A proxy server receives requests intended for another server and acts on the client's behalf (as the client's proxy) to obtain the requested service. Caching Proxy is a proxy server, which means that it assumes the responsibility for retrieving Internet data for multiple browser clients. Client requests are sent to the Web servers through the proxy. The proxy receives client requests and forwards them to the Web server, acting on behalf of the originating client. The client's IP address is transparent to the Web server. The Web server does not see the IP address of the client in the packet headers, but the IP address of the proxy server. After the proxy receives the information from the Web server, it forwards the information to the requesting client.
A caching proxy server is similar to a proxy server in that it forwards requests from clients and returns responses to the clients. The difference is that a caching proxy server can save, or cache, the Web documents it retrieves. Caching Proxy is a caching proxy server. For more information on caching proxy servers and on the caching function in the Caching Proxy, see Caching Function.