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A server that forwards client requests to backend servers, providing load balancing, security, and caching.
DESCRIPTION
A reverse proxy sits between clients and backend applications, handling incoming requests and routing them to appropriate servers. It enables TLS termination, request filtering, caching, compression, and observability. Reverse proxies improve performance, security, scalability, and availability in microservices and monolithic architectures. Popular implementations include NGINX, HAProxy, Envoy, and Apache HTTP Server. They are commonly integrated with WAFs, CDNs, and API gateways for layered protection and control.
ALTERNATIVE DEFINITIONS
NGINX
A reverse proxy is a server that sits between client devices and a web server, intercepting requests to the web server.
Highlights intermediary role between clients and web servers.
Cloudflare
A reverse proxy is a server that sits in front of web servers and forwards client requests to those web servers.
Emphasizes placement in front of web servers and forwarding function.
HAProxy
HAProxy is a fast and reliable TCP/HTTP reverse proxy.
Positions HAProxy as a production-grade reverse proxy for TCP/HTTP.
RELATED TERMS
API Gateway Web Application Firewall TLS Termination Caching NGINX HAProxy
COMPETING TERMS
Forward Proxy Load Balancer
RELATIONS
- Broader: Proxy
KNOWLEDGE AREAS
Infrastructure Cloud Software Engineering Data Security
TARGET AUDIENCE
DevOps Engineer Security Architect Cloud Architect Software Developer Cybersecurity Engineer Application Administrator
EXTERNAL SOURCES
- Wikipedia - Reverse proxy
- NGINX - NGINX glossary and use cases
- Cloudflare - Cloudflare learning center explanation
- Envoy - Modern L7 proxy overview
TOP QUESTIONS
Why use a Reverse Proxy in modern architectures?
It centralizes security, load balancing, and routing, reduces server load, and simplifies certificate management. It also provides observability and can reduce latency via caching.
Category: Relevancy
How does a Reverse Proxy differ from a Forward Proxy?
A reverse proxy fronts servers to handle inbound traffic, while a forward proxy fronts clients to mediate outbound requests to the internet.
Category: Alternatives
What are common mistakes when configuring a Reverse Proxy?
Misconfigured TLS, improper header forwarding, and missing health checks can cause failures. Overlapping caching rules can introduce stale data and confusing behavior.
Category: Mistakes
What security benefits does a Reverse Proxy provide?
It hides backend servers, enforces TLS, rate limits, filters malicious requests, and integrates with WAFs and identity providers for access control.
Category: Risks
How does a Reverse Proxy support microservices?
It performs path-based routing, service discovery integration, retries, circuit breaking, and metrics collection for resilient, observable microservice traffic.
Category: Management
What is a hot topic for Reverse Proxy tooling?
Service mesh integration, zero-trust enforcement, and edge compute features are trending, alongside programmable proxies like Envoy with WASM filters.
Category: Topic
How do you scale Reverse Proxy infrastructure?
Use horizontal scaling with autoscaling groups, anycast or global load balancers, sharding, and CDN offload; continually tune connection pools and caches.
Category: Requirements
What is the biggest misunderstanding about Reverse Proxies?
Many think they only load balance; they also secure endpoints, transform requests, cache content, and provide detailed telemetry.
Category: Misunderstanding
What are key observability metrics for a Reverse Proxy?
Monitor latency percentiles, error rates, upstream health, cache hit ratios, TLS handshakes, and saturation indicators like CPU and connection counts.
Category: Testing