multi-tor-proxy

This project provides a Docker container that combines multiple Tor instances with HAProxy for load balancing and Privoxy for HTTP proxy functionality. The setup is based on Alpine Linux.

A Docker image for this project is automatically built and pushed to GitHub Container Registry (ghcr.io) via GitHub Actions. You can pull the latest image using:

docker pull ghcr.io/perennialtech/multi-tor-proxy:latest

To build the image locally:

docker build -t multi-tor-proxy .

Architecture

The container orchestrates the following components:

1. Multiple Tor instances
2. HAProxy for load balancing across Tor instances
3. Privoxy as an HTTP proxy frontend

graph LR
    Client[Client]
    Privoxy[Privoxy :8118]
    HAProxy[HAProxy :8050]
    Tor1[Tor Instance 1]
    Tor2[Tor Instance 2]
    TorN[Tor Instance N]
    Internet[Internet]

    Client <-->|HTTP| Privoxy
    Client <-->|SOCKS5| HAProxy
    Privoxy <-->|SOCKS5| HAProxy
    HAProxy <-->|SOCKS5| Tor1
    HAProxy <-->|SOCKS5| Tor2
    HAProxy <-->|SOCKS5| TorN
    Tor1 <--> Internet
    Tor2 <--> Internet
    TorN <--> Internet

Loading

Port Usage

The application uses the following ports:

Service	Port Type	Port Number/Range
Privoxy	HTTP proxy	Set by PRIVOXY_LISTEN_ADDRESS (default: 8118)
HAProxy	Frontend SOCKS5 proxy	8050
Tor Instances	SOCKS	9050 to 905(N-1), where N is the number of instances
Tor Instances	Control	9053 to 905(N+2), where N is the number of instances
Tor Instances	DNS	5350 to 535(N-1), where N is the number of instances

Note

The exact number of ports used for Tor instances depends on the NUM_TOR_INSTANCES environment variable.

Components

• Alpine Linux: 3.20.3
• Tor: 0.4.8.12-r0
• HAProxy: 2.8.10-r0
• Privoxy: 3.0.34-r2
• gosu: 1.17-r5 (from Alpine edge/testing repository)

Features

• Multiple Tor instances for improved performance and anonymity
• HAProxy load balancing among Tor instances
• Privoxy for HTTP proxy functionality and advanced filtering
• Persistent Tor data storage using Docker volumes
• Configurable via environment variables
• Non-root execution of Tor and Privoxy processes using gosu

Usage

1. Clone this repository:

   git clone https://github.com/perennialtech/multi-tor-proxy.git
   cd multi-tor-proxy

2. Create a .env file based on the provided .env.example:

   cp .env.example .env

   Adjust the variables in .env according to your requirements.

3. Start the container using Docker Compose:

   docker compose up -d

   This command will build the image if it doesn't exist and start the container in detached mode.

4. Use the Privoxy HTTP proxy:

   curl --proxy http://127.0.0.1:8118 https://am.i.mullvad.net/json

5. Use the HAProxy SOCKS5 proxy:

   curl --proxy socks5://127.0.0.1:8050 https://am.i.mullvad.net/json

Configuration

The container is configured using environment variables. These can be set in the .env file or passed directly to the container. Key configuration options include:

• NUM_TOR_INSTANCES: Number of Tor instances to run (default: 3)
• PRIVOXY_LISTEN_ADDRESS: Address and port for Privoxy (default: "0.0.0.0:8118")
• TOR_RELAY: Enable/disable relay mode (default: 0)
• TOR_NICKNAME: Nickname for the Tor relay (default: "torPrivoxy")
• TOR_BANDWIDTH_RATE: Bandwidth rate limit for the Tor relay (default: "1000000")
• TOR_BANDWIDTH_BURST: Bandwidth burst limit for the Tor relay (default: "2000000")
• TOR_EXIT_POLICY: Exit policy for the Tor relay (default: "reject :")

Refer to the .env.example file for a complete list of configuration options.

Docker Compose

The project includes a compose.yaml file for easy deployment using Docker Compose. Key features of the Compose configuration:

• Container name and hostname: multi-tor-proxy
• Builds the image from the local Dockerfile
• Maps ports 8118 (Privoxy) and 8050 (HAProxy) to the host
• Uses the .env file for environment variables
• Configures automatic restart (unless-stopped)
• Creates and uses a named volume multi-tor-proxy_tor-data for persistent Tor data

To stop the container:

docker compose down

To stop the container and remove the volume:

docker compose down -v

Data Persistence

Tor data for all instances is stored in a Docker volume named multi-tor-proxy_tor-data, persisting Tor's state across container restarts.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for details.