Exact match (=) in Nginx - Step-by-Step Execution

Process Flow - Exact match (=)

Request URL Received

↓

Check location blocks

↓

Is there a location with = prefix?

No→Use other location matching

Yes↓

Compare request URL exactly with location path

↓

Exact match found?

No→Try other location blocks

Yes↓

Serve request using exact match location

↓

END

Nginx checks if a location block with '=' prefix exactly matches the request URL path and serves it immediately if found.

Execution Sample

Nginx

location = /exact {
    return 200 'Exact match!';
}

This config serves requests exactly matching '/exact' with a 200 response and message.

Process Table

Step	Request URL	Location Checked	Match Type	Match Result	Action
1	/exact	location = /exact	Exact match (=)	Match	Serve with 200 'Exact match!'
2	/exact/more	location = /exact	Exact match (=)	No match	Try other locations
3	/exact/more	location /exact	Prefix match	Match	Serve with prefix location
4	/other	location = /exact	Exact match (=)	No match	Try other locations
5	/other	location /	Prefix match	Match	Serve with default location

💡 Exact match location serves only when request URL exactly equals location path.

Status Tracker

Variable	Start	After Step 1	After Step 2	After Step 3	After Step 4	After Step 5
Request URL	N/A	/exact	/exact/more	/exact/more	/other	/other
Location Matched	None	= /exact	None	/exact	None	/

Key Moments - 2 Insights

Why does the exact match location not serve '/exact/more'?

Because the exact match (=) requires the request URL to be exactly '/exact'. '/exact/more' is longer, so it does not match the exact location (see execution_table rows 2 and 3).

What happens if no exact match location is found?

Nginx tries other location blocks like prefix matches until it finds one that matches (see execution_table rows 4 and 5).

Visual Quiz - 3 Questions

Look at the execution table, what location serves the request URL '/exact'?

A location /exact

B location /

C location = /exact

D No location serves it

💡 Hint

Check step 1 in the execution_table where '/exact' matches location = /exact exactly.

At which step does the request URL '/exact/more' get served by a prefix location?

A Step 3

B Step 2

C Step 1

D Step 5

💡 Hint

Look at step 3 in execution_table where '/exact/more' matches location /exact as prefix.

If the request URL is '/other', which location serves it according to the table?

A location = /exact

B location /

C location /exact

D No location

💡 Hint

See steps 4 and 5 in execution_table where '/other' falls back to location /.

Concept Snapshot

Exact match (=) in nginx location blocks means the request URL must match the location path exactly.
If matched, nginx serves that location immediately.
If no exact match, nginx tries prefix or regex locations.
Use '=' prefix for exact match locations.
Example: location = /path { ... }

Full Transcript

When nginx receives a request, it checks location blocks to find the best match. If a location block uses the '=' prefix, nginx compares the request URL exactly to that location's path. If they match exactly, nginx serves the request using that location immediately. If not, nginx continues checking other locations like prefix or regex matches. For example, a location defined as 'location = /exact' will only serve requests to '/exact' and not '/exact/more'. This ensures precise control over which requests are handled by which location blocks.