When a load balancer or proxy cannot preserve the client's original IP address, Proxy protocol v2 enables accurate logging, monitoring, and management of network traffic by encoding essential client connection details within proxy headers.

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<p>This article discusses how to preserve client IP address information when using Network Load Balancer and Proxy protocol v2. It covers the following key points:</p>
<p>Specifically, the article covers:</p>
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<li>How Proxy protocol v2 works by adding a header to the TCP stream with client connection details</li>
<li>Common use cases for Proxy protocol v2 when client IP preservation is not possible, such as with remote targets, PrivateLink, and hairpinning scenarios</li>
<li>A hands-on demonstration deploying a CloudFormation template with Network Load Balancer and Proxy protocol v2 enabled targets (NGINX or HAProxy)</li>
<li>Capturing and analyzing Proxy protocol v2 headers using a network protocol analyzer</li>
<li>Viewing web server access logs showing the client IP from the Proxy protocol v2 header</li>
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