Introduction
The utility squid is an internet proxy server that can be used within a network to distribute an internet connection to all the computers within the network. One central computer is connected to the internet through any means such as dial-up, cable modem, ISDN, DSL, or T1, runs squid, and thus acts as the firewall to the internet. Because it is a proxy, it has the capabilities to log all user actions such as the URLs visited. There are many features that can be configured in squid. This guide is meant to be a quick start guide for those who are eager to get squid working and then configure it from there.
squid Configuration
Squid uses the configuration file squid.conf. It is usually located in the /etc/squid directory. Access through the proxy can be given by individual IP addresses or by a subnet of IP addresses.
In squid.conf search for the default access control lists(acl) and add the following line below them:
acl mynetwork src 192.168.1.0/255.255.255.0 (for subnet)
acl mynetwork src 192.168.1.10/255.255.255.0 (for individual IP)
Then add the access control list named “mynetwork” to the http_access list with the following line:
http_access allow mynetwork
The default port for the proxy is 3128. Uncomment the following line and replace 3128 with the desired port :
http_port 3128
Starting, stopping, and restarting squid
Assuming you have the runlevel scripts installed you can use the following commands as root:
| Start squid | /etc/rc.d/init.d/squid start |
| Restart squid | /etc/rc.d/init.d/squid restart |
| Stop squid | /etc/rc.d/init.d/squid stop |
or issue the following TWO commands as root:
squid -z
squid
or configure squid to start at boot time using your runlevels.
Configuring squid Clients
To configure any application including a web browser to use squid, modify the proxy setting with the IP address of the squid server and the port number (default 3128).
