Can you give any good explanation what is the difference between Proxy and Decorator?
The main difference I see is that when we assume that Proxy uses composition and Decorator uses aggregation then it seems to be clear that by using multiple (one or more) Decorators you can modify/ add functionalities to pre-existing instance (decorate), whereas Proxy has own inner instance of proxied class and delegates to it adding some additional features (proxy behaviour).
The question is - Does Proxy created with aggregation is still Proxy or rather Decorator? Is it allowed (by definition in GoF patterns) to create Proxy with aggregation?
Here is the direct quote from the GoF (page 216).
Although decorators can have similar implementations as proxies, decorators have a different purpose. A decorator adds one or more responsibilities to an object, whereas a proxy controls access to an object.
Proxies vary in the degree to which they are implemented like a decorator. A protection proxy might be implemented exactly like a decorator. On the other hand, a remote proxy will not contain a direct reference to its real subject but only an indirect reference, such as "host ID and local address on host." A virtual proxy will start off with an indirect reference such as a file name but will eventually obtain and use a direct reference.
Popular answers indicate that a Proxy knows the concrete type of its delegate. From this quote we can see that is not always true.
The difference between Proxy and Decorator according to the GoF is that Proxy restricts the client. Decorator does not. Proxy may restrict what a client does by controlling access to functionality; or it may restrict what a client knows by performing actions that are invisible and unknown to the client. Decorator does the opposite: it enhances what its delegate does in a way that is visible to clients.
We might say that Proxy is a black box while Decorator is a white box.
The composition relationship between wrapper and delegate is the wrong relationship to focus on when contrasting Proxy with Decorator, because composition is the feature these two patterns have in common. The relationship between wrapper and client is what differentiates these two patterns.