the U.S., you may still be able to access its contents even though you’re currently outside the U.S.
(10) Some countries pursue censorship policies and restrict access to certain sites. There may be restrictions on freedom of expression too. A proxy server may help you in certain situations to become anonymous on the web and then bypass such restrictions.
It may thus be seen that a proxy server can be useful in many ways. Some of its uses may be for good purposes, but sometimes even unscrupulous persons or criminals may also take advantage of capabilities of the proxy servers to commit certain illegal acts. However, as I mentioned above, while the identity of your computer and your IP address may be hidden from the destination server on the Internet if you use the proxy server to connect to it, your identity may still be known to the proxy server.
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