Server block structure in Nginx - Practice Problems & Coding Challenges

Challenge - 5 Problems

💻 Command Output

intermediate

What is the output of nginx -t with this server block?

Given this nginx server block configuration, what will be the output of nginx -t?

Nginx

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name example.com www.example.com;
    root /var/www/example;
    index index.html index.htm;

    location / {
        try_files $uri $uri/ =404;
    }
}

A

nginx: the configuration file /etc/nginx/nginx.conf syntax is ok
nginx: configuration file /etc/nginx/nginx.conf test is successful

B nginx: [emerg] unknown directive "server_name" in /etc/nginx/nginx.conf:3

C nginx: [warn] conflicting server name "example.com" on 0.0.0.0:80, ignored

D nginx: [error] open() "/var/www/example/index.html" failed (2: No such file or directory)

💡 Hint

Check if the syntax of the server block is correct and all directives are valid.

The server block syntax is correct with valid directives. The test command checks syntax only, not file existence, so it reports success.

🧠 Conceptual

intermediate

Which directive defines the domain names served by this server block?

In an nginx server block, which directive specifies the domain names that the server responds to?

A listen

B server_name

C root

D index

💡 Hint

Think about which directive tells nginx which website names to match.

The 'server_name' directive lists the domain names that the server block will respond to.

❓ Configuration

advanced

Identify the error in this server block configuration

What error will nginx report when testing this server block configuration?

Nginx

server {
    listen 80
    server_name example.com;
    root /var/www/html;
}

A nginx: [error] invalid parameter "80" in /etc/nginx/nginx.conf:2

B

nginx: the configuration file /etc/nginx/nginx.conf syntax is ok
nginx: configuration file /etc/nginx/nginx.conf test is successful

C nginx: [warn] server_name directive is deprecated in /etc/nginx/nginx.conf:3

D nginx: [emerg] unexpected end of file, expecting ";" or "}" in /etc/nginx/nginx.conf:2

💡 Hint

Check for missing semicolons in the configuration.

The 'listen 80' line is missing a semicolon at the end, causing a syntax error.

❓ Troubleshoot

advanced

Why does nginx serve the default site instead of your custom server block?

You created a server block for example.com but nginx serves the default site instead. What is the most likely cause?

A The root directory does not contain an index.html file

B The location block is missing a try_files directive

C The server_name directive is missing or does not match the requested domain

D The listen directive is set to port 443 but you are accessing via HTTP

💡 Hint

Check if nginx knows which server block matches the domain you requested.

If server_name does not match the requested domain, nginx falls back to the default server block.

🔀 Workflow

expert

Order the steps to enable a new nginx server block and activate it

Put these steps in the correct order to enable a new nginx server block and make it active.

A 1,2,3,4

B 1,3,2,4

C 3,1,2,4

D 2,1,3,4

💡 Hint

Think about creating config, testing it, enabling it, then reloading nginx.

First create the config file, then test syntax, then enable by linking, finally reload nginx.