Setting up the proxy server

A proxy server is a specific type of application server that routes HTTP requests to content servers that perform the work. Proxy servers can be classified according to the role that it plays in a system. This particular proxy server is classified as a reverse proxy server because its main function is to serve as the initial point of entry, after the firewall, for client requests into an enterprise.

Before you begin

Review the topic that describes how to select a front end for your WebSphere Application server topology. This topic helps you determine whether you should set up a Web server plug-in, a proxy server, or a secure proxy server to provide session affinity, failover support, and workload balancing for your WebSphere Application Server topology.

If you are familiar with the functionality of the legacy proxy server that existed in versions of the product prior to Version 6.0, review the following list of functions that were available in the legacy proxy server but are not available in the current proxy server:
  • Forward proxy configuration, including SSL tunneling, transparent proxy, and FTP protocol
  • Request URI rewrite (response URI rewrite is available)
  • Authentication and authorization on the proxy server
  • NCSA combined logging
  • Custom logging
  • Cache sharing
  • Common Gateway Interface (CGI)

About this task

[Version 6.0.2] The proxy server for WebSphere Application Server requires that you install the V6.0.2 update. Additionally, you must augment the profiles that are associated with the deployment manager and the nodes that are expected to host the proxy server to contain the artifacts that you need to administer and manage the proxy server feature.

The proxy server acts as a surrogate for content servers within the enterprise. As a surrogate, you can configure the proxy server with rules to route to and load balance the clusters of content servers. The proxy server is also capable of securing the transport, using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), and the content using various authentication and authorization schemes. Another important feature is its capability to protect the identity of the content servers from the Web clients by using response transformations (URL rewriting). The proxy server can also improve performance by caching content locally and by protecting the content servers from surges in traffic.

[Version 6.0.2] The proxy server is available in the WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment V6.0.2 offering and higher.

A proxy server configuration provides settings that control how a proxy server can provide services for the enterprise applications and their components. This section describes how to create and configure proxy servers in an existing application server environment.

Overview of the proxy server

[Version 6.0.2] Augmentation of the deployment manager profile enables the management of the proxy server feature in the administrative console. You must stop the deployment manager prior to augmentation to update the deployment manager profile. The augmentProxyServer script that is provided with WebSphere Application Server must be run on the deployment manager as well as all nodes that host a proxy server. If you need to remove the feature from your deployment, you can unaugment the proxy server feature from the profiles that are previously augmented. Unaugmenting also removes any proxy servers that are configured in the cell. You must stop the deployment manager prior to unaugmentation. To augment or unaugment an existing profile, use the following scripts from the bin directory of WebSphere Application Server.

Procedure

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Last updated: Sep 20, 2010 9:00:59 PM CDT
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