When you connect to a server (or cluster) using a TCP proxy level 7, also referred to as an application-level or Layer 7 proxy (highest level of the OSI model), the application doesn’t connect directly to the back-end server(s). The proxy usually understands the protocol used and can eventually take some decisions or even change the request.
The problem when using such proxy (like HA Proxy, ProxySQL and MySQL Router) is that the server doesn’t really know from where the client is connecting. The server sees the IP address of the proxy/router as the source IP of the client.
HA Proxy initially designed the Proxy Protocol, a simple protocol that allows a TCP connection to transport proxy-related information between the client, the proxy server and the destination server. The main purpose of the Proxy Protocol is then to preserve the client’s original IP address (with some others metadata). See …
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