Tsocks is a software tool that facilitates transparent network access using a SOCKS version 4 or 5 proxy, typically found on firewalls.
The purpose of using tsocks is to enable these non-SOCKS applications, including ssh, telnet, and ftp, to use SOCKS without requiring any modification. It achieves this by intercepting the calls that applications make to establish network connections and negotiating them through the SOCKS server as required.
tsocks operates using the 'shared library interceptor' principle, which loads the software into the process space of every executed program by using the LD_PRELOAD environment variable or /etc/ld.so preloaded file. Subsequently, the software overrides the standard connect() function with its own intercept mechanism.
Whenever an application attempts to establish a TCP connection using the connect() function, control is transferred to tsocks. The software then employs the connect() function to determine whether a SOCKS server is needed to establish the connection, consulting /etc/tsocks.conf. If necessary, it negotiates the connection accordingly, thereby resolving the connection failure consequence of restrictive network environments.
In summary, tsocks is an excellent software that provides transparent network access through a SOCKS version 4 or 5 proxy, effectively resolving connection difficulties typically faced by non-SOCKS applications.
Version 1.8: N/A