What it is
SmartProxy is a browser extension for Firefox, Chrome, and Edge, built with the WebExtensions and Chrome Extensions APIs. It lives in the browser-extension ecosystem for productivity and utilities, and it focuses on proxy switching during normal web browsing. The project is written in TypeScript and distributed under the GPL-3.0 license.
The concrete problem it solves is manual proxy management. Instead of turning a proxy on and off by hand, the extension watches the sites you visit and applies customizable patterns. When a matching site loads, SmartProxy transfers that website's data through the proxy. The README says SmartProxy is inspired by AutoProxy and AutoProxy-ng, which it describes as legacy, and states that SmartProxy was written from the ground up using WebExtensions.
Key capabilities
- It automatically enables or disables proxy use for certain websites based on rule patterns.
- It can switch between many proxy servers as the active proxy server setting.
- It lets you add the current site to the proxy rules list with one click.
- It lets you view current website items and requests and decide whether to proxify them with one click.
- It supports switching between proxy modes and enabling proxy for all domains.
- It supports proxy API subscriptions.
- It provides backup and restore for settings and rules.
Who uses it and how
- Users who visit selected sites through a proxy can add those domains once and let the extension apply the rule automatically.
- Users with multiple proxy servers can change the active proxy server without leaving the extension's normal browser workflow.
- Users who need finer control can inspect website items and requests and choose which ones should be proxified.
- Users who manage many rules can use subscriptions through the proxy API instead of entering every rule by hand.
- Users who move between browsers can install the extension from Firefox, Chrome, or Edge stores, or build it locally with Node.js.
Getting started
The README points to published extensions for Firefox Desktop and Android, Chrome, and Edge. For local development, it requires Node.js and a Firefox or Chrome browser, then uses npm install, npm run build-ff:watch, npm run build-ff, or npm run build-ch before temporary installation or loading the unpacked extension.
When to use it — and when not to
SmartProxy is useful when users want pattern-based proxy switching inside the browser and are comfortable operating their own proxy servers. It is less suitable when users need a managed proxy service, because the README describes the extension and does not provide proxy infrastructure. The project also depends on Crowdin for localization and uses IP2Location LITE for IP geolocation, but the database is not included in the repository because of licensing requirements.
project readme (upstream, from github) — read inline
SmartProxy
Download From Store
What is SmartProxy
SmartProxy is a Firefox/Chrome extension based on WebExtensions/Chrome Extensions technology.
It uses patterns to automatically define rules to proxify your web experience. With SmartProxy, you don't need to change your proxy manually and turn it on and off. You can add your desired website to the proxy rules list with just one click. After that, when you visit that specific website, SmartProxy will act and all you data for that website will be transferred though the proxy, without you doing anything.
What's more, SmartProxy is inspired by AutoProxy and AutoProxy-ng and that are now considered legacy. SmartProxy is completely written from ground up using WebExtensions and provides more functionality than those proxies.
Highlights
- Automatically detect when to enable or disable proxy to certain websites based on rule patterns
- Easily switch between many proxy servers as your active proxy server setting
- Easily with one click add current site to your proxy list
- View current website items and requests and decide whether to proxify them with one click
- Easily switch between proxy modes and enable proxy for all domains
- Proxy API is supported through subscriptions
- Backup/Restore settings and rules
How to translate
If you are interested to have SmartProxy in your language or it is not translated completely you can head to https://crowdin.com/project/smartproxy then login with Google or Github and there by clicking your language start translating right away.
How to build/test:
Requirements
Node.js
Firefox or Chrome browser
Run the app
npm install
npm run build-ff:watch
To install in Firefox follow these instructions:
https://extensionworkshop.com/documentation/develop/temporary-installation-in-firefox/
- build the project using
npm run build-ff command
- open Firefox
- enter "about:debugging" in the URL bar
- click "Load Temporary Add-on"
- open the extension's 'build' directory and select any file inside the extension.
To install in Google Chrome follow these instructions:
https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/mv3/getstarted/development-basics/#load-unpacked
- build the project using
npm run build-ch command
- Open the Extension Management page by navigating to chrome://extensions.
- The Extension Management page can also be opened by clicking on the Chrome menu, hovering over More Tools then selecting Extensions.
- Enable Developer Mode by clicking the toggle switch next to Developer mode.
- Click the LOAD UNPACKED button and select the extension's 'build' directory.
Attribution
SmartProxy uses IP2Location LITE for IP geolocation. Database is not included in the repo due to licensing requirements.
