EZproxy
Encyclopedia
EZproxy is a web proxy server
used by libraries
to give access from outside the library's computer network
to restricted-access website
s that authenticate
users by IP address
. This allows library patrons at home or elsewhere to log in through their library's EZproxy server and gain access to bibliographic database
s and the like to which their library subscribes
.
The software was originally written by Chris Zagar in 1999 who founded Useful Utilities LLC to support it. OCLC
announced in January 2008 that it had acquired the product and was hiring Zagar as a full time consultant for a year. Zagar is a librarian who serves as a systems librarian at the Estrella Mountain Community College
, a part of the Maricopa Community Colleges
in Arizona
. He won the 2006 LITA/Brett Butler Entrepreneurship Award for his work with EZproxy.
EZproxy is a URL-rewriting program
that "works by dynamically altering the URLs within the web pages provided by your database vendor. The server names within the URLs of these web pages are changed to reflect your EZproxy server instead, causing your users to return to the EZproxy server as they access links on these web pages." Previous proxy solutions were complex and difficult to maintain, and when EZproxy was created, authentication systems like Shibboleth
were still far in the future.
The software is sometimes confused with generic proxy server software designed to control web access. It is sometimes referred to as a "proxy referral" server to distinguish it.
The software has been purchased by more than 2,500 institutions in over 60 countries.
Proxy server
In computer networks, a proxy server is a server that acts as an intermediary for requests from clients seeking resources from other servers. A client connects to the proxy server, requesting some service, such as a file, connection, web page, or other resource available from a different server...
used by libraries
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
to give access from outside the library's computer network
Computer network
A computer network, often simply referred to as a network, is a collection of hardware components and computers interconnected by communication channels that allow sharing of resources and information....
to restricted-access website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
s that authenticate
Authentication
Authentication is the act of confirming the truth of an attribute of a datum or entity...
users by IP address
IP address
An Internet Protocol address is a numerical label assigned to each device participating in a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for communication. An IP address serves two principal functions: host or network interface identification and location addressing...
. This allows library patrons at home or elsewhere to log in through their library's EZproxy server and gain access to bibliographic database
Bibliographic database
A bibliographic database is a database of bibliographic records, an organized digital collection of references to published literature, including journal and newspaper articles, conference proceedings, reports, government and legal publications, patents, books, etc...
s and the like to which their library subscribes
Subscription business model
The subscription business model is a business model where a customer must pay a subscription price to have access to the product/service. The model was pioneered by magazines and newspapers, but is now used by many businesses and websites....
.
The software was originally written by Chris Zagar in 1999 who founded Useful Utilities LLC to support it. OCLC
OCLC
OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc. is "a nonprofit, membership, computer library service and research organization dedicated to the public purposes of furthering access to the world’s information and reducing information costs"...
announced in January 2008 that it had acquired the product and was hiring Zagar as a full time consultant for a year. Zagar is a librarian who serves as a systems librarian at the Estrella Mountain Community College
Estrella Mountain Community College
Estrella Mountain Community College is a community college in Avondale, Arizona, USA, serving the West Valley community since 1990, and at the Avondale campus since 1992...
, a part of the Maricopa Community Colleges
Maricopa County Community College District
The Maricopa County Community College District, in Maricopa County, Arizona, is the largest community college district in the United States. The district serves Maricopa County, the county that includes and surrounds Phoenix and is the most populous of the state's counties...
in Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
. He won the 2006 LITA/Brett Butler Entrepreneurship Award for his work with EZproxy.
EZproxy is a URL-rewriting program
Rewrite engine
A rewrite engine is software that modifies a web URL's appearance . Rewritten URLs are used to provide shorter and more relevant-looking links to web pages...
that "works by dynamically altering the URLs within the web pages provided by your database vendor. The server names within the URLs of these web pages are changed to reflect your EZproxy server instead, causing your users to return to the EZproxy server as they access links on these web pages." Previous proxy solutions were complex and difficult to maintain, and when EZproxy was created, authentication systems like Shibboleth
Shibboleth (Internet2)
Shibboleth is an Internet2 project that has created an architecture and open-source implementation for federated identity-based authentication and authorization infrastructure based on Security Assertion Markup Language . Federated identity allows for information about users in one security domain...
were still far in the future.
The software is sometimes confused with generic proxy server software designed to control web access. It is sometimes referred to as a "proxy referral" server to distinguish it.
The software has been purchased by more than 2,500 institutions in over 60 countries.
External links
- EZproxy authentication and access software, official webpages at OCLC
- The Unofficial EZproxy Self-Support Wiki, The State University of New York at Potsdam