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Drupal clean URLs normally work automatically, but Nginx must route every non-file path to Drupal’s front controller. Set the server’s root to the directory containing Drupal’s index.php, add try_files $uri /index.php?$query_string; to the main location, and pass PHP requests to the correct PHP-FPM socket or upstream. Then test and reload Nginx. This fixes the common case where /index.php works but routes such as /user/login return 404.
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What Drupal clean URLs are—and why Nginx needs a rule
A clean Drupal URL is a path such as /node/83. The legacy form includes a query parameter, for example /?q=node/83. Drupal’s current documentation says clean URLs are enabled by default and cannot be disabled. The setting in Drupal is therefore usually not the problem; the web server must deliver the request to Drupal’s routing system.
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Apache can read per-directory rewrite rules from .htaccess. Nginx does not read .htaccess, so the equivalent front-controller behavior has to be written in the Nginx server configuration. Nginx 1.1 or newer is supported by Drupal on UNIX/Linux, macOS and Windows, subject to the requirements for your installed Drupal version.
The routing rule has two jobs. It serves a real file directly, such as an image, stylesheet or JavaScript file. If no file exists at the requested path, it internally sends the request to Drupal’s index.php and keeps the original query string. PHP-FPM then executes that script. If either the fallback or PHP handler is missing, a clean-URL failure can look like a Drupal problem even though the request never reaches Drupal correctly.
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Before editing Nginx: identify the actual Drupal web root
Your Nginx root must be the directory that contains the front controller Drupal should execute. Do not assume it is the directory where the repository or Composer files live.
- Find the intended
index.phpfor the site. - For a Composer-based project, check the
webdirectory first. A common layout is/var/www/drupal/web/index.php, while the project root is one level above it. - For a non-Composer installation, the document root may be the directory that directly contains Drupal’s core files and
index.php. - If several Drupal sites are installed, identify the root separately for each server block or multisite entry.
Use the path that exists on the machine, not the example path in this article. A valid rewrite rule pointed at the wrong directory still produces 404 responses, missing assets or PHP errors.
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Recommended Nginx configuration
The following pattern covers the essential routing and PHP-FPM requirements:
server {
server_name example.com;
root /var/www/drupal/web;
index index.php;
location / {
try_files $uri /index.php?$query_string;
}
location ~ .php$ {
include fastcgi_params;
fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
fastcgi_pass unix:/run/php/php-fpm.sock;
}
}Replace example.com, the root path and the PHP-FPM endpoint with your local values. The important fallback is try_files $uri /index.php?$query_string;. $uri lets Nginx serve an existing file; the second argument sends an unmatched path to Drupal while preserving query parameters.
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The PHP location must match the way PHP-FPM is installed. A Unix socket such as unix:/run/php/php-fpm.sock is only an example. Some systems expose PHP-FPM through a versioned socket, while others use a TCP address and port. The value after fastcgi_pass must be the endpoint that PHP-FPM is actually listening on.
fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name; gives PHP-FPM the full path to the requested script. If your distribution’s packaged FastCGI include supplies equivalent parameters, you may use it instead of duplicating them. Confirm what the include contains rather than assuming it sets the correct document root.
Enable the configuration step by step
- Locate the front controller. Verify the full path to the
index.phpthat should receive Drupal routes. In a Composer layout, this is often insideweb, not the repository root. - Set the server root. In the Nginx
serverblock that handles the domain, setrootto that directory and includeindex index.php;. Make sure this is the server block selected for the hostname you are testing. - Add the front-controller fallback. Inside
location /, addtry_files $uri /index.php?$query_string;. Keep the query-string suffix so existing parameters reach Drupal. - Configure PHP execution. Add or correct the PHP regular-expression location. Include the FastCGI parameters, set
SCRIPT_FILENAMEto the resolved document-root path, and setfastcgi_passto the real Unix socket or TCP upstream. - Check file access. The Nginx worker must be able to read Drupal’s code. Drupal’s public-files directory must also be writable wherever the site needs to create uploads, generated image styles or other public assets. Use the ownership and permissions appropriate to your operating system rather than making the whole project world-writable.
- Validate syntax. Run
nginx -t. Do not reload a configuration that reports a syntax error; correct the reported file and line first. - Reload Nginx. After a successful test, reload Nginx through your operating system’s service manager so existing connections can finish while workers adopt the new configuration. The exact service command varies by distribution.
- Test a known route. Request
/user/loginor another route that is known to exist, without adding?q=. Then check the page’s CSS, JavaScript and image requests in the browser and inspect Nginx and PHP-FPM logs if anything fails.
How to verify that clean URLs are working
Test the layers separately so a failure points to the right component:
- Front controller: Open the site’s
/index.php. If it fails, fix the server root, PHP handler or Drupal bootstrap before investigating rewrites. - Dynamic route: Open
/user/loginor another known route. A successful response confirms that the unmatched-path fallback is reaching Drupal. - Static asset: Request a real CSS, JavaScript or image file from the public-files location. Static 404s often indicate an incorrect public-files path or permissions rather than a routing rule.
- Query preservation: Test a route that legitimately uses query parameters and verify that Drupal receives them. The fallback’s
$query_stringcomponent is what preserves them. - Logs: Correlate the request timestamp in the Nginx error/access logs and PHP-FPM log. A 404, 403, 502 and PHP application error indicate different classes of failure.
Use a browser’s network panel or a command-line HTTP client to see the status code and final redirect. A route that returns a Drupal page but has failed asset requests is not fully fixed; check each asset request independently.
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Troubleshooting Drupal on Nginx
| Symptom | What to check first | Why it happens |
|---|---|---|
/user/login returns 404, but /index.php works |
Confirm the active server block, its root, and the location / fallback. |
Nginx is serving the site but is not sending unmatched paths to Drupal, or the request is reaching a different server block. |
| CSS, JavaScript or image styles return 404 | Check the configured public-files path, the physical files, permissions and any location block that handles static files. | Static requests may point outside the configured root, the files may not have been generated, or another location may intercept them. |
| PHP source downloads or PHP requests return 404 | Inspect the PHP location, its ordering and the fastcgi_pass endpoint. |
Nginx is not handing PHP files to PHP-FPM, or the request is being handled by the wrong server block. |
| 502 Bad Gateway | Check whether PHP-FPM is running, whether the socket or TCP address is correct, and whether Nginx can access the socket. | Nginx cannot connect to the configured FastCGI upstream. |
| Routes work at the domain root but fail in a subdirectory | Adapt the document root, front-controller fallback and path-prefix handling to the actual subdirectory installation. | A configuration written for a domain-root site does not automatically account for a URL prefix. |
| Login redirects to the wrong scheme or host behind a proxy | Review Drupal’s reverse-proxy and forwarded-header settings as well as Nginx routing. | The application may not know the original HTTPS scheme or host supplied by the proxy. |
When every clean route is a 404
Start by confirming which Nginx server block answered the request. A default server or another virtual host can have a different root and no Drupal fallback. Check the hostname, listen directives and any included configuration files. Next, verify that the configured root contains the same index.php you tested directly. If the root is the repository directory while the front controller is in web, Nginx will look in the wrong place.
If the server block and root are correct, inspect the location / block for a missing or mistyped fallback. A rule that only uses try_files $uri =404;, for example, deliberately returns 404 for virtual Drupal paths because no physical file exists. The fallback must target Drupal’s front controller.
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When only assets fail
Inspect one failing asset URL and map it to the filesystem under the configured root. Drupal’s public-files directory must be present at the path Drupal expects, and the Nginx worker must be able to traverse its parent directories and read the files. Generated image styles and uploads additionally require write access for the Drupal process. Avoid solving a permission problem by granting unrestricted access to the entire installation.
Also check for a more specific Nginx location that captures asset extensions or a separate alias for files. Such a block can bypass the normal root or point to a directory that does not contain Drupal’s public files.
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When PHP fails after the rewrite is fixed
A working fallback does not execute PHP by itself. Confirm the PHP regular-expression location is loaded in the active server block and that its fastcgi_pass value matches PHP-FPM’s configured listener. A versioned Unix socket path copied from another machine is a frequent cause of 502 errors. For TCP, verify both the address and port and ensure the service is listening there.
Check SCRIPT_FILENAME next. It must resolve to the real path of the requested PHP file under the configured root. If it resolves to a non-existent path, PHP-FPM may return a file-not-found error even though Nginx can see the request.
When the configuration passes syntax but still does not apply
nginx -t validates syntax and referenced files; it does not prove that the intended server block wins for a particular hostname. Confirm that the configuration was reloaded after editing, that the hostname resolves to this machine, and that no load balancer or reverse proxy is sending the request elsewhere. Compare the response headers and logs from the request you are testing with the server you changed.
Deployment variations to plan for
Domain root versus subdirectory
A domain-root site can use a root such as /var/www/drupal/web and a fallback to /index.php exactly as shown. A site published under a URL prefix, such as /drupal, needs a configuration that reflects that prefix and the directory layout. Do not simply prepend a string to the example without checking how Nginx maps the URI and where Drupal’s front controller resides. Test both a dynamic route and a static file beneath the prefix.
Unix socket versus TCP PHP-FPM
A Unix socket is referenced with the unix: prefix and a filesystem path. Nginx needs permission to connect to that socket. A TCP upstream uses an address and port instead, so filesystem permissions on a socket are not involved, but the network listener and any local firewall policy must be correct. The routing rule for Drupal is the same; only the FastCGI transport endpoint changes.
Single site versus multisite
For a single site, one server block and one Drupal web root are usually sufficient. Multisite deployments can share code while selecting different site directories, hostnames or database configurations. Give each hostname the correct root and application settings, and verify that a fallback does not expose another site’s files. Keep site-specific public and private file locations separated according to Drupal’s security guidance.
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When Nginx terminates TLS and serves Drupal directly, its server block receives the original host and scheme. When another proxy or load balancer sits in front, Nginx may receive an internal address or HTTP connection instead. Routing still requires the same front-controller behavior, but Drupal must be configured to trust and interpret the forwarded host and scheme correctly. Restrict trusted proxy settings to the infrastructure you control; accepting arbitrary forwarded headers can create security and redirect problems.
Self-managed server versus managed Drupal hosting
Self-management gives you control over Nginx, PHP-FPM sockets, filesystem permissions and reloads, but you are responsible for keeping those layers aligned with the Drupal release and project layout. Managed Drupal hosting is an alternative when you do not have root access or do not want to maintain the web-server and PHP runtime. Ask the provider which web root, PHP-FPM arrangement and subdirectory or proxy options it supports, and confirm that you can inspect logs when a route or asset fails.
Security and maintenance checks
- Keep the Nginx root limited to Drupal’s intended web directory. A Composer project’s repository root may contain files that should never be directly downloadable.
- Protect Drupal’s private files and sensitive directories using the current Drupal security guidance and an explicit Nginx policy. Do not assume that the front-controller fallback alone protects every directory.
- Review custom aliases, regular-expression locations and deny rules after Drupal or module changes. A more specific location can override the behavior you expect from
location /. - Keep the PHP-FPM version, socket path and Nginx FastCGI parameters synchronized after upgrades. A runtime upgrade can change the socket name without changing your Drupal files.
- Retest a dynamic route, a CSS or JavaScript file and an uploaded or generated asset after configuration changes. A successful home page is not proof that all three request types work.
- Save a known-good configuration and the output of
nginx -tbefore making a larger change. If a reload fails, restore the last valid version and investigate the reported line.
Quick diagnosis checklist
- Does the active server block’s
rootcontain the intendedindex.php? - Is
index.phplisted in the server’s index directive? - Does
location /use the Drupal fallback with$query_string? - Does the PHP location include equivalent FastCGI parameters and a valid
SCRIPT_FILENAME? - Does
fastcgi_passpoint to a running PHP-FPM socket or TCP listener? - Can the Nginx worker read Drupal code and the public-files directory?
- Is the public-files directory writable where Drupal must create uploads or generated assets?
- Did
nginx -tpass, and was Nginx reloaded afterward? - Are you testing the same hostname, proxy path and subdirectory that the edited server block handles?
- What status code and log entry correspond to the failing request?
The Bottom Line
For Drupal on Nginx, clean URLs are enabled by default; the essential work is correct server routing. Point root at the directory containing Drupal’s front controller, use try_files $uri /index.php?$query_string;, connect PHP requests to the real PHP-FPM endpoint, verify permissions, test with nginx -t, reload, and diagnose any remaining 404, 403 or 502 through the matching logs.
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