Explainer
Plain-English explainers from HProxy on how proxies and web scraping really work: residential vs datacenter, rotation, anonymity levels and more.
65 articles
Explainer
What Is a Proxy? How a Proxy Server Works, the Types and What a Site Sees
What is a proxy? A server that sends your requests for you, so the site sees its IP. How it works, the types, what a site sees, and what each costs per GB.
July 18, 2026 · 9 min read
Explainer
What Is Proxy Rotation? How It Works and What It Fixes
Proxy rotation changes your exit IP per request or per session. What four firewalls count, sticky windows, and how fast free proxies stop answering.
July 18, 2026 · 10 min read
Explainer
Forward vs Reverse Proxy: Same Word, Opposite Jobs
A forward proxy is chosen by the client and speaks for it. A reverse proxy is set up by a website and speaks for its servers. The standard, real headers and data.
July 17, 2026 · 10 min read
Explainer
SOCKS4 vs SOCKS5: the difference, measured on the wire
SOCKS4 vs SOCKS5 from the RFCs, then tested: who resolves DNS, what 80 public proxies really do with IPv6 and UDP, and which version to pick.
July 17, 2026 · 16 min read
Explainer
Sticky vs Rotating Proxy Sessions: How Long Sellers Hold One IP
Sticky vs rotating proxy sessions: the sticky windows ten sellers document (10-minute defaults, 24-hour maximums), why logins break on rotation, and which to use.
July 17, 2026 · 8 min read
Explainer
What Is a Rotating Proxy? How It Works, What It Costs, When to Use It
What is a rotating proxy? One gateway that sends each request out through a different IP. How rotation works, what it beats, and what it costs by IP type.
July 17, 2026 · 8 min read
Explainer
What Is an ASN? The Number That Tells Websites Who Owns Your IP
An ASN is the number that names one network on the internet. What it means, who assigns it, how to look one up for any IP, and why websites check it.
July 17, 2026 · 11 min read
Explainer
What Is an ISP Proxy? The Static Residential Proxy, Explained and Priced
What is an ISP proxy, or static residential proxy? A fixed IP on a home provider's network, run on a server. How it works, what sites see, what one IP costs.
July 17, 2026 · 9 min read
Explainer
What Is JA3/JA4 Fingerprinting? How a TLS Handshake Identifies Your Client
JA3 and JA4 turn the first TLS message your software sends into a fingerprint. How both are built, what nine clients sent, and why a proxy leaves them alone.
July 17, 2026 · 10 min read
Explainer
Free Proxy vs VPN vs Residential Proxy: A Plain-English Guide
Free proxy vs VPN vs residential proxy: what each one hides and from whom, what measurements found in free ones, and which fits which job.
July 10, 2026 · 7 min read
Explainer
Datacenter vs Residential Proxies: Price, Detection and Which to Buy
Datacenter vs residential proxies, priced at the same seven sellers on October 22, 2026: how sites spot server IPs, and which one to buy for your target.
July 3, 2026 · 9 min read
Explainer
HTTP vs SOCKS5 Proxy: What Changes on the Wire, Measured
HTTP vs SOCKS5 proxy, measured with curl: round trips and bytes before the first byte of the site, who resolves DNS, UDP, the login, and which one to use.
July 3, 2026 · 7 min read
Explainer
What Is a Mobile Proxy? 4G, 5G and LTE Proxies Explained
A mobile proxy sends your requests out from an address a phone carrier assigned. What 4G, 5G and LTE mean, why many people share one address, and the cost.
July 3, 2026 · 10 min read
Explainer
What Is a Residential Proxy? How It Works and Where the IPs Come From
A residential proxy sends your requests out through a home's internet address. How the gateway and the exit device work, what sites see, and where the IPs come from.
July 3, 2026 · 14 min read
Explainer
Rotating vs Static Residential Proxies: Cost and Which to Use
Rotating vs static residential proxies, priced at eight sellers on October 22, 2026: one static IP a month costs as much as about 1 GB of rotating traffic.
July 2, 2026 · 9 min read
Explainer
What Is a SOCKS5 Proxy? A Plain-English Guide With the Details Kept In
A SOCKS5 proxy relays any TCP connection without reading it. How it works, what five common clients send to one, and what free SOCKS5 proxies really do.
July 2, 2026 · 10 min read
Explainer
When Free Proxies Are Fine, and When They Are Not: Our Tests
When are free proxies fine? In our tests, fewer than 1 in 3 delivered a file from our website, 1 in 6 held 720p video, and 1 in 20 carried game traffic.
July 2, 2026 · 8 min read
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Proxies that don't die mid-job
Residential, ISP, datacenter and mobile, verified by the same engine that runs tens of millions of checks. They read as a real device and hold up under load. Pay as you go, and your balance never expires. $0.44/GB is the 2,000 GB+ rate; a single gigabyte is $0.50/GB, with no minimum order.
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HProxy.
Honest guides and comparisons on proxies, scraping and staying unblocked, from the team that runs the network.