Virtualhost Nginx Ubuntu 16.04

Introduction to Virtualhost

Virtualhost is a software configuration option in web servers including Apache, Nginx, and more that allows a web server to host multiple web sites on the same system. It works by assigning a different port to each website on the server. This allows multiple websites to be hosted on the same server and easily managed. Virtualhost also adds extra security to web hosting as it contains only the files related to a particular website, thus minimizing the chances of file interference with other hosted websites.

While some web hosting companies provide their clients with managed virtualhosts, for most webmasters it’s best to use virtualhost with Nginx on Ubuntu 16.04. Nginx, an open source web server, is a great choice for webmasters as it provides fast and efficient hosting, excellent scalability and is highly compatible with other web technologies, making it a popular choice for webmasters.

Requirements of Setting up Virtualhost Nginx Ubuntu 16.04

Setting up virtualhost for Nginx and Ubuntu 16.04 is quite straightforward. However, there are some pre-requisites needed before beginning the setup. First, you must have a domain name configured and pointed to your server. If you are not sure how to do this, there are plenty of online tutorials on how to point your domain to your server.

Second, you need to install the Nginx web server on Ubuntu 16.04. Nginx can be easily installed via the apt-get command. Simply run the following command in your terminal application to begin the installation.

sudo apt-get install nginx

Once the installation is complete, you can then proceed to setting up virtualhost for your domain.

Virtualhost Setup on Nginx and Ubuntu 16.04

Once you’ve completed the requirements, the next step is to create a virtualhost file. To do this, open a text editor and add the following lines and save the file as example.com.conf in the /etc/nginx/conf.d directory.

server {

    listen 80;

    server_name example.com www.example.com;

    root /var/www/example.com;

    index index.html;

}

The above configuration is basically the virtualhost file which will serve the content of the example.com web site. The “root” directive is the path to the root directory of the web site. And the “index” directive is the name of the index file that should be loaded when someone visits the domain.

Once the virtualhost file is created, restart the Nginx web server by running the following command.

sudo systemctl restart nginx

Now that the server is restarted, you can create the content for your website in the root directory that you specified in the virtualhost file.

Enabling HTTPS for A Virtualhost

Once the virtualhost has been created and the content is ready to be served, the final step is to make sure it is secure by enabling HTTPS (hypertext transfer protocol secure) connections. This can be done by obtaining a TLS/SSL certificate and adding it to the virtualhost config file. An SSL certificate is a type of digital certificate which is used to secure your website and is a must-have for any website that handles sensitive data.

To obtain a certificate, you can use Let’s Encrypt, a free and open-source certificate authority. Once the certificate is obtained, you need to add the following lines to the virtualhost file.

server {

    listen 80;

    server_name example.com www.example.com;

    root /var/www/example.com;

    index index.html;

    ssl_certificate /path/to/certificate.crt;

    ssl_certificate_key /path/to/certificate.key;

}

Once the certificate is added, restart the Nginx web server and your site should now be served over HTTPS.

Troubleshooting Virtualhost Setup

If you encounter any problems while setting up virtualhosts, there are some common troubleshooting steps you can follow. First, make sure that your domain is pointed to the correct IP address and that your DNS records are set up properly. You can check your DNS records using a service like Flush DNS or using dig.

Next, you should check the error log of Nginx to see if there are any issues with the virtualhost configuration. You can find the error log at /var/log/nginx/error.log. You can also use the nginx -t command to check the syntax of your virtualhost configuration. If the configuration is correct, the command should return an “OK” status.

Finally, if you are still having issues, you can try restarting the Nginx web server and also make sure that your firewall is allowing connections on port 80 and 443. Additionally, you can use network monitoring tools such as ipTables or Fail2ban to block malicious traffic to your server.

Conclusion

Setting up virtualhost on Nginx and Ubuntu 16.04 is a simple and efficient process. With a few steps, you can have your website up and running in minutes. However, it is important to make sure that all the necessary prerequisites are in place, such as a registered domain name, Nginx installed, and a valid TLS/SSL certificate. With these steps you should be able to have a virtualhost up and running quickly and securely.

Thank You for Reading This Article.

We hope you found this article helpful. If you have any questions or would like to learn more about setting up virtualhost on Nginx and Ubuntu 16.04, please feel free to reference the links provided in this article. Please also read our other articles for more information.

FAQs

What is Virtualhost?

Virtualhost is a software configuration option in web servers such as Apache, Nginx, and more that allows the server to host multiple web sites on the same system. It works by assigning a different port to each website being hosted on the server.

How to set up virtualhost on Nginx and Ubuntu 16.04?

Setting up virtualhost on Nginx and Ubuntu 16.04 is fairly straightforward. You need to install Nginx, create a virtualhost file, add the domain to the virtualhost configuration and restart the Nginx web server for the virtualhost to take effect.

How to enable HTTPS for a virtualhost?

To enable HTTPS for a virtualhost, you need to obtain a TLS/SSL certificate from a Certificate Authority such as Let’s Encrypt. Once the certificate is obtained, you need to add it to the virtualhost config file and restart the Nginx web server for the changes to take effect.