What is a reverse proxy
A reverse proxy is a type of Proxy Server that typically sites behind the firewall in a private network and directs requests to the appropriate backend server. Provides an additional level of abstraction and control to ensure the smooth flow of network traffic
A reverse proxy is different to a forward proxy. It sits in front of webs servers and intercepts incoming traffic to prevent any client from directly communicating with the origin server.
Common use cases
- Load Balancing
- Distribute traffic evenly across a group of backend servers
- Web Acceleration
- Cache commonly requested content
- Compress inbound/outbound data
- Security
- Protect backend servers from attacks
- SSL Encryption
- Encrypting and decrypting SSL or TLS communications can be computationally expensive for an origin server. Can offload these tasks to the proxy to free up resources.