Ruby Proxy Server Integration Guide

Ruby is widely used for web scraping, API clients, and automation. Whether you use Faraday, Net::HTTP, HTTParty, or Typhoeus, routing traffic through a rotating proxy helps avoid IP bans and rate limits.

ProxyMesh provides rotating HTTP proxies compatible with standard Ruby clients. The ruby-proxy-headers gem adds support for custom proxy headers (for example X-ProxyMesh-Country and reading X-ProxyMesh-IP) during HTTPS CONNECT tunneling where the underlying stack allows it.

Quick Start: Ruby Proxy Setup

Get started with ProxyMesh in three steps:

  1. Sign up for a free ProxyMesh trial to get your proxy credentials
  2. Install your HTTP library (and ruby-proxy-headers if you need custom CONNECT headers)
  3. Configure the proxy URL with your ProxyMesh server address

Basic Example with Faraday

require 'faraday'

proxy_url = 'http://username:password@proxyhost:31280'

conn = Faraday.new(proxy: proxy_url) do |f|
  f.adapter Faraday.default_adapter
end

response = conn.get('https://api.ipify.org?format=json')
puts response.body

Each request through ProxyMesh can use a different IP address from the rotating pool.

With Environment Variables

Many tools respect HTTP_PROXY / HTTPS_PROXY:

export HTTPS_PROXY="http://username:password@proxyhost:31280"

Ruby HTTP Libraries with Proxy Support

ProxyMesh works with common Ruby HTTP clients. Runnable examples live in the proxy-examples repository.

Net::HTTP

Ruby standard library HTTP client. Use ruby_proxy_headers/net_http to send custom CONNECT headers and read proxy response headers.

gem install ruby-proxy-headers (stdlib included)

Faraday

Popular HTTP client abstraction with adapters. RubyProxyHeaders::FaradayIntegration merges CONNECT response headers into Faraday responses.

gem install faraday faraday-net_http ruby-proxy-headers

HTTParty

Simple DSL on top of Net::HTTP. Pair with RubyProxyHeaders::NetHTTP.patch! and ProxyHeadersConnectionAdapter for CONNECT headers.

gem install httparty ruby-proxy-headers

Excon

Fast client with :ssl_proxy_headers for sending headers on CONNECT. RubyProxyHeaders::ExconIntegration documents the mapping.

gem install excon ruby-proxy-headers

HTTP.rb

The http gem with HTTP.via for proxies. RubyProxyHeaders::HTTPGem helps with HTTPS and custom CONNECT headers.

gem install http ruby-proxy-headers

Typhoeus

libcurl bindings for Ruby. Use :proxy for basic proxying; RubyProxyHeaders::Typhoeus for HTTPS with custom CONNECT headers.

gem install typhoeus ruby-proxy-headers

RestClient

Simple REST client. Set RestClient.proxy for basic use; RubyProxyHeaders::RestClient for HTTPS with proxy headers.

gem install rest-client ruby-proxy-headers

HTTPClient

Feature-rich client with HTTPClient.new(proxy_url). For CONNECT headers over HTTPS, prefer Faraday or patched Net::HTTP.

gem install httpclient

Mechanize

Browser-like automation with set_proxy. For advanced CONNECT headers, combine with Net::HTTP + ruby-proxy-headers or Faraday.

gem install mechanize

Nokogiri

HTML/XML parsing. Fetch through a proxy with Net::HTTP (or another client), then parse with Nokogiri.

gem install nokogiri

Why Use ProxyMesh for Ruby Web Scraping?

Automatic IP Rotation

Every request through ProxyMesh can use a different IP address from our rotating pool. Each location maintains multiple IPs that rotate throughout the day, giving you access to hundreds of unique addresses without code changes. This automatic rotation helps you:

  • Avoid IP bans when scraping websites
  • Bypass rate limiting based on IP address
  • Distribute requests for better anonymity

Multiple Geographic Locations

ProxyMesh operates proxy servers worldwide in 17 locations:

  • Los Angeles, CA, US
  • Seattle, WA, US
  • Paris, France
  • Tokyo, Japan
  • Sydney, Australia
  • Frankfurt, Germany
  • Amsterdam, Netherlands
  • Singapore
  • Chicago, IL, US
  • Dallas, TX, US
  • Washington DC, US
  • New York, NY, US
  • London, UK
  • Zurich, Switzerland
  • Orlando, FL, US
  • Mumbai, India
  • Open Proxy Server
  • World Proxy Server
  • US ISP Proxy Server

Access geo-restricted content or test how your application appears from different regions by connecting to the appropriate proxy location.

Simple Authentication

ProxyMesh supports two authentication methods:

  • Username/Password: Include credentials in the proxy URL: http://username:password@proxyhost:31280
  • IP Authentication: Whitelist your server's IP in the dashboard—no credentials needed in code

Custom headers over HTTPS

The ruby-proxy-headers gem (RubyDoc) integrates with Net::HTTP, Faraday, HTTParty, Excon, and more. See the GitHub README for details.

Advanced: Custom Proxy Headers

ProxyMesh supports headers such as X-ProxyMesh-Country, X-ProxyMesh-IP, and X-ProxyMesh-Not-IP. Sending them on HTTPS requires attaching them to the proxy CONNECT request—handled by ruby-proxy-headers for supported stacks.

Documentation and Resources

ProxyMesh Documentation

Packages and Examples

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best Ruby HTTP library for proxy requests?

Faraday is a flexible choice for most applications. Net::HTTP is built into Ruby. HTTParty offers a simple API. Typhoeus suits libcurl workloads. Use ruby-proxy-headers when you need custom CONNECT headers over HTTPS.

How do I configure a rotating proxy in Ruby?

Configure your client with a ProxyMesh proxy URL such as http://username:password@proxyhost:31280. ProxyMesh rotates IPs automatically.

Does ProxyMesh work with Ruby on Rails?

Yes. Use the same proxy URL with Faraday, Net::HTTP, or other outbound clients. For HTTPS CONNECT headers, use ruby-proxy-headers with Faraday or patched Net::HTTP.

Where can I install ruby-proxy-headers?

Run gem install ruby-proxy-headers or add gem 'ruby-proxy-headers' to your Gemfile. Documentation: GitHub, RubyGems, and RubyDoc.

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