DevOps: Reverse proxy configuration with Nginx

Reverse Proxy with Nginx

A reverse proxy is an application that sits in front of back-end servers and forwards client requests to those servers instead of having the client directly talking to the servers.

You can also check another alternative using Apache:

DevOps: Reverse proxy configuration with Apache

Here’s the equivalent configuration for Nginx as a reverse proxy and setting up a virtual host with SSL (HTTPS):

Installing Nginx on Ubuntu/Debian

Nginx is a high-performance web server and reverse proxy. Follow these steps to install Nginx on Ubuntu/Debian:

Step 1: Update Package IndexbashCopy code

sudo apt update

Step 2: Install Nginx

sudo apt install nginx

During the installation, confirm by typing ‘y’ and pressing Enter if prompted.

Installing Nginx using APT

Step 3: Start Nginx Service

After installation, start the Nginx service:

sudo systemctl start nginx

You can enable Nginx to start automatically on boot:

sudo systemctl enable nginx

Setting Up Nginx as a Reverse Proxy

Nginx can act as a reverse proxy to forward requests to backend servers. Here’s a basic configuration example:

Step 1: Create Nginx Configuration File

Create a new Nginx configuration file for your reverse proxy. Open a terminal and use a text editor:

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/domain-name.conf

Paste the following configuration into the file, adjusting it for your setup:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name domain-name.com;

    location / {
            proxy_pass http://backend-server-ip:backend-port;
            proxy_set_header Host $host;
            proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
            proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
            proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
        }
}

server {
    server_name   domain-name.com;
    location / {
        proxy_pass         http://127.0.0.1:3000;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header   Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header   Connection keep-alive;
        proxy_set_header   Host $host;
        proxy_cache_bypass $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header   X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header   X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    }
}

Replace domain-name.com with your domain, backend-server-ip with the IP address of your backend server, and backend-port with the port your backend server is listening on.

Save the file and exit the text editor.

Step 2: Enable the Nginx Configuration

Enable the newly created Nginx configuration using a symbolic link:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/domain-name.conf /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/

Step 3: Test Nginx Configuration

Check the Nginx configuration for syntax errors:

sudo nginx -t

If the test is successful, reload Nginx to apply the new configuration:

sudo systemctl reload nginx

Setting Up a Virtual Host with Nginx and SSL (HTTPS)

Now, let’s configure a virtual host with Nginx and secure it with SSL using Certbot:

Step 1: Obtain SSL Certificate with Certbot

First, install Certbot:

sudo apt install certbot python3-certbot-nginx

Installing Certbot using APT

Obtain an SSL certificate for your domain and configure Nginx to use SSL:

sudo certbot --nginx -d domain-name.com

First time adding SSL certificate using Certbot

Follow the Certbot prompts to configure SSL for your domain.

After completing these steps, your Nginx server will act as a reverse proxy and serve content securely over HTTPS for your virtual host.

Real Example using Digital Ocean Droptlet :

1. Go to your DNS Manager add a DNS record to your static server IP address.

In this example, we are using 209.97.149.245 :

2. Update APT and Install Nginx

3. Check that Nginx is installed

Check the installed version:

nginx -v

Check the status:

And also use the IP address, you should see a similar Nginx welcome page.

4. Add Nginx configuration file, test if the syntax is correct and link to sites-enabled

Do not forget to remove the default configuration file that comes with Nginx. Check it in “/etc/nginx/sites-available” and “/etc/nginx/sites-enabled”

5. Check that your site is running on HTTP

6. Obtain SSL Certificate with Certbot

Your configuration file will be updated automatically:

[1] “What Is A Reverse Proxy? | Proxy Servers Explained | Cloudflare,” Cloudflare. Available: https://www.cloudflare.com/learning/cdn/glossary/reverse-proxy/

[2] “How to Set up a Reverse Proxy (Step-By-Steps for Nginx and Apache),” Kinsta, Aug. 14, 2020. Available: https://kinsta.com/blog/reverse-proxy/

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