The Tool Desk
Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Use an NGINX alias when the URL path and the directory on disk are not the same path, such as mapping /assets/ to a Rails release’s public/assets/. Use root when the request URI should be appended to one document root. In a typical Rails deployment, NGINX serves precompiled assets directly and proxies every other request to Rails.
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Understand the path NGINX is resolving
Every static request has two names: the URI requested by the browser and the filesystem path NGINX must open. The choice between root and alias determines how NGINX converts the first into the second.
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| Directive | How NGINX builds the path | Example result for /assets/application.css |
Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|
root |
Appends the complete request URI to the configured directory. | /srv/myapp/current/public/assets/application.css when the root is /srv/myapp/current/public. |
The filesystem mirrors the URL structure. |
alias |
Replaces the location prefix with the configured target directory. | /srv/myapp/current/public/assets/application.css when /assets/ is aliased to /srv/myapp/current/public/assets/. |
The URL prefix and directory have different names or locations. |
With a matching location /assets/, an alias of /srv/myapp/current/public/assets/ removes the /assets/ part of the URI and substitutes that directory. Thus, /assets/application-abc123.css resolves to /srv/myapp/current/public/assets/application-abc123.css. The trailing slash on both the location and alias makes that replacement unambiguous.
Do not choose alias merely because the request is for a static file. Choose it when you need replacement semantics. If your public directory is /srv/myapp/current/public and it contains an assets subdirectory that should correspond directly to /assets/, root is also valid.
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Prepare Rails assets before configuring NGINX
Rails production assets are normally fingerprinted and written to public/assets during precompilation. NGINX cannot serve a source file that was never compiled into the directory named by the configuration.
- Run the production precompile command from the release that will be deployed:
RAILS_ENV=production SECRET_KEY_BASE_DUMMY=1 rails assets:precompile- Confirm that the generated, fingerprinted files are inside the same release directory used by the NGINX alias. For the example configuration below, a file must exist under
/srv/myapp/current/public/assets/, not only in a source tree or an older release. - Ensure the NGINX worker can traverse every parent directory and read the asset files. A correct URI-to-path calculation still produces a 404 if a directory permission prevents traversal.
Rails documents direct web-server delivery of precompiled assets and gives a one-year cache example. Fingerprinted names allow clients and intermediaries to retain an unchanged file for a long time; a new digest produces a new URL when the content changes.
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Working configuration: alias for assets, proxy for Rails
This pattern keeps public, immutable assets out of the Rails request path while sending application routes to the Rails server:
upstream rails_app {
server 127.0.0.1:3000;
}
server {
listen 80;
server_name example.com;
location /assets/ {
alias /srv/myapp/current/public/assets/;
expires 1y;
add_header Cache-Control public;
add_header ETag "";
}
location / {
proxy_pass http://rails_app;
proxy_set_header Host $host;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
}
}The asset block is deliberately narrow. A request such as /assets/application-abc123.css is handled by NGINX, while a request such as /orders/42 falls through to location / and is proxied to Rails. The proxy headers preserve the original host, forwarding chain, and request scheme that the application may need when generating URLs or interpreting the request.
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expires 1y and Cache-Control public express a long-lived public cache policy suitable for fingerprinted files. The empty ETag header in this example follows Rails’ documented NGINX cache configuration. Apply that policy only to files whose names change when their contents change; do not blindly give mutable responses a one-year lifetime.
Replace example.com, the Rails port, and the release path with values from your deployment. The directive semantics do not verify that your directory exists, so check the mapping against the active release before reloading NGINX.
When root is the better directive
If the URI hierarchy is already represented below one document root, the equivalent configuration is simpler:
location /assets/ {
root /srv/myapp/current/public;
}For a request beginning with /assets/, NGINX appends that complete URI to /srv/myapp/current/public, yielding a path beneath public/assets. No prefix replacement is needed because the URL and directory names mirror each other.
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Use alias for a mapping such as this:
location /downloads/ {
alias /srv/myapp/shared/uploads/;
}Here, the public name /downloads/ does not match the directory name uploads. With root, NGINX would look for a directory named downloads beneath the root; with alias, it substitutes the intended directory.
| Question | Prefer root |
Prefer alias |
|---|---|---|
| Does the URL prefix mirror a directory beneath one document root? | Yes; appending the URI is the desired result. | No; the URI prefix must be replaced. |
| Is the location a directory-style prefix? | Works for a prefix whose hierarchy matches disk. | Works when the prefix maps to a specific, differently named directory. |
| Does a fallback need to check whether a file exists? | Use try_files with the active root when appropriate. |
Use try_files with the active alias when appropriate. |
| Are the files public or authorization-protected? | Neither directive supplies authorization. Public files can be exposed by either; protected files should be authorized by Rails and transferred with the NGINX integration described below. | |
| Will the Rails release directory change on deployment? | Point the directive at a stable current-release path or update it to the new release and validate the configuration before reload. | |
Make location matching predictable
NGINX supports prefix and regular-expression locations. It finds the longest matching prefix before processing regular-expression locations. That allows a specific assets location and a general proxy location to coexist, but another regular-expression block can still affect which handler ultimately serves a request.
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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteKeep the public alias as narrowly scoped as possible. Do not alias an entire release directory when only public/assets is intended for browser access. A broad alias can expose files that Rails would normally protect or that were never meant to be public.
When an asset unexpectedly reaches Rails, inspect all locations in the active server block rather than assuming the visible location /assets/ is the one handling the request. When an unrelated URI is being served from the asset directory, narrow the alias and review regular-expression locations for an unintended match.
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Use try_files when existence checks matter
NGINX’s try_files directive checks candidate paths using the active root or alias. If a candidate exists, NGINX internally redirects to it; if none exists, the directive can return a final status such as =404.
location /assets/ {
alias /srv/myapp/current/public/assets/;
try_files $uri =404;
expires 1y;
add_header Cache-Control public;
add_header ETag "";
}This form prevents a missing fingerprinted file from being handed to the Rails catch-all. Whether you want a missing asset to become a hard 404 or to follow an application fallback is a deployment decision; make that behavior explicit instead of relying on an accidental location match. Test the exact URI with the active configuration because alias and variable expansion must resolve to the directory you expect.
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Rails deployments commonly place each build in a release directory and expose the selected build through a path such as /srv/myapp/current. The alias must resolve to the release that contains the files referenced by the HTML being served.
- If HTML references
application-oldhash.cssbut the alias points to a release containing onlyapplication-newhash.css, the old URL returns 404. - If precompilation ran in one release while NGINX still points to another, source assets may exist in the application checkout while the public path remains empty.
- If the alias is changed during a deployment, run
nginx -tand reload only after the new directory and its permissions are ready. - A stable
currentpath avoids editing the NGINX file for every release, but you still need to ensure the switch and asset references become consistent.
Do not diagnose a Rails routing problem until you have compared the fingerprint in the browser’s request with the filename actually present below the alias target.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Keep private files out of a public alias
An alias in a publicly reachable location does not perform Rails authorization. Anyone who can construct a matching URL can request a readable file. That design is appropriate for public CSS, JavaScript, fonts, and images, but not for invoices, exports, user uploads, or other resources whose access depends on the signed-in user.
For protected downloads, let Rails authenticate and authorize the request, then use NGINX’s internal file-transfer mechanism. Rails documents this setting:
config.action_dispatch.x_sendfile_header = 'X-Accel-Redirect'In this pattern, Rails decides whether the requester may receive the file and responds with an X-Accel-Redirect instruction. NGINX performs the file transfer from an internal location that is not directly available to the public URL space. Remove any unrestricted public alias to the same directory; otherwise a user could bypass the authorization endpoint by guessing the internal path’s public equivalent.
Validate the setup in a controlled sequence
- Check the generated URL. Load the page or inspect its HTML and copy the complete fingerprinted asset URL. Confirm that it starts with the location prefix you configured, normally
/assets/. - Check the target file. On the server, verify that the exact filename exists below the alias directory in the active release. A different digest, extension, or capitalization is a different path.
- Check directory access. Verify that the NGINX worker can traverse each parent directory and read the file. Permission failures can appear as missing-file responses from the client.
- Check slash pairing. A directory-style location and its alias should both end in
/in the common/assets/arrangement. Correct a missing or mismatched slash before changing Rails code. - Check precedence. Review the complete server configuration for regex locations or another prefix that may be handling the request. The most obvious block in an included file is not necessarily the effective one.
- Test the configuration. Run:
nginx -t- Reload after a successful test. Then request the asset again and inspect the NGINX access and error logs. The error log commonly reveals the filesystem path NGINX attempted to open, which distinguishes a bad mapping from a missing file or permission problem.
- Separate public and private failures. If the file requires authorization, stop debugging the public alias and move the request to the Rails authorization and
X-Accel-Redirectdesign.
Troubleshoot the common 404 and routing symptoms
| Symptom | Likely cause | What to inspect |
|---|---|---|
| Every Rails asset returns 404, while the application itself loads. | The alias points to an empty, old, or incorrect release directory, or precompilation was skipped. | Run the production precompile command, then compare the exact fingerprinted filename with the active alias target. |
| Only some assets return 404 after a deployment. | HTML and static files came from different releases, or an old digest is still being requested. | Check which release serves the page and which release the alias resolves to; inspect the requested digest. |
NGINX logs show a path containing an unexpected assets/assets segment. |
root and alias semantics were mixed, or the configured location and target do not reflect the intended mapping. |
Recalculate the path using the table above. Use root /srv/myapp/current/public for mirrored paths or alias /srv/myapp/current/public/assets/ for replacement. |
| The browser receives a Rails response instead of a static file. | A catch-all or regular-expression location took precedence over the intended asset block. | Review location matching and the full included configuration. |
| Known files still fail after the path is corrected. | The NGINX worker cannot traverse a parent directory or read the file. | Inspect permissions on every parent directory and the file itself. |
| Private files are downloadable by changing the URL. | A protected directory was exposed with a public alias. | Remove the unrestricted location and use Rails authorization with X-Accel-Redirect. |
Cache and security decisions
Long-lived caching is a property of the URL scheme as much as of the header. Rails’ fingerprinted asset names let you cache a file for a year because a content change creates a different URL. If you serve files whose names remain constant, use a shorter policy or an explicit invalidation strategy instead of copying the one-year example indiscriminately.
Scope the alias to files intended for public delivery. A Rails release contains configuration, source, and operational files in addition to public/assets; exposing the release root creates an avoidable disclosure risk. The same principle applies to shared upload directories: map only the public subset, and keep authorization-protected files behind Rails.
Quick Recap
A practical decision sequence
- Identify the browser-visible prefix, such as
/assets/, and the directory that should contain the requested file. - If the directory is exactly the URI hierarchy beneath one document root, configure
root. - If the URI prefix must be replaced by a differently named or separately located directory, configure
aliasand pair the trailing slashes. - Precompile Rails assets in the release that will serve the application and verify the fingerprinted output beneath that directory.
- Use a narrowly scoped static location and leave dynamic routes in the Rails proxy location.
- Add
try_fileswhen an explicit existence check or final 404 is preferable to passing missing files to Rails. - Keep protected files out of public aliases and use Rails authorization with
X-Accel-Redirect. - Test with
nginx -t, reload, request the exact URL, and use access and error logs to verify both the selected location and filesystem path.
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