Creating a SOCKS proxy for use with Mozilla Firefox
(Click here to view the original thread with full colors/images)Posted by: Fibre
What is SOCKS?
Though this protocol was developed long ago enough, it is rather new (compared to the HTTP proxy). SOCKS allows to work with any (version SOCKS 4 - with TCP, SOCKS 5 - with TCP and UDP) protocols. A socks proxy simply transfers data from a client to a server, not penetrating into this data contents (therefore it can work with HTTP, FTP, SMTP, POP3, NNTP, etc.)
Detailed explanation: http://www.freeproxy.ru/en/free_proxy/faq/what_is_socks_proxy.htm
This tutorial will show you how to create a SOCKS proxy for use with Mozilla Firefox. It's possible to use a SOCKS proxy with any type of program, even if it doesn't have specific support for SOCKS, using SocksCap V2 (http://files.filefront.com/sc32r240exe/;9251751;/fileinfo.html).
You will need:
PuTTy (http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/download.html (http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/%7Esgtatham/putty/download.html))
A Dedicated Linux Server
Mozilla Firefox1) Open PuTTy.
2) Enter IP of your Linux box in the Host Name field. Select SSH. Enter a Session Name. Click Save.
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3) Select the Saved Session you just created and click Load.
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4) Navigate to Connection > SSH > Tunnels.
5) Enter a Source Port of your choice. Select Dynamic & Auto. Click Add.
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6) Navigate back to Session.
7) Select your Saved Session. Click Save. Open the Session.
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8) Once connected, open Mozilla Firefox.
9) Navigate to Tools > Options > Advanced > Network
10) Select Manual Proxy Configuration. Enter 127.0.0.1 in the SOCKS Host field. Enter the Source Port you chose earlier. Make sure Socks v5 is selected.
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11) Browse to http://www.whatismyip.com (http://www.whatismyip.com/) to make sure everything works OK. It should display the IP of your Dedicated Server.
When you have finished using the proxy, close PuTTy.