Why do we need Proxy Design Pattern?

The Proxy Design Pattern is employed to address various concerns and scenarios in software development, providing a way to control access to objects, add functionality, or optimize performance.

• Lazy Loading:
  • One of the primary use cases for proxies is lazy loading. In situations where creating or initializing an object is resource-intensive, the proxy delays the creation of the real object until it is actually needed.
  • This can lead to improved performance by avoiding unnecessary resource allocation.
• Access Control:
  • Proxies can enforce access control policies.
  • By acting as a gatekeeper to the real object, proxies can restrict access based on certain conditions, providing security or permission checks.
• Protection Proxy:
  • Protection proxies control access to a real object by adding an additional layer of security checks.
  • They can ensure that the client code has the necessary permissions before allowing access to the real object.
• Caching:
  • Proxies can implement caching mechanisms to store results or resources.
  • This is particularly useful when repeated operations on a real object can be optimized by caching previous results, avoiding redundant computations or data fetching.
• Logging and Monitoring:
  • Proxies provide a convenient point to add logging or monitoring functionalities.
  • By intercepting method calls to the real object, proxies can log information, track usage, or measure performance without modifying the real object.

The Proxy Design Pattern is a structural design pattern that provides a surrogate or placeholder for another object to control access to it. This pattern is useful when you want to add an extra layer of control over access to an object. The proxy acts as an intermediary, controlling access to the real object.

A real-world example can be a cheque or credit card as a proxy for what is in our bank account. It can be used in place of cash and provides a means of accessing that cash when required.

• And that’s exactly what the Proxy pattern does – ” Controls and manages access to the object they are protecting”.
• As in the decorator pattern, proxies can be chained together. The client, and each proxy, believe it is delegating messages to the real server: