Guides, Tutorials & Insights
Learn about residential proxies, web scraping, data collection strategies, and industry best practices from the Shifter team.
Common Residential Proxy Errors and How to Fix Them
Every proxy failure falls into one of eight patterns, and the status code usually tells you which. Start here, identify the symptom, then go to the fix.
Matt Brown · August 31, 2026 Setting Up Residential Proxies in cURL and Postman
Both tools handle proxies well, and both have a setting that quietly breaks things. Here is the working configuration for each, and how to debug the rest.
Chris Collins · August 31, 2026 Shared vs Dedicated Residential Proxies: What's the Difference?
Dedicated means the address is yours alone, which changes who owns its reputation. Here is when that is worth paying for and when a shared pool is better.
Matt Brown · August 30, 2026 Backconnect Residential Proxies: How Rotating Gateways Work
Backconnect means one endpoint that connects you back through many different exits. Here is what happens on each request and why it changes your client code.
Chris Collins · August 30, 2026 Residential Proxy IP Pools: How Providers Build and Refresh Them
A pool is not an inventory, it is a population that turns over constantly. Here is how it is assembled, why it churns, and what that means for your jobs.
Chris Collins · August 30, 2026 Residential Proxy IP Not Rotating? Causes and Fixes
Usually the proxy is rotating fine and your HTTP client is reusing one connection. Here is how to tell the difference and the six causes worth checking.
Matt Brown · August 28, 2026 How to Connect to a Residential Proxy: Host, Port and Format
One host, one port, and credentials that carry your targeting. Here is the exact connection format, what each part does, and how to read the errors.
Chris Collins · August 28, 2026 Residential Proxy Sub-Users and Access Management Explained
Sub-users solve three real problems for teams. Here is what they are, what Shifter provides instead, and how to segment clients and cap usage without them.
Matt Brown · August 27, 2026