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Networking Intermediate

What is Reverse Proxy?

A server that sits between clients and backend servers, forwarding client requests and returning server responses on their behalf.

A reverse proxy accepts requests from the internet and forwards them to backend servers. Unlike a forward proxy (which serves clients), a reverse proxy serves the backend infrastructure. Clients interact with the proxy, unaware of the actual servers.

Benefits include load balancing, SSL termination, caching, compression, and security (hiding backend server details). Nginx and Apache are popular reverse proxy solutions. CDNs like Cloudflare act as global reverse proxies.

Related Terms

Network Topology
The physical or logical arrangement of nodes and connections in a computer network, such as star, mesh, ring, or bus configurations.
DNS Record Types
Different types of DNS entries that map domain names to various information like IP addresses, mail servers, and verification strings.
SDN (Software-Defined Networking)
An approach that separates the network control plane from the data plane, enabling centralized, programmable network management.
Network ACL
A set of rules that control inbound and outbound traffic at the subnet level, acting as a stateless firewall in cloud and enterprise networks.
VLAN (Virtual LAN)
A logical grouping of network devices that creates separate broadcast domains on the same physical network infrastructure.
Network Packet
A formatted unit of data carried over a network, containing headers with routing information and a payload with the actual data.
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