Proxy configuration options

Proxy networks access

There are two ways to access Bright Data’s proxy networks: Native and via REST API. Read more in this article to decide which is best for you: Proxy API Authentication .

Native access via proxy user name and password

After creating a Bright Data proxy zone, which includes a product and its configuration settings, you receive a proxy username and password.

The proxy user name comprises your account ID, zone name and optional parameters.

Proxy username structure is:

brd-customer-[customerID]-zone-[zone name]-[optional parameters]

Note, that you cannot change the zone name itself after it was created. If you need to change the zone name, create a new zone (you can transfer proxies from zone to zone of the same type).

This page explains how by adding optional parameters and modifying the username, you can control the Bright Data system in a very granular way from your code. The table below consolidates the options developers can use in the proxy username. Elaborated list can be seen in our API reference documentation: Proxy API documentation .

Access using API key

API key enables access to proxy networks. Some users may find API key more convenient to use. API key allows you:

1. Control your access with one API key, instead of combination of two
2. API key is tied to a names user, which enhances traceability
3. API key to access all zones
4. Easier migration to high level scraping solutions for hard to access domains
5. Full compliant with REST API

Creating an API key

Please see here about our API key and its usage.

Intergrate with 3rd Parties & Tools

You can use the Proxy Integration Examples page on your dashboard to create different requests.

Proxy targeting options

These settings let you easily configure proxies for a specific country, state, city, zip code and ASN.

Datacenter and ISP proxies only support country targeting

Parameter	Description	Example username
-country-xx	Select a country using two letter code, or eu for random country in the European Union. List of country codes is here	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-country-us
-state-xxxxx	Targets a state in the US using the two letter code. You must include US as country.	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-country-us-state-ny
-city-xxxxx	Targets a city. You must include the country (e.g. username-country-fr-city-paris). Do not use spaces (e.g. -city-sanfrancisco)	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-country-us-city-sanfrancisco
-zip-xxxxx	Targets a US zip code. Use a 5-digit zipcode	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-city-memphis-zip-37501
-asn-xxxxx	Targets an ASN from the list	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-asn-56386
-os-xxxxx	Only for Residential proxies. Allows targeting Windows, MacOS, orandroid	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-os-windows
-carrier-os-xxxxx	For mobile proxies only, you can choose to use a specific carrier from this list	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-carrier-dt

Controlling your proxies’ DNS

The following option allows you to set how DNS resolution is performed.

Function	Parameter	Description	Example username
Choose where DNS resolution is done	-dns-local or -dns-remote	Lets you choose if DNS is resolved remote on the proxy connecting to the site, or local on Bright Data’s servers (‘Super Proxies’). More info here	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-dns-local

Controlling your proxies rotation

The following options allow you to set how we rotate within the proxies in the zone, or attach to a specific proxy, and what shall we do if the peer is not available from some reason. For more information regarding the way IP rotation works with our proxy products, and for further explanation of the following options, please see this article

Function	Parameter	Description	Example username
Keep the same IP for multiple requests or rotate IPs	-session-xxxxxx	Each unique session ID will get a unique IP, can be used to target the same IP repeatedly or force rotation. Recommended for implementing programmatic IP rotation.	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-session-mystring12345
Selecting specific IP	-ip-x.x.x.x	Available only for zones with dedicated IPs allocated	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-ip-1.2.3.4
Selecting specific group of IPs (gIP)	-gip-xxxxxx	Only for dedicated Residential or mobile proxies.	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-gip-us_7922_fl_hollywood_0
Keeping track of individual responses	-c_tag-xxxxxx	Include a unique c_tag flag in their requests. In response, businesses echo back the same tag in the header. This seamless exchange ensures that each response is bound to its corresponding request, eliminating confusion and streamlining data management..	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-c_tag-<C_TAG_VALUE>
Bind to peer in session	-const	Use the same peer for the session. If peer is unavailable, a 502 error will be returned with “no peer available”	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-const

Controlling ‘Super Proxies’

Super proxies are the main servers that decide on the routing of your request to the actual proxies (these can be datacentre, ISP or residential proxies). Note: modifying these parameters is rarely needed\!

Function	Parameter	Description	Example username
Send requests directly from Super Proxy	-direct	Keeps the same IP for multiple requests. Each unique session ID will get a unique IP.	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-direct
Select super proxy in specific country	session-xxxxxx	Applies ONLY for choosing a super proxy, which is rarely needed. More details here	example
Selecting specific group of IPs (gIP)	gip-xxxxxx	Only for dedicated Residential or mobile proxies.	brd-customer-<customer_id>-zone-<zone_name>-gip-us_7922_fl_hollywood_0	hey