Editing Setting up SFTP with Nginx


= Nginx Directory Permissions and Symbolic Link Configuration Guide =


== Environment Overview ==

* Using SFTP to upload files to personal directory
* Personal directory linked to website root via symbolic link
* Files accessible through public web URL after upload

=== Example SFTP Upload Process ===

# Upload file to personal directory: <code>/home/your_user/public_folder/</code>
# File automatically reflects in website directory: <code>/usr/share/nginx/html/folder/</code>
# Access via URL: <nowiki>http://your_domain/folder/file.png</nowiki>

== Configuration Steps ==

# Verify Symbolic Link

<syntaxhighlight lang="bash"># Check if symbolic link is correct
ls -l /home/your_user/public_folder</syntaxhighlight>
Expected output:

<pre>lrwxrwxrwx 1 your_user your_user 26 Jan 20 15:00 /home/your_user/public_folder -&gt; /usr/share/nginx/html/folder</pre>
<ol start="2" style="list-style-type: decimal;">
<li>Check Directory Structure and Permissions</li></ol>

<syntaxhighlight lang="bash"># Check website root directory
sudo ls -lht /usr/share/nginx/html/
# Check target directory
sudo ls -lht /usr/share/nginx/html/folder/</syntaxhighlight>
<ol start="3" style="list-style-type: decimal;">
<li>Check Nginx Configuration</li></ol>

<syntaxhighlight lang="bash"># Check nginx config
sudo nano /etc/nginx/nginx.conf
# Or check site config
sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/default</syntaxhighlight>
Basic nginx configuration should include:

<syntaxhighlight lang="nginx">server {
    listen 80;
    server_name your_domain;

    root /usr/share/nginx/html;
    index index.html;

    location / {
        try_files $uri $uri/ =404;
    }
}</syntaxhighlight>
<span id="common-issues"></span>
== Common Issues: ==

* Specific directories return 404 (files exist)
* Files uploaded via SFTP not accessible via web
* Nginx error log shows permission issues

== Solution: Adjust Permission Settings ==

# Check Nginx Error Log

<syntaxhighlight lang="bash">sudo tail /var/log/nginx/error.log</syntaxhighlight>
Possible error message:

<pre>[crit] stat() &quot;[path]/file.png&quot; failed (13: Permission denied)</pre>
<ol start="2" style="list-style-type: decimal;">
<li>Set User Directory Permissions</li></ol>

<syntaxhighlight lang="bash"># Ensure user directory is accessible
sudo chmod 755 /home/your_user</syntaxhighlight>
<ol start="3" style="list-style-type: decimal;">
<li>Set Website Directory Permissions</li></ol>

<syntaxhighlight lang="bash"># Ensure website directory is accessible
sudo chmod 755 /home/your_user/public_folder</syntaxhighlight>
<ol start="4" style="list-style-type: decimal;">
<li>(optional) Set File Permissions</li></ol>

<syntaxhighlight lang="bash"># Set file read permissions
chmod 644 /usr/share/nginx/html/folder/your_file.png</syntaxhighlight>
<span id="permission-details"></span>
== Permission Details ==

* <code>chmod 755</code> (directories):
** Owner: read, write, execute (rwx)
** Group: read and execute (r-x)
** Others: read and execute (r-x)
* <code>chmod 644</code> (files):
** Owner: read, write (rw-)
** Group: read (r–)
** Others: read (r–)

== Testing and Verification ==

<ol style="list-style-type: decimal;">
<li><p>Public URL format: <nowiki>http://your_domain/folder/file.png</nowiki></p></li>
<li><p>If still inaccessible after configuration:</p>
<syntaxhighlight lang="bash"># Reload nginx configuration
sudo systemctl reload nginx</syntaxhighlight></li></ol>

== Important Notes ==

# Permission changes take effect immediately, no nginx restart needed
# Entire path needs proper execute permissions
# New files need correct permissions set
# Ensure symbolic links remain intact
# Verify files are uploaded to correct location


[[Category: Linux]]
[[Category: Nginx]]