Managing Nginx: test the configuration, reload the service, and the most useful blocks for your configuration.
Print or save as PDF
Management
Check the configuration (always first!)
sudo nginx -t
Show the complete compiled configuration
sudo nginx -T
Reload without interruption
sudo systemctl reload nginx
Restart
sudo systemctl restart nginx
Show the status
systemctl status nginx
The version and the options it was built with
nginx -V
Logs
Follow the access log
sudo tail -f /var/log/nginx/access.log
Follow the error log
sudo tail -f /var/log/nginx/error.log
The last 50 errors
sudo tail -n 50 /var/log/nginx/error.log
Activating a site (Debian and Ubuntu)
Enable a site
sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/mysite /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
Disable a site
sudo rm /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/mysite
Location of the main configuration
/etc/nginx/nginx.conf
Certificates (certbot)
Request and configure a certificate
sudo certbot --nginx -d example.com -d www.example.com
Test renewal
sudo certbot renew --dry-run
Check the result
curl -I https://example.com
Testing
Test a site without DNS (different hostname)
curl -I -H "Host: example.com" http://127.0.0.1
The headers of a page
curl -sI https://example.com
Good to know
A static site : server { listen 80; server_name example.com; root /var/www/example; index index.html; }Forwarding to an app (reverse proxy) : inside a location / { } you add proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:3000; and the lines proxy_set_header Host $host; and proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $remote_addr;.From http to https : in a server on port 80: return 301 https://$host$request_uri;Test always with nginx -t before you reload: an error in the configuration can bring down the entire site.
More about https and proxies: Reverse proxy with https , and check the result with our SSL check and HTTP headers tool .
Sources and attribution
This overview has been compiled in our own words. Commands and options change per version: when in doubt, check the official documentation.