Nginx best practices in secure programming

Nginx is a reliable and efficient web server and reverse proxy server. It not only provides basic web service functions, but also supports advanced features such as load balancing, caching, and SSL encryption. In the process of web application development, secure programming is a crucial part. Next, we will analyze the best practices for using Nginx in secure programming to improve the security of web applications.

1. Use the latest Nginx version
   The first step to using Nginx safely is to make sure you are using the latest version. The Nginx community regularly releases new versions that fix security-related vulnerabilities and add new security features, so it is recommended to use the latest Nginx version at all times.
2. HTTPS
   It is crucial to use HTTPS to encrypt and protect user data. You can enable HTTPS in Nginx, and Nginx supports basic SSL/TLS protocols and encryption protocols. You can use a self-signed certificate or purchase a public certificate to protect your website. Configuring HTTPS can also prevent data theft when using unsecured networks such as public wireless networks.
3. Preventing DDoS attacks
   DDoS attacks are one of the common threats to web application security. Nginx supports features such as limiting client request speed and limiting the number of concurrent connections, which can effectively prevent these attacks. These settings can be achieved by adjusting the nginx.conf file:

client_body_timeout 10s;
client_header_timeout 10s;
send_timeout 10s;
connection_pool_size 256;
limit_conn_zone $binary_remote_addr zone= addr:10m;
limit_conn addr 100;

Use these settings to limit the client's request behavior while avoiding overloading the server.

4. Prevent SQL Injection Attacks
   When writing code that queries data from a web application to a database, it is important to take safe programming measures to avoid SQL injection attacks. You can enable the SQL injection prevention plug-in through Nginx configuration to effectively prevent this attack. I recommend using ModSecurity - this is a free firewall component that works with Nginx via the nginx-module-security module.
5. Distinguish between local and external requests
   When the web application and the database are not on the same server, you should ensure that only the local machine can access the database. You can use Nginx to set up a reverse proxy server, which can only be accessed by this machine.
6. Limit upload file size
   The security of web applications is often limited by the size of uploaded files. The size of uploaded files can be limited through Nginx configuration, which can effectively prevent attackers from uploading excessively large files to occupy server resources or perform other attacks.

client_max_body_size 10m;
client_body_buffer_size 128k;

7. Hide server information
   An attacker may obtain server information when using a web application. This will help them understand the vulnerabilities of web applications and exploit them for attacks. Server version information, including nginx version information, can be hidden in each request through Nginx configuration. An example is as follows:

server_tokens off;

Summary
The security of web applications is crucial. Not only do the above best practices help improve the security of your web applications, but using these practices can also improve your application's performance and scalability. Therefore, use Nginx best practices to build a robust and secure web application.

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