Data center proxies are the most common type of proxy IP, also known as computer room IP. These proxy servers assign users IP addresses that do not belong to ISPs (Internet service providers) but come from third-party cloud service providers. The biggest advantage of data center proxies – they allow complete anonymity when accessing the Internet.

If you are looking for an overseas proxy IP, you must know what a data center IP is and whether it is suitable for you.

1. What are the types of data center proxies?

Data center IPs are not assigned by the local ISP, but by the data center, server hosting provider. There are the following types of data center proxies:

1. Exclusive/dedicated or shared IP proxy

Dedicated data center proxies are for one user only, while shared data center proxies can be used by multiple users at the same time. Dedicated IPs are faster and much more secure than shared IPs; however, shared IPs also have cost advantages and are suitable for individuals who do not require high IP purity, have limited budgets, and need large IP pools for network operations.

2. SOCKS5 or HTTP/HTTPS protocol

SOCKS5 and HTTP/HTTPS are Internet protocols, and the datacenter proxies assigned to these protocols are dedicated to SOCKS5 or HTTP/HTTPS connections, respectively. As with all other types of proxies, the decision of which one to use depends on the use case. While SOCKS5 is great for downloading and transferring large amounts of data, HTTP/HTTPS proxies provide secure web browsing.

3. IPv4 or IPv6 proxy IP

IPv4 and IPv6 are both address formats used to specify computers on the Internet. Both IPv4 and IPv6 use IP addresses to transmit data packets on the Internet and are the basis for network communication. IPv4 proxies are relatively rare on the market due to updates and iterations; and IPV6 proxies do not support access to all websites. Common platforms available include Google, Facebook, YouTube, Vinted, Instagram, and Linkedin.

2. What is the purpose of a data center proxy?

Some of the most popular use cases for datacenter proxies include:

1. Crawl public website data

Datacenter proxies are most commonly used for web scraping, which is the process of extracting public data from websites. Proxy servers are used in web scraping tools to help avoid IP blocking, enhance anonymity, access content in specific locations, and ensure higher public data collection rates. Some of the most popular web scraping frameworks are combined with datacenter proxies to help efficiently conduct large-scale public data collection.

2. Search engine optimization monitoring

Datacenter proxies are also very commonly used for SEO monitoring tasks, including bypassing various obstacles (IP blocks, CAPTCHAs, rate limits) implemented by search engines to prevent crawling.

Some of the well-known SEO monitoring use cases where datacenter proxies can be of great help include competitor analysis, rank tracking, keyword research, technical SEO analysis, geo-restricted content analysis, and more.

3. Price monitoring

As the name suggests, price monitoring is the process of tracking the prices of products or services to understand competitors and their strategies at scale and to understand the overall market. E-commerce, travel, and other businesses perform price monitoring with the help of data center proxies. By successfully bypassing IP address blocks and CAPTCHAs, data center proxies help collect accurate public network data and ultimately make informed pricing decisions.

4. Access geo-restricted content

Geo-restricted content refers to information that is restricted to a specific geographical location based on certain regulations, legal agreements, and other reasons. Datacenter proxies are very useful in such situations as they successfully transcend geo-restrictions and grant access to the desired data from anywhere in the world.

5. Social media/cross-border e-commerce account management

Data center proxies are also useful in social media or e-commerce account management, especially when maintaining accounts and requiring stable, secure proxy IPs. They add an extra level of security that ultimately protects your identity and hides your actual IP address. In addition, proxies help to transcend geographic restrictions, provide geolocation capabilities, and even allow anonymous tracking of competitor accounts.

In short, the data center proxy is a very effective Internet tool. Learning to use this tool well can effectively help you expand your business, improve efficiency, and obtain better benefits.