Setting Up a Reverse Proxy with Nginx on Rocky Linux

If you’re trying to redirect requests from your Nginx server on Rocky Linux to different URLs based on the incoming path, you’re on the right track thinking about using a reverse proxy. Here’s a simple guide to get you going.

Basic Setup

First, you need to edit your Nginx configuration file. This file is usually found at:

/etc/nginx/nginx.conf

Or you might have a specific configuration file in:

/etc/nginx/conf.d/your-site.conf

Sample Configuration

You can use the following example to redirect your paths:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name example.com;

    location /api {
        proxy_pass http://another-url.com/api;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
    }

    location /images {
        proxy_pass http://another-url.com/pictures;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
    }

    location /videos {
        proxy_pass http://another-url.com/media;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
    }
}
    

Here’s what each part does:

• server { … } defines a new server block listening on port 80 for incoming requests to example.com.
• location /api { … } specifies the behavior for requests to /api.
• proxy_pass tells Nginx where to forward the request.
• The proxy_set_header lines pass the original client request headers, which helps the backend know about the original request’s source IP address.

Restart Nginx

Once you’ve saved your configuration file, don’t forget to test your config for any mistakes:

sudo nginx -t

If everything looks good, restart Nginx:

sudo systemctl restart nginx

Common Issues

If you’re still having issues, check:

• Your error logs located at

  /var/log/nginx/error.log

  for any specific error messages.

• Make sure your Nginx server has permission to connect to the URLs you’re trying to redirect to.
• If you make changes and they don’t seem to work, double-check that you’ve restarted Nginx after editing the config.

Feel free to tweak the configurations as needed. Good luck, and happy coding!