Tinyproxy As A Mobile Hotspot Gateway On Linux

In scenarios where you must forward web requests through a mobile hotspot Tinyproxy offers a minimalistic yet powerful approach Tinyproxy is a simple, lightweight HTTP proxy server that runs on Linux systems making it perfect for aging hardware repurposed as a network gateway



By combining it with an Android phone’s USB or Wi-Fi hotspot you build a centralized proxy that safely distributes your phone’s internet to multiple clients



First, ensure your Android device is set up for tethering You may choose between USB tethering or activating a mobile hotspot via Settings USB tethering is typically more reliable and avoids Wi-Fi interference Your machine will automatically obtain an IP from the Android device’s network Use network utilities like ip link or networkctl to ensure the interface is active



Proceed by installing the Tinyproxy package on your Linux machine On Debian or Ubuntu, you can do this with sudo apt install tinyproxy etc You must configure these essential parameters



Specify the internal IP address of your proxy server on the local subnet 16 or 10.1.1.0 Optionally change the listening port to 8080, 8088, or 8888 based on preference Use "Info" level to track activity without excessive verbosity



After making changes, restart Tinyproxy with sudo systemctl restart tinyproxy Now your Linux machine is acting as a proxy server, http://hackmd.io forwarding HTTP traffic to your Android device’s internet connection



To use this from another device on your network, configure its browser or system proxy settings to point to the Linux machine’s IP address and the port you set, such as 192.168.1.100:8888



This setup is especially useful in environments where you need to monitor or filter web traffic or if you wish to avoid broadcasting your phone’s Wi-Fi signal It enables circumvention of firewalls in restricted networks using your mobile data



By default, Tinyproxy does not proxy non-HTTP traffic FTP Be aware that your cellular data allowance still applies—track usage via your carrier app



A budget-friendly, minimalist setup that transforms your phone into a full network proxy Easy to configure, self-sustaining, and puts you in charge of every request’s path