!!! Overview
[{$pagename}] ([SOCKS]) is an [Internet Protocol] that exchanges network packets between a [client] and [server] through a [proxy] server. 

[SOCKS] version 5 is defined in [RFC 1928] and additionally provides [authentication] so only [authorized] users may access a server. 

[SOCKS] server proxies [TCP] connections to an arbitrary [IP Address], and provides a means for [UDP] packets to be forwarded.

[SOCKS] performs at Layer 5 of the [OSI-Model] (the [Session Layer], an intermediate layer between the [presentation Layer] and the [transport Layer]).!! Usage
[SOCKS] is a de facto standard for circuit-level [gateways].

[SOCKS] is as a circumvention tool, allowing traffic to bypass [Internet] filtering to access content otherwise blocked, e.g., by governments, workplaces, schools, and country-specific web services.

Some [SSH] suites, such as [OpenSSH], support dynamic [port] forwarding that allows the user to create a local [SOCKS] [Proxy Server]. This can free the user from the limitations of connecting only to a predefined remote port and server.

[The Onion Router] [Proxy Server] presents a [SOCKS] interface to its clients

[SOCKS] operates at a lower level than [HTTP] proxying.

[SOCKS] uses a handshake [protocol] to inform the [proxy] software about the connection that the [client] is trying to make, and then acts as transparently as possible, whereas a regular [HTTP] [proxy] may interpret and rewrite headers (say, to employ another underlying [protocol], such as [FTP]; however, an [HTTP] [proxy] simply forwards an [HTTP] request to the desired [HTTP] server). Though [HTTP] proxying has a different usage model in mind, the CONNECT method allows for forwarding TCP connections; however, [SOCKS] proxies can also forward [UDP] traffic and work in reverse, while [HTTP] proxies cannot. [HTTP] proxies are traditionally more aware of the [HTTP] protocol, performing higher-level filtering (though that usually only applies to [HTTP GET] and [HTTP POST] methods, not the [HTTP CONNECT] method).!! More Information
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* [#1] - [SOCKS|Wikipedia:SOCKS|target='_blank'] - based on information obtained 2017-04-01-