---
title: Nginx
metaTitle: NGINX Monitoring - Web Server Logs and Access Log Analysis
description: "Collect NGINX access logs, error logs, and web server performance metrics with Fluent Bit for NGINX log analysis in OpenObserve."
---

# NGINX Monitoring - Web Server Log Analysis & Performance Monitoring

Monitor NGINX web server with comprehensive NGINX monitoring for collecting NGINX access logs, error logs, and web server performance data. This guide walks you through setting up **real-time NGINX log monitoring** using Fluent Bit for NGINX log analysis, web server monitoring, and HTTP request tracking.

## Overview

NGINX web server monitoring requires structured log collection for effective log analytics. By default, NGINX logs in a custom format that isn't optimal for web server log analysis. This guide helps you convert NGINX logs into structured JSON format for NGINX access log analysis, error monitoring, and web server performance tracking using Fluent Bit.

## Steps to Integrate

:::accordion[Prerequisites]

- NGINX installed and running
- OpenObserve account ([Cloud](https://cloud.openobserve.ai/web/) or [Self-Hosted](../../getting-started.md#self-hosted-installation))
:::


:::accordion[Step 1: Configure NGINX to Emit JSON Logs]

1. **Open your NGINX configuration file**:
```bash
sudo vi /etc/nginx/nginx.conf
```
> On macOS: `/opt/homebrew/etc/nginx/nginx.conf`

2. **Add the following `log_format` inside the `http` block**:
```nginx
log_format json_combined escape=json '{"@timestamp":"$time_iso8601",'
'"remote_addr":"$remote_addr",'
'"request":"$request",'
'"status":"$status",'
'"body_bytes_sent":"$body_bytes_sent",'
'"http_referer":"$http_referer",'
'"http_user_agent":"$http_user_agent"}';

access_log /var/log/nginx/access.log json_combined;
```
> Adjust the path if needed (e.g., `/opt/homebrew/var/log/nginx/access.log` on macOS)

3. **Restart or reload NGINX**:
```bash
sudo systemctl reload nginx
# or
sudo nginx -s reload
```
:::

:::accordion[Step 2: Install Fluent Bit]

1. **Install Fluent Bit**:
```bash
# Ubuntu/Debian
curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/fluent/fluent-bit/master/install.sh | sh

# macOS
brew install fluent-bit
```

2. **Verify installation**:
```bash
fluent-bit --version
```
:::

:::accordion[Step 3: Configure Fluent Bit for NGINX Logs]

1. **Create a config file**:
```bash
vi nginx-fluent-bit.conf
```

2. **Paste the configuration below**:
```ini
[INPUT]
    Name tail
    Path /var/log/nginx/access.log
    Tag nginx-access
    DB /var/log/fluent-bit-nginx-access.db
    Mem_Buf_Limit 5MB
    Skip_Long_Lines On

[OUTPUT]
    Name http
    Match *
    Host localhost
    Port 5080
    URI /api/default/default/_json
    Format json
    Json_date_key    _timestamp
    Json_date_format iso8601
    HTTP_User <YOUR_USERNAME>
    HTTP_Passwd <YOUR_PASSWORD>
    tls Off
    compress gzip
```
    - Adjust the access log path if you're using macOS (`/opt/homebrew/var/...`)
    - Replace `<YOUR_PASSWORD>` with your OpenObserve password.  
    ![Openobserve-Fluent Bit](../images/servers/nginx/fetch-creds.png)
:::


:::accordion[Step 4: Start Fluent Bit]

1. **Run Fluent Bit with your config**:
```bash
fluent-bit -c nginx-fluent-bit.conf
```
    ![Start Fluent Bit](../images/servers/nginx/start-fluentbit.png)

2. **Optionally, run in verbose mode** for debugging:
```bash
fluent-bit -c nginx-fluent-bit.conf -vv
```
:::

:::accordion[Step 5: Verify Logs in Openobserve]

1. In your Openobserve instance, Go to **Logs** → select your log stream → Set time range → Click **Run Query**
2. **You should see logs in JSON format**, like:
```json
{
  "_timestamp": 1729109276178847,
  "log": {
    "@timestamp": "2024-10-16T15:07:55-05:00",
    "remote_addr": "127.0.0.1",
    "request": "GET / HTTP/1.1",
    "status": "200",
    "body_bytes_sent": "615",
    "http_referer": "",
    "http_user_agent": "curl/8.7.1"
  }
}
```
![Verify Logs in Openobserve](../images/servers/nginx/verify-logs.png)
:::
## Troubleshooting

:::accordion[No logs appearing in OpenObserve?]

- Check Fluent Bit is running and not erroring:  
  `fluent-bit -c nginx-fluent-bit.conf -vv`
- Validate HTTP output settings (host, user, password, URI)
- Confirm the log path exists and is readable
:::

:::accordion[NGINX access log not updating?]

- Tail the log file to check for updates:
```bash
tail -f /var/log/nginx/access.log
```

- Ensure NGINX reloads after config changes
- Use traffic generation script to populate logs
:::

:::accordion[Fluent Bit not reading logs?]

- Check if `tail` input path is correct
- Ensure permission to read the access log
- Delete or reset the `.db` file if state is stale
:::