Proxy and reverse proxy

A forward proxy sits in front of clients. Companies and schools use one to filter, log or cache web traffic, and websites see the proxy's address instead of each user's. Unlike a VPN, a proxy usually handles only web traffic or chosen apps, and it does not have to encrypt anything. Squid is a long-standing open-source example.

A reverse proxy sits in front of servers. Visitors connect to it, and it forwards each request to one of the app servers behind it, handling HTTPS certificates, caching, compression and load balancing on the way. Nginx, HAProxy, Caddy and Traefik are common self-hosted choices, while Cloudflare and other CDNs act as a reverse proxy for a whole site and filter attacks before they reach it.