Transparent Proxy



Please Explain Transparent Proxy in non-technical terms!!

A transparent Proxy functions in the same manner as a proxy, but does it does not change any attributes within the messages being moved back and forth. Unlike a proxy, a transparent proxy allows you to move through your network without having to enter a specific network setting. A transparent proxy is a layered service provider that intercepts a web request and then makes the request to a remote server rather than allowing the user to directly request the web page. As opposed to Proxy Servers that alter the Ip Address of the computer making the packet request, a transparent proxy keeps the original server information intact.

So, you may be wondering, what is the benefit of a transparent proxy? A transparent proxy saves web-based content that is frequently retrieved. This allows the pages that are frequented the most to be quickly accessible. An example of how this works is as follows:

If you have a web request from your browser, when you submit it for retrieval, the network transparently diverts the request to a local network cache. If this request has not been previously submitted to the local network, the network will make a new web request to the original server. At this point, the request is handled and the web request is then added to the local networks cache of web sites. So, the next time this same web page is requested, the local network will not have to venture into the vastness of the Internet, rather it can fulfill the request from its very own network cache. Having this transparent proxy working for you keeps your downloading time to a minimum since it, in effect, weeds out unwanted search results due to its familiarity with your search habits.

The transparent proxy offers a way to communicate through a proxy server without having been configured to use a proxy. Each time a web page is clicked upon, the request will go to the Internet service providers transparent proxy server (this is true for all port 80 web servers, which is your htpp sites). This is not something avoidable as long as port 80 is being utilized. The creation of the transparent proxy model came from the need to bypass the bottlenecking of Internet traffic. By creating a cache of frequently visited sites, a server can simply answer the request on its own rather than having to go to the original source again and again for the same data. This is going to speed up the amount of time that lapses between your request and your request being granted!