Using PacketStream Residential Proxies with Go

Copy a Go net/http client for PacketStream's HTTPS residential proxy, with timeouts, exit checks, country targeting, and sticky sessions.

Give your Go service one reusable http.Client that routes through PacketStream, enforces a timeout, and keeps the standard transport defaults.

Configure

Read the credentials from the environment and attach the recommended HTTPS proxy to a cloned default transport:

package main

import (
	"fmt"
	"io"
	"log"
	"net/http"
	"net/url"
	"os"
	"time"
)

func main() {
	proxyURL := &url.URL{
		Scheme: "https",
		Host:   "proxy.packetstream.io:31111",
		User:   url.UserPassword(os.Getenv("PACKETSTREAM_USER"), os.Getenv("PACKETSTREAM_AUTH_KEY")),
	}

	transport := http.DefaultTransport.(*http.Transport).Clone()
	transport.Proxy = http.ProxyURL(proxyURL)
	client := &http.Client{Transport: transport, Timeout: 30 * time.Second}

	response, err := client.Get("https://ipinfo.io")
	if err != nil {
		log.Fatal(err)
	}
	if response.StatusCode < http.StatusOK || response.StatusCode >= http.StatusMultipleChoices {
		response.Body.Close()
		log.Fatalf("ipinfo.io returned %s", response.Status)
	}
	defer response.Body.Close()

	body, err := io.ReadAll(response.Body)
	if err != nil {
		log.Fatal(err)
	}
	fmt.Println(string(body))
}

Go’s standard transport also supports authenticated SOCKS5. When SOCKS5 is required, use this proxy URL instead:

proxyURL := &url.URL{
	Scheme: "socks5h",
	Host:   "proxy.packetstream.io:31113",
	User:   url.UserPassword(os.Getenv("PACKETSTREAM_USER"), os.Getenv("PACKETSTREAM_AUTH_KEY")),
}

Keep the HTTPS configuration above as the recommended default.

Verify your exit

Run the program and inspect the returned ipinfo.io JSON for the observed ip and country.

Country targeting and sticky sessions

Modify the password passed to url.UserPassword:

authKey := os.Getenv("PACKETSTREAM_AUTH_KEY") + "_country-US_session-worker42"
proxyURL.User = url.UserPassword(os.Getenv("PACKETSTREAM_USER"), authKey)

The proxy host, scheme, and port stay the same.

Troubleshooting

Clone http.DefaultTransport instead of replacing it with an empty transport and losing its standard defaults.
Keep Scheme: "https" paired with port 31111; the URL scheme controls how Go connects to the proxy.
Remember that the transport pools connections. Multiple requests on one connection use the same selected exit.

See proxy troubleshooting for proxy-scheme, TLS, authentication, and rotation checks.

Using PacketStream residential proxies with Go

Configure

Verify your exit

Country targeting and sticky sessions

Troubleshooting

Related