How to Test Proxy Servers from Remote Client

by Rian

Normally a user can test the proxy server with any tools, —mine was Firefox until recently— but there is a time when more bare bone approach is needed —like when my Firefox started acting up. Jokes aside, it’s good to have an appropriate tool to test just the right subject, in which case the proxy server. Without further ado, let’s get straight to the point.

curl --proxy [protocol]://[proxy ip address]:[port] [url]

There are quite numbers of parameters, but it’s nothing special. It’s only asking for what proxy protocol, of which server, via what port, and in that order. For URL, I personally recommend using icanhazip.com, the site returns the public IP address of the user, so it is helpful if you are testing if the connection is passed through VPN.

If your proxy server requires authentication, curl does offer authentication options. Do be mindful though, --proxy-anyauth negotiates authentication method with the server, but it can fail, in which case, authentication method can be specified instead, such as --proxy-ntlm.

curl --proxy-user [username]:[password] --proxy-anyauth --proxy [protocol]://[proxy ip address]:[port] [url]