What is a Proxy Server? Understanding the Middleman of the Internet

What is a proxy server?

Consider this example.
Here you can see two people, Alice and Bob. In the middle there is a proxy.

Alice asked the proxy to forward a message to him, Bob also does the same.
The proxy acts as the middleman here passing information between these two people.

This is how proxy servers work.

A proxyserver acts as a middleman between a client and a server, We have 3 things: Client Requests, Proxy Server and Responses.

Client Request: When you send a request to a website. Instead of the website receiving it first, the proxy server receives it.

Proxy Server: The proxy server then forwards your request to the actual website. It’s like a middleman that handles the communication.

Response: The website responds to the proxy server, which then forwards the response back to you.

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Below is an example of Postman executing an API call to an httpbin URL.

However, notice in the Network tab that the request doesn't go directly to the httpbin backend.

Instead, it is routed through Postman's servers, which then make the call to the httpbin backend.

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Here’s another example using LiveAPI.

Kind of similar to other API tools, LiveAPI routes requests through a proxy server when executing APIs.

But why do tools use proxies? If you're curious, check out this detailed explanation in our article: LiveAPI Engineering Lessons.

Unlike Postman, where you manually document APIs for every request, LiveAPI automatically generates documentation and allows you to test APIs directly in the browser.

Plus, LiveAPI hosts your documentation for free—making it super convenient.

Try it now and take advantage of our discounts!

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