Overview of the Caching Proxy Component
The caching proxy server is used to handle and validate Internet requests.
In an enterprise environment, a proxy server is a server that acts as an intermediary, typically placed in a demilitarized zone (DMZ). This DMZ is between the Internet and the server environment in the internal zone, providing the business services. It validates the request for an Internet service.
If the request passes filtering requirements, the proxy server forwards it to servers in the internal (secure) zone and acts as the requester. This mechanism prevents direct access from the (insecure external zone) to the sensitive servers in the internal zone (see also Test environment).
The proxy servers used here can also improve performance by caching content locally.
The two main advantages of using a proxy server are system security and performance:
- Security: A proxy server provides an additional layer of security and can protect HTTP servers further up the chain. It intercepts requests from the client, retrieves the requested information from the content-hosting machines, and delivers that information back to the client. If you are using a firewall between the reverse proxy server and the content HTTP server, you can configure the firewall to allow only HTTP requests from the proxy server.
- Performance: A proxy server can increase the performance of your WebSphere® Application Server in several ways.
- Encryption/SSL acceleration: You can equip the proxy server with SSL acceleration hardware that can improve the performance of SSL requests.
- Caching: The proxy server can cache static content to provide better performance.
- Load balancing: The proxy server can balance the workload among several content HTTP servers.