How to Install Nginx on Ubuntu and CentOS/RHEL

What this is

This guide shows how to install and run Nginx on common Linux distributions.

What it is for

• Fast web server for static sites
• Reverse proxy for apps (Node/PHP-FPM/etc.)

Prerequisites

• SSH access + sudo

Steps by distribution

A) Ubuntu/Debian

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y nginx
sudo systemctl enable --now nginx
sudo ufw allow 80/tcp
sudo ufw allow 443/tcp

B) CentOS/RHEL/Rocky/AlmaLinux

sudo dnf install -y nginx
sudo systemctl enable --now nginx
sudo firewall-cmd --add-service=http --permanent
sudo firewall-cmd --add-service=https --permanent
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

Verification

sudo systemctl status nginx --no-pager
curl -I http://127.0.0.1

Warnings & notes

• If another web server is running (Apache), port 80 may be in use.

Conclusion

Nginx is installed and running. Next steps: server blocks (virtual hosts) and HTTPS.