# NGINX Configs — Project Notes

## 404 Handling

### Global 404 redirect
Any 404 from any site is handled globally via `nginx/nginx/nginx.conf` in the `http {}` block:

```nginx
error_page 404 https://404.nhcarrigan.com;
```

This redirects (302) to `404.nhcarrigan.com` which serves `/home/naomi/404/index.html`.
No need to add `error_page` to individual server blocks — the `http {}` level default covers everything.

### 404 site config
`nginx/nginx/sites-available/404.conf` — serves the static 404 page at `/home/naomi/404`.
Requires an SSL cert at `/etc/letsencrypt/live/404.nhcarrigan.com/`.

### Catch-all server block (`catch-all.conf`)
Handles any HTTPS request for a subdomain that doesn't match any configured `server_name`.
Uses `default_server` on port 443, `server_name _`, and serves the same 404 page directly
(with `return 404` to preserve the status code, since this is the final fallback rather than a redirect).

## Adding a New Site

1. Create `nginx/nginx/sites-available/<name>.conf` with the server block.
2. Create a symlink: `ln -s ../sites-available/<name>.conf nginx/nginx/sites-enabled/<name>.conf`
3. Ensure an SSL cert exists on the server for the domain (`certbot --nginx -d <domain>`).
4. No need to add `error_page 404` — it's handled globally.