HTTP debugging proxy for Linux and Mac

Question

I use the Fiddler proxy to debug all kinds of HTTP issues on Windows. It's great for inspecting headers and responses across multiple pages.

Is there a good HTTP debugging proxy for Mac and Linux? I found Charles, but it's $50 once the trial runs out and it crashed on me. I could use Wireshark, but it's a pain.

See also: http://superuser.com/questions/42813/looking-for-http-debugging-proxy-for-mac-similar-to-fiddler-on-windows — nschum, Jul 17 '12 at 18:24

score 26 · Answer 1 · edited Mar 25 '18 at 04:04

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Mitmproxy is a useful command-line proxy tool.

It has also an user UI.

From the command line run mitmweb
Set up your app to use a proxy server and point it at http://127.0.0.1:8080
Go to http://127.0.0.1:8081 to see all the requests in the "flow" tab. Very similar to the Google Chrome Console "Network" tab.

edited Mar 25 '18 at 04:04

Francisco Luz

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answered Jul 23 '13 at 21:24

George V. Reilly

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Nathan · Answer 2 · 2021-10-29T23:41:27.217

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Zaproxy, a fork of Paros, is a cross-platform open source debugging proxy and is actively maintained under OWASP.

edited Oct 29 '21 at 23:41

answered Jun 18 '12 at 12:39

Nathan

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Now located at GitHub: https://www.owasp.org/index.php/ZAP – Jonathan Hult Dec 24 '15 at 00:51

score 15 · Answer 3 · answered Jul 20 '11 at 17:00

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Charles is $50 as you know, but I find it to be completely worth the money. A ton of features, including SSL support.

FWIW, I've never had it crash on me.

answered Jul 20 '11 at 17:00

Cody Caughlan

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Charles Proxy is a really solid product. I use it, among other purposes, as an HTTP proxy on the my network. Then configure my mobile devices to use my IP address and designated port number as the proxy in the wifi settings. – Bruno Bronosky Feb 01 '13 at 06:13

EricLaw · Accepted Answer · 2014-09-19T21:25:06.863

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You can of course, just use Fiddler on a Windows PC and point the Mac/Linux box at it. http://www.fiddlerbook.com/fiddler/help/hookup.asp#Q-NonWindows

You can also run Fiddler in a Windows or Linux virtual machine on the Mac itself: http://blogs.telerik.com/fiddler/posts/14-01-15/running-fiddler-in-virtualbox-on-mac

edited Sep 19 '14 at 21:25

answered Oct 24 '09 at 18:57

EricLaw

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Thanks, Eric, for all the great work you've done with Fiddler. I'll be using that trick in future. – George V. Reilly Oct 25 '09 at 23:07
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downvote, because i think the correct answer should be a proxy which run directly at linux. So i understand the question. – Huluvu424242 Nov 01 '14 at 14:35
@FunThomas424242 You're confused. Fiddler does run directly on Linux. – EricLaw Nov 01 '14 at 20:44

Skyr · Answer 5 · 2016-03-18T13:10:16.590

Wireshark won't help you if you have to debug HTTPS requests (unless you can get the encryption keys for both endpoints - see the Wireshark site for details). Firebug and Tamper Data are getting close, but for thorough analysis, I sometimes like to save a recorded session. I'd recommend giving the OWASP Zed Attack Proxy (the successor of Parosproxy, which is no longer actively developed) a try. It is a Java application serving as a http(s) proxy; it provides quite a lot of features and proved to be very helpful to me in the past.

ZAP offers an easy autoconfiguration of Firefox. Bear in mind to do that on a separate (meaning: not for other browsing activities) Firefox profile: In order to intercept https, ZAP will install a new SSL certificate.

score 4 · Answer 6 · answered Dec 09 '09 at 10:20

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You may want to try Live HTTP Headers add-on for Firefox.

answered Dec 09 '09 at 10:20

Tatu

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score 4 · Answer 7 · edited Feb 25 '14 at 21:52

Paros works like a charm for me on my Ubuntu Jaunty x64. Just as simple as download, run, set proxy settings in browser to localhost:8080 and you are ready to inspect your http browsing.

It is Java so it works on Windows, Linux and Mac.

I prefer this to firefox plugin because I can use it with different browsers and software.

ParosProxy download: http://sourceforge.net/projects/paros/

Paros hasn't been updated for many years. However there is an actively maintained fork of Paros - the OWASP Zed Attack Proxy (ZAP): https://www.owasp.org/index.php/OWASP_Zed_Attack_Proxy_Project

score 4 · Answer 8 · edited Feb 07 '16 at 21:41

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There are a number of Chrome store apps now. I'm using DHC by Restlet now.

edited Feb 07 '16 at 21:41

josliber

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answered Mar 19 '12 at 00:58

Ben Guthrie

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score 3 · Answer 9 · answered Oct 24 '09 at 19:12

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I personally find Wireshark to be quite easy to use. Just apply a filter for HTTP traffic and right click on the traffic going/coming to/from your site and click "Follow TCP stream".

But, if you want something a little more specific for HTTP debugging I would recommend Firebug http://getfirebug.com/

answered Oct 24 '09 at 19:12

Natalie Adams

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Firebug is great and I use it often, but it only tracks HTTP requests for the current page. My question was brought about by debugging a problem with redirects. – George V. Reilly Oct 25 '09 at 23:06
Ahh that is true, sorry about that. But, yeah if you want to do that Fiddler would be your best bet for a user-friendly "HTTP debugger". – Natalie Adams Oct 26 '09 at 03:26

score 3 · Answer 10 · answered Oct 25 '09 at 08:30

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If you limit yourself to Firefox, the Tamper Data extension is pretty solid.

answered Oct 25 '09 at 08:30

Josh Lee

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score 3 · Answer 11 · edited Apr 13 '17 at 12:22

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Burp Proxy

Betwixt - based on Chrome DevTools interface

Some additional options located on Ask Ubuntu.

edited Apr 13 '17 at 12:22

Community

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answered Dec 24 '15 at 00:58

Jonathan Hult

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wow Burp is a gem. And its free thanks! – Radu Simionescu Nov 07 '16 at 21:50

score 2 · Answer 12 · answered Jul 23 '13 at 03:15

Another option is something that doesn't require a desktop app. Runscope is a "cloud" based proxy that let's you debug requests. It can't capture requests on localhost or internal networks, but if you're debugging apps or third-party API integrations over the public internet, it can help.

(Disclaimer, I'm one of the founders.)

score 1 · Answer 13 · answered Oct 24 '09 at 10:07

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If you can do some Perl, I think you should have a look at the HTTP::Proxy module.

answered Oct 24 '09 at 10:07

siukurnin

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score 1 · Answer 14 · answered Nov 06 '14 at 21:49

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You can also try Proxy.app by Websecurify. It is 100% native, available from the Mac App Store.

answered Nov 06 '14 at 21:49

Pass

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score 1 · Answer 15 · answered Dec 11 '14 at 22:27

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You can use chrome: chrome://net-internals/#events

answered Dec 11 '14 at 22:27

Julio Marins

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score 1 · Answer 16 · answered Jan 22 '16 at 05:07

ZAP 2.4.3 Standard is the finest HTTP debugging proxy for Mac and Linux i can find. I have used Fiddler on windows but for Linux i faced similar problem and during my search i came to know about ZAP. I am using it and it has a very rich user interface.

score 0 · Answer 17 · answered Jan 06 '16 at 11:40

I know this an old question but I have ended up here many times looking for a solution for this.

I tried Wireshark ( Horrible ) Burp ( Ok just not good enough ) Fiddler mono version ( Buggy as hell ) Charles & many more.

Non of these tools felt half as useful as fiddler on windows.

I found a new extension to Postman ( Nice tool for making http request ) Postman proxy it allows you to monitor http requests much the same way as fiddler does in windows.

Hope this helps someone.

HTTP debugging proxy for Linux and Mac

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