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Nginx Config Generator - Create Nginx Server Configuration

Nginx Config Generator

Generate Nginx server configuration blocks for common use cases.

About Nginx Configuration

Nginx is a high-performance web server, reverse proxy, and load balancer used by millions of websites worldwide. Proper configuration is essential for security, performance, and reliability.

Configuration Types

A reverse proxy sits in front of your backend application servers and forwards client requests to them. Benefits include:

  • Load balancing across multiple servers
  • SSL termination (handle HTTPS at the proxy level)
  • Caching to improve performance
  • Security by hiding backend server details

Use case: Running a Node.js, Python, or Ruby application on localhost:3000 and exposing it on port 80.

Nginx excels at serving static files (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, images) directly from disk with minimal overhead.

  • Extremely fast file serving
  • Built-in caching headers
  • Efficient gzip compression
  • Support for HTTP/2 and HTTP/3

Use case: Hosting a static website, single-page application, or CDN origin.

SSL/TLS encryption is essential for secure communication. This configuration includes:

  • TLSv1.2 and TLSv1.3 support (disabling older insecure protocols)
  • Strong cipher suites
  • HTTP to HTTPS redirect
  • HTTP/2 support for improved performance

Use case: Securing your website with Let's Encrypt or commercial SSL certificates.

Gzip compression reduces file sizes by 60-80% for text-based assets, dramatically improving page load times.

  • Compresses HTML, CSS, JavaScript, JSON, XML
  • Configurable compression levels (1-9)
  • Minimum file size threshold
  • Automatic content-type detection

Performance tip: Level 6 provides the best balance between compression ratio and CPU usage.

Best Practices

  • Always test configs before reloading: sudo nginx -t
  • Keep config files organized: Use /etc/nginx/sites-available/ and symlink to sites-enabled/
  • Enable logging: Monitor access.log and error.log for issues
  • Set appropriate buffer sizes: Adjust based on your application needs
  • Use HTTP/2: Add http2 to your SSL listen directive
  • Implement rate limiting: Protect against DoS attacks

Common Pitfalls

  • Forgetting the semicolon at the end of directives
  • Not reloading Nginx after config changes: sudo systemctl reload nginx
  • Incorrect file permissions on SSL certificates
  • Missing trailing slashes in proxy_pass URLs
  • Not configuring client_max_body_size for file uploads
Quick Commands

Test configuration:

sudo nginx -t

Reload config:

sudo systemctl reload nginx

Restart Nginx:

sudo systemctl restart nginx

Check status:

sudo systemctl status nginx

View error log:

sudo tail -f /var/log/nginx/error.log
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