Nginx subpath routing issue

I. Introduction Nginx is a popular open-source web server and reverse proxy server that is widely used for serving static and dynamic content on the web. One of the features of Nginx is its ability to handle complex routing rules using location blocks in the server configuration file. However, sometimes, subpath routing in Nginx can be a source of confusion and frustration for developers. In this answer, we will discuss a common issue related to Nginx subpath routing and provide a solution to it.

II. Problem Description Suppose we have an Nginx server configured to serve content from the following URL path:

http://example.com/myapp/

We also have a subpath /myapp/api that we want to route to a specific location block in the Nginx configuration file. However, when we try to access a URL with the /myapp/api subpath, we get a 404 error. For example, if we try to access the following URL:

http://example.com/myapp/api/users

We get a 404 error instead of the expected response from the location block.

III. Solution The issue in this case is likely due to the fact that Nginx is not correctly identifying the /myapp/api subpath as a separate location. To fix this issue, we need to configure Nginx to treat /myapp/api as a separate location block. Here's how we can do it:

Create a new location block for /myapp/api in the Nginx configuration file.

location /myapp/api {
  # Configuration for the /myapp/api location block goes here
}

Inside the new location block, we can add the desired configuration, such as proxy_pass to forward the request to a backend server.

location /myapp/api {
  proxy_pass http://backend.example.com;
  proxy_redirect off;
}

Make sure that the new location block is placed after the location block for /myapp. This is important because Nginx processes location blocks in the order they appear in the configuration file.

location /myapp {
  # Configuration for the /myapp location block goes here
}

location /myapp/api {
  proxy_pass http://backend.example.com;
  proxy_redirect off;
}

Test the configuration by accessing a URL with the /myapp/api subpath. For example:

http://example.com/myapp/api/users

We should now get the expected response from the location block for /myapp/api.

IV. Conclusion In this answer, we discussed a common issue related to Nginx subpath routing and provided a solution to it. By creating a new location block for the /myapp/api subpath and making sure it is placed after the location block for /myapp, we can correctly route requests to the desired location in the Nginx configuration file. This will ensure that we get the expected response when accessing URLs with the /myapp/api subpath.