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How to Install Nginx with HTTPS on Ubuntu

Nginx is one of the most popular web servers used worldwide. It is lightweight, reliable, and widely used for hosting high-traffic websites. With Nginx, you can serve websites, configure reverse proxies, and secure them using HTTPS.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to install Nginx on Ubuntu, configure it, and set up SSL with Let’s Encrypt so your site runs securely over HTTPS.

We’ll cover Ubuntu 20.04, but the steps also work for Ubuntu 22.04 with minor differences.

Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:

An Ubuntu 20.04 or Ubuntu 22.04 server (VPS or dedicated server).
A non-root user with sudo privileges.
A domain name (optional but required for HTTPS setup).

Steps to Install Nginx on Ubuntu

Step 1: Installing Nginx on Ubuntu

ssh user_name@server_ip

Nginx is included in Ubuntu’s default repositories. To install Nginx:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install nginx

That’s it! Nginx is now installed.

Step 2: Configuring the Firewall for Nginx

Ubuntu uses UFW (Uncomplicated Firewall). You need to allow Nginx traffic.

Check UFW status:

sudo ufw status

Enable UFW and allow SSH + Nginx HTTPS traffic:

sudo ufw enable
sudo ufw allow ssh
sudo ufw allow 'Nginx HTTPS'
sudo ufw status

This ensures that ports 80 (HTTP) and 443 (HTTPS) are open.

Step 3: Checking Your Nginx Installation

After installation, Nginx should be running automatically. Confirm with:

systemctl status nginx

Then test in your browser:

http://your_server_ip

checking your web server
If you see the Nginx welcome page, your Nginx setup on Ubuntu is successful.

Step 4: Configuring Nginx for a Domain

Here are basic commands for managing Nginx:

sudo systemctl stop nginx     # Stop Nginx
sudo systemctl start nginx    # Start Nginx
sudo systemctl restart nginx  # Restart Nginx
sudo systemctl reload nginx   # Reload configs without stopping
sudo systemctl enable nginx   # Auto start at boot
sudo systemctl disable nginx  # Disable auto start

Step 5: Managing Nginx Process

By default, Nginx serves files from /var/www/html. To host multiple domains, create new server blocks.

Create a website directory

sudo mkdir -p /var/www/example.com
sudo chown -R $USER:$USER /var/www/example.com
sudo chmod -R 755 /var/www/example.com

Add a sample HTML page

nano /var/www/example.com/index.html

Paste:

<html>
  <head><title>Welcome to example.com!</title></head>
  <body><h1>Success! example.com is working on Nginx!</h1></body>
</html>

Configure Nginx server block

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/example.com

Add:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name example.com www.example.com;

    root /var/www/example.com;
    index index.html;

    location / {
        try_files $uri $uri/ =404;
    }
}

Enable site:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/example.com /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/

Test and reload:

sudo nginx -t
sudo systemctl restart nginx

Visit http://example.com and your new site should be live.
update nginx configuration

Step 6: Install Certbot for SSL

Let’s Encrypt provides free SSL certificates. Install Certbot:

sudo apt install certbot python3-certbot-nginx

Step 7: Obtain and Install SSL Certificate

Run Certbot with the Nginx plugin:

sudo certbot --nginx -d example.com -d www.example.com

Certbot will:

Verify domain ownership
Install the SSL certificate
Update Nginx config automatically

Now test:

https://example.com

Your site is now secure with HTTPS.

Step 8: Auto-Renewing SSL Certificates

Let’s Encrypt certificates expire every 90 days. Certbot sets up automatic renewal with a systemd timer.
Check status:

sudo systemctl status certbot.timer

You can test renewal manually:

sudo certbot renew --dry-run

Conclusion

You’ve successfully:

Installed Nginx on Ubuntu
Configured firewall & server blocks
Installed and configured SSL with Let’s Encrypt
Enabled auto-renewal for HTTPS

Now your Ubuntu server is ready to securely serve websites using Nginx HTTPS setup.

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