Nginx

What is Nginx?

An open-source web server that can also be used as a reverse proxy, load balancer, mail proxy, and HTTP cache. Known for its high performance, stability, rich feature set, and low resource consumption. Handles high concurrency with an event-driven, asynchronous architecture. Powers major sites like Netflix, Dropbox, and WordPress.com. Often used as a reverse proxy in front of application servers. Known for its efficiency and ability to handle thousands of concurrent connections with minimal memory usage.

When to use it

• Ideal for serving web pages, reverse proxying, load balancing, and as a high-performance web server when resource efficiency matters.
• Perfect for high-traffic websites, API gateways, and when you need to serve static content efficiently.
• Excellent for load balancing multiple application servers, SSL termination, and as a reverse proxy for Node.js, Python, or other application servers.
• Commonly used in production environments, microservices architectures, and when you need to handle high concurrency.

When NOT to use it

• When you need .htaccess support - Apache handles .htaccess files natively
• Applications requiring extensive Apache modules - some modules are Apache-specific
• Simple shared hosting setups - Apache is more commonly supported
• When you need dynamic module loading - Apache supports it better

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