Title: The Squid Caching Proxy Server

What is a proxy server?
Where does Squid come from?
When to use a proxy server
What Squid offers
How does Squid compare?
Getting it for SCO operating systems
Questions & Answers

Title: What is a proxy server?

Makes HTTP, FTP, Gopher and other requests on behalf of a client
Caches results to serve future requests faster
	Reduces bandwidth usage
	Improves performance dramatically
Provides a well defined exit point through a firewall
	Enhances network security
	Provides centralized access control
	Provides usage and access information
Provides a means of restricting web usage

Title: Where does Squid Come from?


The Colorado State University Harvest Project
	Document indexing and content management system
	Caching proxy server
	Funded by ARPA
The Netscape Proxy Server
	Based on Harvest proxy
	Added several management services
	Hasn't changed much over the years
The Squid Caching Proxy Server
	Based on Harvest proxy
	Developed by the NLANR and funded by NIS
	Constantly evolving
	Considered the definitive implementation of ICP
	More info at http://squid.nlanr.net

Title: When to use a proxy server

Secure networks as a means of getting through a firewall
Network bandwidth is predominantly FTP or HTTP traffic
Need better access control for outgoing web traffic
Localize network traffic in Wide Area Networks
All other times too!

Title: What Squid Offers

Caching of commonly accessed files and web pages
Can act as an HTTP server accelerator
	Has little effect when used with Apache
	Considerably improves performance with NCSA
	Slight improvement when use with Netscape servers
Advanced access control for incoming and outgoing traffic
Good performance and usage tracking tool
Support for caching hierarchies using ICP
SNMP Management and status reporting
Supports all the latest caching protocols (HTCP etc)

Title: How does Squid Compare?

Approximately 30% faster than Netscape Proxy server 2.5
Faster than the CERN & Harvest proxies by about 20%
Approximately 20% faster than the Microsoft Proxy
Compared to the Apache cache module:
	Squid is only marginally faster with small caches
	Becomes much faster as cache database sizes increase
Has better caching protocol support than all other proxies

Title: Getting it for SCO Operating Systems

Available on the Skunkware web site
	http://www.sco.com/skunkware
Available for both Open Server and UnixWare 7
Latest versions always uploaded
	Current version is 2.2 STABLE4
Configured for maximum functionality

Title: Questions and Answers

Please feel free to ask any questions now!