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Nginx Static Website

Linux, Nginx, DNS basics and TLS fundamentals.

~10 hours 6 phases
LinuxNginxDNSTLS

Overview

Install and configure Nginx to serve a static website, set up a server block, understand DNS, and enable HTTPS with a certificate.

The problem

Serve a static site with Nginx over HTTPS with correct DNS.

Why it matters

Serving and securing web content is the most common production task.

What you'll build

  • A TLS-served website
  • A configured server block
  • Correct DNS

What you'll learn

  • Nginx
  • DNS
  • TLS

Business problem

Websites need a reliable, TLS-secured static web server.

Technical problem

Configure Nginx to serve content over HTTPS with correct DNS.

When you're done: A TLS-secured Nginx web server with correct DNS.

Requirements

User requirements

  • Site accessible by domain
  • HTTPS enabled
  • Content served correctly

System requirements

  • Nginx
  • Domain with DNS
  • TLS certificate

Functional requirements

  • Nginx install
  • Server block config
  • TLS setup
  • DNS configuration

Non-functional requirements

  • TLS by default
  • Fast static serving

Technical requirements

  • nginx.conf
  • A Record/CNAME
  • certbot or similar

Security requirements

  • Enforce HTTPS
  • Safe TLS config

Operational requirements

  • Documented commands

Constraints

  • A Linux server and a domain

Success criteria

  • HTTPS loads
  • DNS resolves the domain
  • Nginx serves site

Flows

Request Flow

  1. 1

    Browser

    User requests the application over HTTPS.

  2. 2

    CDN / DNS

    Edge routes the request to the origin.

  3. 3

    Load Balancer

    Distributes traffic across healthy app instances.

  4. 4

    Application

    Handles the request, applies business logic.

  5. 5

    Cache

    Serves fast reads for hot data.

  6. 6

    Database

    Persists data and returns results.

Project Structure

Root of the client application source.

Setup

  1. 1

    Prerequisites

    You need the tools required by Linux, Nginx, DNS installed and available on your PATH.

  2. 2

    Clone project

    Clone the repository locally.

    1. Clone the repository
    git clone <your-repo-url> <project-folder>
  3. 3

    Install dependencies

    Install the project dependencies.

    1. Generate a key pair
    ssh-keygen -t ed25519

    Expected

    Creates id_ed25519 and id_ed25519.pub.

    If it fails

    Permission denied

    Fix

    Ensure your ~/.ssh directory is writable.

  4. 4

    Configure environment

    Set the environment variables documented for this project. Never commit secrets.

    1. Create the environment file
    cp .env.example .env   # then edit values
  5. 5

    Start project

    Run the development command and confirm it starts.

    1. Start the development server
    npm run dev

    Expected

    Dev server starts; watch terminal for the local URL.

    If it fails

    Port 3000 is already in use

    Fix

    Run on another port: npm run dev -- --port 3001, or stop the conflicting process.

  6. 6

    Verify

    Open the printed local URL and confirm the primary flow works.

Build Phases

0 of 6 phases complete

  1. Objective: Establish the next milestone of the operational environment.

    What changes: The project advances to the next coherent state, keeping the previous milestones working.

    Files touched

    Relevant source and configuration files for this milestone.

    Run

    1. Generate a key pair
    ssh-keygen -t ed25519

    Expected

    Creates id_ed25519 and id_ed25519.pub.

    If it fails

    Permission denied

    Fix

    Ensure your ~/.ssh directory is writable.

    Tasks

    • Implement the specific behaviour required for this milestone.
    • Verify the previous milestone still works.

    Validate: The milestone behaves as expected and does not break existing functionality.

    Common mistakes

    • • Skipping validation and moving on before confirming the milestone works.

  2. Objective: Establish the next milestone of the operational environment.

    What changes: The project advances to the next coherent state, keeping the previous milestones working.

    Files touched

    Relevant source and configuration files for this milestone.

    Tasks

    • Implement the specific behaviour required for this milestone.
    • Verify the previous milestone still works.

    Validate: The milestone behaves as expected and does not break existing functionality.

    Common mistakes

    • • Skipping validation and moving on before confirming the milestone works.

  3. Objective: Establish the next milestone of the operational environment.

    What changes: The project advances to the next coherent state, keeping the previous milestones working.

    Files touched

    Relevant source and configuration files for this milestone.

    Tasks

    • Implement the specific behaviour required for this milestone.
    • Verify the previous milestone still works.

    Validate: The milestone behaves as expected and does not break existing functionality.

    Common mistakes

    • • Skipping validation and moving on before confirming the milestone works.

  4. Objective: Establish the next milestone of the operational environment.

    What changes: The project advances to the next coherent state, keeping the previous milestones working.

    Files touched

    Relevant source and configuration files for this milestone.

    Tasks

    • Implement the specific behaviour required for this milestone.
    • Verify the previous milestone still works.

    Validate: The milestone behaves as expected and does not break existing functionality.

    Common mistakes

    • • Skipping validation and moving on before confirming the milestone works.

  5. Objective: Establish the next milestone of the operational environment.

    What changes: The project advances to the next coherent state, keeping the previous milestones working.

    Files touched

    Relevant source and configuration files for this milestone.

    Tasks

    • Implement the specific behaviour required for this milestone.
    • Verify the previous milestone still works.

    Validate: The milestone behaves as expected and does not break existing functionality.

    Common mistakes

    • • Skipping validation and moving on before confirming the milestone works.

  6. Objective: Establish the next milestone of the operational environment.

    What changes: The project advances to the next coherent state, keeping the previous milestones working.

    Files touched

    Relevant source and configuration files for this milestone.

    Tasks

    • Implement the specific behaviour required for this milestone.
    • Verify the previous milestone still works.

    Validate: The milestone behaves as expected and does not break existing functionality.

    Common mistakes

    • • Skipping validation and moving on before confirming the milestone works.

Commands

1. Generate a key pair
ssh-keygen -t ed25519

Expected

Creates id_ed25519 and id_ed25519.pub.

If it fails

Permission denied

Fix

Ensure your ~/.ssh directory is writable.

Testing

Unit tests

  • Core logic and pure functions behave correctly.

    ssh-keygen -t ed25519

    Success: All unit tests pass without errors.

Integration tests

  • Components integrate correctly with data sources and services.

    npm test

    Success: Integration tests pass for the primary flows.

API tests

  • Endpoints respond to valid and invalid input correctly.

    npm test

    Success: API tests cover happy and failure paths.

End-to-end tests

  • A user can complete the primary journey end to end.

    npm run test:e2e

    Success: The main user journey completes successfully.

Security tests

  • No obvious security regressions are introduced.

    npm audit

    Success: No high or critical vulnerabilities.

Debugging & Troubleshooting

Port already in use at startup

Why: Another process is binding the same port your app wants.

Check: List what is using the port.

lsof -i :3000   # Linux/macOS  |  netstat -ano | findstr :3000   # Windows

Fix: Free the port or start your app on a different port.

Prevent: Choose uncommon ports and document them in the README.

Environment variable missing or undefined

Why: A required value was not loaded into the runtime.

Check: Print the variable or inspect the config loader.

echo $MY_VAR   # Linux/macOS  |  echo %MY_VAR%   # Windows

Fix: Add the variable to your .env file and restart the process.

Prevent: Fail fast at startup when required env vars are absent.

API request times out

Why: An upstream call is slow or the network is blocked.

Check: Time a direct request against the upstream.

curl -w 'time_total: %{time_total}\n' http://upstream/health

Fix: Add timeouts and retries to the client; verify the upstream is up.

Prevent: Set explicit timeouts and circuit breakers on outbound calls.

Dependency fails to install or run

Why: Version conflicts or an incompatible runtime.

Check: Inspect the error and the installed versions.

npm ls <pkg>

Fix: Align versions or clear the lockfile and reinstall.

Prevent: Commit a lockfile and use the same Node version everywhere.

Security

Security is treated as a core requirement: input is validated, secrets are protected, and dependencies are kept up to date.

  • Input validation

    Validate and sanitize all user input before use.

  • Secrets management

    Store secrets in environment variables, never in source.

  • Dependency hygiene

    Regularly audit dependencies for known vulnerabilities.

Deployment

  1. 1

    Prepare for deployment

    Build the production artifact.

    1. Build for production
    npm run build
  2. 2

    Deploy

    Deploy to the project target platform following its documented steps.

    1. Deploy
    npm run deploy   # or the platform-specific command
  3. 3

    Verify

    Confirm the deployed application responds and its health check passes.

    1. Check health
    curl -I https://<your-deployed-url>

Documentation

Project Overview

Install and configure Nginx to serve a static website, set up a server block, understand DNS, and enable HTTPS with a certificate. This is a beginner infrastructure project in the operational environment space, built to demonstrate real engineering, not just copied code.

What You Will Build

- A TLS-served website - A configured server block - Correct DNS

Problem Statement

Websites need a reliable, TLS-secured static web server. Configure Nginx to serve content over HTTPS with correct DNS.

Technology Stack

Linux, Nginx, DNS, TLS

Installation

Clone the repository and install dependencies with the documented commands.

Local Development

Run the development command and open the printed local URL.

Testing

Run the test commands documented in the Testing section and confirm they pass.

Deployment

Follow the documented deployment steps for this project's target platform.

Interview Explanation

Use the Interview section to explain the architecture, technology choices and trade-offs.

Build Process

Phases guide the build in 6 checkpoints. Complete each and validate before moving on.

Interview Prep

30-second pitch

I built Nginx Static Website — serve a static site with nginx over https with correct dns. It uses Linux, Nginx, DNS and solves websites need a reliable, tls-secured static web server.

2-minute walkthrough

Install and configure Nginx to serve a static website, set up a server block, understand DNS, and enable HTTPS with a certificate. The core requirements were Nginx install, Server block config, TLS setup. I structured the work around Configure Nginx server blocks, Understand DNS records, Enable TLS and validated the result with the documented tests.

Architecture

Because this is a devops-foundations project, the architecture is concentrated in operational environment rather than a distributed system.

Why these technologies

I chose Linux, Nginx, DNS, TLS because they are the pragmatic, well-supported tools best suited to building a infrastructure of this kind.

Why this architecture

The structure exists to keep concerns separated, make each piece testable, and scale the project cleanly as requirements grow.

At scale

At scale I would introduce caching, move to a service boundary structure, add proper observability, and enforce stricter contracts between components.

What can fail

The data source becomes unavailable, A dependency introduces a breaking change, Performance degrades under load, Configuration drift between environments

Monitoring

Monitoring is covered in the Observability section, focusing on basic health and error signals.

Security

Security was handled by validating input, protecting secrets, and following the practices listed in the Security section.

Deployment strategy

Deployment follows the steps in the Deployment section for the target platform, with a health check to confirm success.

What I'd do differently

With more time I would add deeper test coverage, stronger observability, and automated deployment.

Practice Q&A

Why did you build Nginx Static Website?

To demonstrate Configure Nginx server blocks and Understand DNS records on a real, portfolio-worthy project.

What was the hardest part?

Coordinating the pieces so each stays correct as the project grows, and validating end to end.

How do you handle failure and scale?

By designing for correctness first and adding resilience once the core works.

Extensions

  • Add deeper test coverage
  • Add observability and alerting
  • Harden security
  • Automate deployment

Completion Checklist

Prerequisite Projects

Next Steps

Recommended next

Dockerized Web Application

Containerizes the same deployment pattern.