How do I set up an Nginx URL redirect for a subdomain?

To set up an Nginx URL redirect for a subdomain, you'll need to configure your Nginx server block for that subdomain. Here’s a step-by-step guide:

1. Access your Nginx configuration files:

- Typically, Nginx configuration files are located in /etc/nginx/sites-available/. If you have not already created one, you may need to create one, or modify the existing one, depending on your specific needs. Make sure you have the appropriate permissions to modify the files.

2. Create or modify the configuration for your subdomain:

- If the file doesn’t exist, create a new configuration file for the subdomain, for example, subdomain.example.com. If it exists, open the file in a text editor (e.g., vim, nano).

3. Configure the server block:

- Inside the configuration file, create a server block for your subdomain. Here is how the server block should look like for a simple 301 redirect from sub.example.com to www.example.com:

server {
  listen 80;
  server_name sub.example.com;
  return 301 https://www.example.com$request_uri;
}


Explanation:

- listen 80;: This line specifies that Nginx should listen on port 80 (standard HTTP port).

- server_name sub.example.com;: This line specifies that the server block should handle requests to the sub.example.com subdomain.

- return 301 https://www.example.com$request_uri;: This is the key part for the redirection. It sets up a permanent (301) redirect to https://www.example.com. The $request_uri variable ensures that any path after the domain name is also included in the redirect.

4. Enable the configuration:

- Create a symbolic link to your config file in the /etc/nginx/sites-enabled folder. For example:

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

5. Test the configuration:

- Before applying your configuration, test to see if everything is correct by running sudo nginx -t. If it is correct, you should see the following: nginx: configuration file /etc/nginx/nginx.conf test is successful

6. Reload Nginx:

- Apply the changes by reloading Nginx: sudo systemctl reload nginx

7. HTTPS Redirection:

- If you're also using HTTPS, you will need to add a server block that redirects port 443 to your desired URL as well. You will need to get and configure your SSL certificates first. The server block would look similar to the one above, but on port 443 instead of 80. The redirection would look like this: return 301 https://www.example.com$request_uri;

Explanation of redirection types:

- 301 Moved Permanently: This type of redirect is for permanent redirection. It is best to use it when you want the search engines and browsers to know that the redirect is permanent and cache it. It is SEO friendly.

- 302 Found: This type of redirect is for temporary redirection. The search engines and browsers will not cache it. It is usually used for short-term redirects.

By following these steps, you can successfully set up a URL redirect for a subdomain using Nginx. Remember to adjust the server names and redirect URLs to match your specific needs.

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