Per-connection versus timed rotation#
Most gateways rotate per connection: every new TCP connection gets a new exit, while requests reused over a keep-alive connection stay on the same one. Timed rotation keeps an exit for N minutes for all connections that share a session identifier, then moves on. Both are usually driven from the username, so the same account can do either per request.
What rotation does not do#
- It does not make a crawler polite: hundreds of requests a second still hit the target, only from many addresses. Keep per-domain rates reasonable.
- It does not hide browser fingerprints, cookies or account identity; those follow you across IPs.
- It does not guarantee a new country: without a location parameter the next exit can be anywhere in the pool.
How a rotating proxy works#
- Your client connects to one gateway hostname with one set of credentials.
- For each new connection the gateway picks an exit from its pool that matches the location you asked for.
- The request leaves from that exit; the target sees the exit's IP, never yours or the gateway's.
- The next connection gets a different exit, unless a session identifier asks the gateway to keep the same one.
Rotation strategies#
| Strategy | How to get it | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| New IP per request | Open a new connection per request (no keep-alive) | Search results, product pages, anything rate-limited per IP |
| Sticky for a few minutes | Same session ID with a short TTL | Paginated listings, multi-step forms |
| Sticky for hours | Same session ID with a long TTL | Logged-in sessions, carts, slow crawls |
| Rotate on failure | Change the session ID after a block or CAPTCHA | Keeping success rates high without burning the pool |
# A new exit on every connection
curl -x http://USER-cc-us:PASS@res.hodlproxy.com:9000 https://api.ipify.org
# The same exit for 30 minutes, whatever the number of connections
curl -x http://USER-cc-us-sid-job42-ttl-30m:PASS@res.hodlproxy.com:9000 https://api.ipify.orgRotating versus static proxies#
Rotation spreads load across many addresses and makes per-IP limits irrelevant; a static proxy keeps one identity for weeks. Rotating pools are billed per gigabyte (residential from $2.45/GB, mobile from $2.62/GB here), static addresses per IP and term.
How it works at HodlProxy#
On HodlProxy, rotation is the default: omit -sid- and every new connection to res.hodlproxy.com or mob.hodlproxy.com leaves from a new exit. Add -sid- and -ttl- to hold one exit from 1 minute to 24 hours.
Questions people ask#
Does every request get a new IP?
Every new connection does. HTTP clients that reuse connections (keep-alive) send several requests over one connection and therefore one exit; close the connection or disable keep-alive when you need a fresh IP per request.
How often does a rotating proxy change IP?
On every new connection by default. With a session identifier the same exit is kept for the time you set, from one minute to 24 hours on HodlProxy, or until the device behind it goes offline.
Can I keep the same IP on a rotating proxy?
Yes, with a sticky session: add a session ID (and a lifetime) to the username, and every connection carrying that ID leaves from the same exit.
Are rotating proxies residential?
Usually, but not necessarily. Residential and mobile pools are the common rotating products; some providers also rotate datacenter IPs, which are cheaper and easier to detect.
How big is a rotating proxy pool?
Providers count distinct addresses seen over a month. HodlProxy publishes 70M+ residential and 4.9M+ mobile IPs, with the basis of each figure on the pricing and product pages.