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⏱️ Estimated Reading Time: 12 minutes

Introduction

Managing nginx configuration files can be complex and error-prone, especially for developers who prefer visual interfaces over command-line editing. nginx-ignition solves this problem by providing an intuitive web-based user interface for nginx server management.

This comprehensive tutorial will guide you through installing, configuring, and using nginx-ignition to manage your nginx servers efficiently.

What is nginx-ignition?

nginx-ignition is an open-source web UI for the nginx web server, designed for developers and enthusiasts who want to avoid manual configuration file management. While it doesn’t aim to be feature-complete for advanced use cases, it provides powerful and intuitive nginx configuration capabilities.

Key Features

  • Multiple Virtual Hosts: Manage multiple nginx virtual hosts with custom domains, routes, and port bindings
  • Stream Proxying: Support for TCP, UDP, and Unix socket traffic proxying with SNI-based routing
  • Flexible Routing: Routes can act as proxies, redirections, custom code execution (JavaScript/Lua), static responses, or file serving
  • SSL Certificate Management: Integrated support for Let’s Encrypt, self-signed, and custom certificates with automatic renewal
  • Access Control: Multi-user support with attribute-based access control (ABAC)
  • Native Integrations: Built-in support for Docker and TrueNAS Scale
  • Comprehensive Logging: Server and virtual host access/error logs with automatic rotation
  • Access Lists: Control access using basic authentication and IP address filtering

Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have:

  • Docker installed on your system
  • Basic understanding of nginx concepts
  • Administrative access to your server
  • Port 8090 and 80 available (or alternative ports)

Installation Methods

The easiest way to get started with nginx-ignition is using Docker:

# Basic installation
docker run -p 8090:8090 -p 80:80 dillmann/nginx-ignition

# With persistent data storage
docker run -d \
  --name nginx-ignition \
  -p 8090:8090 \
  -p 80:80 \
  -p 443:443 \
  -v nginx-ignition-data:/app/data \
  dillmann/nginx-ignition

Method 2: Docker Compose

For production deployments, use Docker Compose:

version: '3.8'

services:
  nginx-ignition:
    image: dillmann/nginx-ignition
    container_name: nginx-ignition
    ports:
      - "8090:8090"  # Web UI
      - "80:80"      # HTTP
      - "443:443"    # HTTPS
    volumes:
      - nginx-ignition-data:/app/data
      - ./config:/app/config
    environment:
      - DATABASE_TYPE=sqlite
      - LOG_LEVEL=info
    restart: unless-stopped

volumes:
  nginx-ignition-data:

Save this as docker-compose.yml and run:

docker-compose up -d

Method 3: Native Installation

For Linux or macOS systems:

  1. Download the appropriate ZIP file from the releases page
  2. Extract the archive
  3. Follow the installation instructions included in the ZIP file

Initial Setup

First-Time Access

  1. Open your browser and navigate to http://localhost:8090
  2. nginx-ignition will guide you through creating your first user account
  3. No default credentials are required - you’ll set up your admin user during first access

Basic Configuration

After logging in, configure these essential settings:

Server Configuration

Navigate to Settings > Server Configuration:

  • Maximum Body Size: Set upload limits (default: 1MB)
  • Server Tokens: Disable for security (recommended)
  • Timeouts: Configure client and upstream timeouts
  • Log Level: Set appropriate logging level (info/debug/error)

SSL Configuration

For SSL certificate management:

  1. Go to Certificates section
  2. Choose certificate type:
    • Let’s Encrypt: Automatic SSL with domain validation
    • Self-Signed: For development/testing
    • Custom: Upload your own certificates

Creating Your First Virtual Host

Step 1: Add a New Host

  1. Navigate to Hosts section
  2. Click Add New Host
  3. Configure basic settings:
    • Name: Descriptive name for your host
    • Domains: Add your domain names (e.g., example.com, www.example.com)
    • Enabled: Check to activate the host

Step 2: Configure Routes

Routes define how nginx handles different URL paths:

Proxy Route Example

Path: /api
Type: Proxy
Target: http://backend-service:3000
Headers:
  - X-Real-IP: $remote_addr
  - X-Forwarded-For: $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for

Static File Route Example

Path: /static
Type: Static Files
Root Directory: /var/www/static
Directory Listing: Enabled
Index Files: index.html, index.htm

Redirect Route Example

Path: /old-path
Type: Redirect
Target: /new-path
Status Code: 301 (Permanent)

Step 3: Configure Bindings

Bindings define which ports and protocols your host listens on:

  1. HTTP Binding:
    • Port: 80
    • Protocol: HTTP
    • IP: 0.0.0.0 (all interfaces)
  2. HTTPS Binding:
    • Port: 443
    • Protocol: HTTPS
    • Certificate: Select from available certificates
    • IP: 0.0.0.0

Advanced Features

Docker Integration

nginx-ignition can automatically discover Docker containers:

  1. Enable Docker integration in settings
  2. Browse available containers in the Docker section
  3. Select containers as proxy targets with automatic service discovery

Stream Proxying

For non-HTTP traffic (TCP/UDP):

  1. Navigate to Streams section
  2. Create new stream configuration:
    • Binding: Port and protocol to listen on
    • Upstream: Target servers with load balancing
    • SNI Routing: Domain-based routing for TLS traffic

Access Lists

Control access to your services:

  1. Go to Access Lists section
  2. Create access rules:
    • IP-based: Allow/deny specific IP ranges
    • Authentication: Basic HTTP authentication
    • Combined: Both IP and authentication requirements

Custom Code Execution

Execute custom logic in routes:

JavaScript Example

// Custom response generation
function handleRequest(request) {
    return {
        status: 200,
        headers: {
            'Content-Type': 'application/json'
        },
        body: JSON.stringify({
            message: 'Hello from nginx-ignition',
            timestamp: new Date().toISOString()
        })
    };
}

Lua Example

-- Custom request processing
local json = require "cjson"

local response = {
    message = "Hello from Lua",
    client_ip = ngx.var.remote_addr,
    user_agent = ngx.var.http_user_agent
}

ngx.header.content_type = "application/json"
ngx.say(json.encode(response))

Production Configuration

Database Configuration

For production use, configure PostgreSQL instead of SQLite:

environment:
  - DATABASE_TYPE=postgresql
  - DATABASE_HOST=postgres
  - DATABASE_PORT=5432
  - DATABASE_NAME=nginx_ignition
  - DATABASE_USER=nginx_user
  - DATABASE_PASSWORD=secure_password

Security Best Practices

  1. Change Default Ports: Use non-standard ports for the web UI
  2. Enable HTTPS: Always use SSL for the management interface
  3. Regular Updates: Keep nginx-ignition updated to the latest version
  4. Access Control: Implement proper user roles and permissions
  5. Firewall Rules: Restrict access to management ports

Backup Strategy

Regular backups are essential:

# Backup configuration and certificates
docker exec nginx-ignition tar -czf /tmp/backup.tar.gz /app/data

# Copy backup from container
docker cp nginx-ignition:/tmp/backup.tar.gz ./nginx-ignition-backup-$(date +%Y%m%d).tar.gz

Monitoring and Troubleshooting

Log Management

nginx-ignition provides comprehensive logging:

  1. Access Logs: Monitor incoming requests
  2. Error Logs: Debug configuration issues
  3. Application Logs: nginx-ignition internal logs

Common Issues and Solutions

Certificate Renewal Failures

# Check certificate status
docker exec nginx-ignition nginx-ignition cert status

# Force certificate renewal
docker exec nginx-ignition nginx-ignition cert renew --force

Configuration Validation

# Test nginx configuration
docker exec nginx-ignition nginx -t

# Reload configuration
docker exec nginx-ignition nginx -s reload

Performance Monitoring

Monitor key metrics:

  • Request rate and response times
  • SSL certificate expiration dates
  • Upstream server health
  • Resource usage (CPU, memory, disk)

Migration and Upgrades

Upgrading nginx-ignition

  1. Backup Current Configuration: 
    docker exec nginx-ignition tar -czf /tmp/backup.tar.gz /app/data
docker cp nginx-ignition:/tmp/backup.tar.gz ./backup.tar.gz
  2. Stop Current Container: 
    docker stop nginx-ignition
docker rm nginx-ignition
  3. Pull Latest Image: 
    docker pull dillmann/nginx-ignition:latest
  4. Start New Container: 
    docker run -d \
  --name nginx-ignition \
  -p 8090:8090 -p 80:80 -p 443:443 \
  -v nginx-ignition-data:/app/data \
  dillmann/nginx-ignition:latest

Migrating from 1.x to 2.0.0

If upgrading from version 1.x, consult the migration guide for breaking changes and migration steps.

Best Practices

Configuration Management

  1. Use Version Control: Store configuration backups in Git
  2. Environment Separation: Separate development, staging, and production configurations
  3. Documentation: Document custom configurations and business rules
  4. Testing: Test configuration changes in non-production environments

Performance Optimization

  1. Enable Caching: Configure appropriate cache headers
  2. Compression: Enable gzip compression for text content
  3. Connection Pooling: Optimize upstream connections
  4. Rate Limiting: Implement rate limiting for API endpoints

Security Hardening

  1. Regular Updates: Keep all components updated
  2. Minimal Permissions: Use least-privilege access principles
  3. Network Segmentation: Isolate nginx-ignition in secure network segments
  4. Audit Logging: Enable comprehensive audit logging

Conclusion

nginx-ignition provides a powerful and user-friendly way to manage nginx servers without diving into complex configuration files. Its web-based interface, combined with features like SSL certificate management, Docker integration, and access control, makes it an excellent choice for developers and system administrators.

The tool strikes a balance between simplicity and functionality, making nginx management accessible while still providing the flexibility needed for most use cases. Whether you’re running a simple web server or a complex microservices architecture, nginx-ignition can help streamline your nginx configuration and management workflow.

Additional Resources

Start your nginx-ignition journey today and experience the ease of visual nginx management!

참고

nginx-ignition: 웹 기반 nginx 관리 완전 가이드

 

nginx-ignition의 직관적인 웹 인터페이스로 nginx 서버를 손쉽게 관리하는 방법을 배워보세요. 설치, 구성, SSL 인증서, Docker 통합까지 완벽한 튜토리얼입니다.