How to Install and Configure NGINX on Linux - Full Tutorial
How to Install and Configure NGINX on Linux - A Full Tutorial
In today's digitally driven world, deploying applications and web services has become easier and more efficient thanks to web servers. NGINX is one such powerful open-source web server software that also works as a reverse proxy, HTTP cache, and load balancer. This article will offer a full tutorial on how to install and configure NGINX on Linux.
## Step 1: Prerequisites
Before you begin the NGINX installation process, ensure you have:
1. A Linux system – this tutorial uses Ubuntu 18.04. Still, the procedures apply to all Debian-based distributions.
2. A user with sudo privileges.
3. An operating system up-to-date with the latest patches and updates. You can update your system using the commands:
```
sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade
```
## Step 2: Installing NGINX On Linux
Follow the commands below to install NGINX:
```
sudo apt update
sudo apt install nginx
```
After installing, you can verify the NGINX installation using the following command:
```
nginx -v
```
You should see an output displaying the NGINX version installed on your system.
## Step 3: Manage The NGINX Service
After successful installation, manage the NGINX service using systemd commands.
To start NGINX service, use:
```
sudo systemctl start nginx
```
To stop the service, use:
```
sudo systemctl stop nginx
```
Automatically start NGINX at boot by using:
```
sudo systemctl enable nginx
```
## Step 4: Configuring NGINX
Configuration files for NGINX are located at /etc/nginx. The main configuration file is /etc/nginx/nginx.conf.
To set up your server block, navigate to /etc/nginx/sites-available and create a configuration file. A server block can look like this:
```
server {
listen 80;
server_name your_domain www.your_domain;
location / {
proxy_pass http://your_upstream;
}
}
```
Remember to replace 'your_domain' and 'your_upstream' with your domain name and application's IP address, respectively.
Once done, enable the server block by creating a symbolic link to the sites-enabled directory:
```
sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/my_site.conf /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
```
Test the configuration to ensure it’s free from any syntax errors, use:
```
sudo nginx -t
```
If the configuration is correct, restart the NGINX server:
```
sudo systemctl restart nginx
```
Congratulations! You’ve successfully installed and configured NGINX on your Linux system. This tutorial aimed to provide a straightforward guide on the installation and basic configuration of NGINX. It’s not an exhaustive guide but a starting point. You can explore more advanced configurations based on your needs.