Laravel-Docker-Dev-Template/deploy/nginx/nginx-proxy-manager-notes.md

Nginx Proxy Manager Configuration Notes

Architecture Overview

Internet → Nginx Proxy Manager (Docker/Host) → Native Nginx → PHP-FPM → Laravel
                    ↓
              SSL Termination
              (Let's Encrypt)

Nginx Proxy Manager Setup

Option 1: NPM on Same Server

If running NPM on the same Ubuntu 24.04 server:

1. NPM listens on ports 80/443 (public)
2. Native Nginx listens on port 8080 (internal only)
3. NPM forwards traffic to localhost:8080

Modify laravel-site.conf:

server {
    listen 127.0.0.1:8080;  # Only accept local connections
    ...
}

Option 2: NPM on Separate Server

If running NPM on a separate server:

1. Configure firewall to allow NPM server IP
2. NPM forwards to http://your-laravel-server-ip:80

NPM Proxy Host Configuration

In Nginx Proxy Manager web UI:

1. Domain Names: your-domain.com
2. Scheme: http
3. Forward Hostname/IP: 127.0.0.1 (or server IP)
4. Forward Port: 8080 (or 80)
5. Enable: Block Common Exploits
6. SSL Tab:
   • Request new SSL Certificate
   • Force SSL
   • HTTP/2 Support

Custom NPM Configuration

Add to "Advanced" tab if needed:

proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Host $host;

# WebSocket support (if using Laravel Echo/Reverb)
proxy_http_version 1.1;
proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";

Laravel Trusted Proxies

Update app/Http/Middleware/TrustProxies.php or configure in Laravel 11+:

// In bootstrap/app.php or config
->withMiddleware(function (Middleware $middleware) {
    $middleware->trustProxies(at: '*');
})

Or set in .env:

TRUSTED_PROXIES=*