Most people looking for proxies face two challenges: what type to choose and where to use them. While there is a lot of information online, it is a mixed bag of products that aren’t the best value for your money.
We will cover the most affordable option – shared datacenter proxies and five of their top use cases. With these basics covered, starting to use proxies will be a lot easier.
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Shared datacenter proxies explained
Shared datacenter proxies are a type of proxies that balance performance and affordability. They are proxies based in data centers – places with high-tier internet and servers maintained by qualified staff. The IP addresses are unaffiliated with ordinary internet service providers (ISPs) and are created virtually with cloud technology.
With such proxy servers as a middleman, your IP address will be hidden. It ensures your privacy and enables many handy online tasks. Shared datacenter proxies achieve it with significantly lower costs.
Creating the IPs in data centers virtually and in mass is cost-effective already. However, sharing the connection with other users improves the price even more. Having a proxy only for yourself means you have to cover all the maintenance fees.
Sharing a proxy with other users cuts your expenses. You get the same access to a large pool of IP addresses as other users, utilizing them for purposes similar to yours. Proxies are rotated between users for a set time, so IPs wouldn’t be abused and banned.
Rotation helps avoid the main concern of sharing datacenter proxies – the bad neighbor effect. It happens when other users get the IP address banned for websites you need to visit. It is a reasonable concern while sharing proxies, but good providers minimize the risks by checking and rotating their IP addresses.
Bad neighbors can also reduce the performance of shared proxies as popular IPs can have increased user count at peak times. However, it is up to a provider to supply enough proxies and keep up with the demand.
Other proxy types, such as residential, avoid many problems of shared datacenter ones. They are rarely shared, set up to have unique IP addresses affiliated with ISPs and are tied to locations of physical devices.
It makes them harder to exclude for websites but, in some cases, lowers the performance and can raise the costs as much as three times. You should know what you are doing before paying that kind of money.
Key features of shared datacenter proxies
Shared datacenter proxies have features balanced for newcomers or casual proxy users. Here are the most important of them.
- Low costs are guaranteed as no other type is both created in bulk and shared among many users. The only cheaper alternative could be free proxies, but they are only a trick to infect you with malware or invade privacy.
- Speeds are faster with dedicated datacenter proxies, but shared ones are also quite fast. At favorable times and with a good provider, they can even be faster than residential ones. Unless it is really urgent, you will be fine with these proxies.
- Unlimited connections available simultaneously are expected from shared datacenter proxies. You will pay by the data transferred and not the connections made. You can potentially have hundreds of IPs sending small amounts of data and pay the same as with one IP sending large amounts.
- A large IP pool is a must for shared datacenter proxies, and the numbers are usually counted in thousands. Huge amounts are relatively easy for providers to achieve, so whatever your needs are, shared datacenter proxies won’t lack numbers.
Anonymous browsing
Shared datacenter proxies are the cheapest option for surfing the web anonymously among types of proxies. They can even be cheaper than some VPNs, considering proxies can give you access to multiple IP addresses and better data transfer speeds.
Using them for anonymous browsing is easy – you just need to set them up in your PC or browser settings. Quality providers also develop complementary software or browser add-ons for easier use.
Bypassing geo-restrictions
Many websites have different versions that show up for visitors depending on their geographical location. It doesn’t help for many of us who need to access the whole of what webpages have to offer. Changing your IP address to hide this information is the only option.
Shared datacenter proxies provide an affordable and effective way of doing so. Most such proxies cover all essential locations in North America and Europe. Of course, you have to choose your provider wisely.
Data collection
Collecting data online is an integral part of research and decision-making efforts for companies and individuals. Acquiring data by hand is a demanding task, taking a lot of time, so most people invoke automatic methods, such as web scraping.
Web scraping software uses bots to visit websites and collect publicly available data in seconds. Many websites fight against such measures by tracking the IPs of visitors, so frequently rotating them is necessary. Shared datacenter proxies are often used for this purpose, although more demanding tasks might require switching to other options later.
Brand protection
Brand protection involves tracking the web and looking for feedback from customers. Negative criticisms or defamation campaigns must be addressed quickly. The fastest way to collect data is to use bots that will need additional IPs. Without proxies, you might get your IP address banned or won’t be able to bypass geo-restrictions.
Social media automation
Anyone who tried managing multiple social media accounts knows the struggle. The worst part is that most automation software doesn’t help alone. Websites try to ban the automated activity, so proxies and automation tools are inseparable. Shared datacenter ones are an affordable option for many automation tasks.
Conclusion
No matter how you look at it, shared datacenter proxies are the best value option. They aren’t the best performing type, but their use cases are well established and will cover your basic needs. Making your first steps with shared datacenter proxies is a great idea.