How to manage Nginx caching and rewrites

The Nginx section in Enhance contains FastCGI cache, Cache exclusion, rewrite controls, and Purge cache. Opcode caching is on a separate Optimisation page.

Open the Nginx settings

1. Open your website in the Enhance control panel.
2. In the website’s top menu, choose Advanced → Developer tools.
3. Click Nginx in the page’s left section navigation.
4. Check the domain shown beside Select the domain you would like to configure before changing a setting.

Enable FastCGI cache

The panel describes FastCGI caching as keeping a static cache of rendered pages so a cached request does not need to be passed to PHP.

Use the switch beside FastCGI cache to turn it on or off. Check the resulting switch state and any message displayed by the panel. The example below shows it on.

Add cache exclusions

The Cache exclusion description says that paths entered here will never be cached. It gives shopping carts as an example of pages that must be dynamic, and /wp-admin as an example of an exact path.

1. Find Cache exclusion below the FastCGI cache switch.
2. Enter the path in the field beside that description.
3. Click Add.
4. Review the result or any message returned by the panel.

Add URL rewrites

The panel describes rewrites as sending a path to a PHP script when the file does not exist. Its explanation mentions WordPress permalinks and rewrites that would otherwise use .htaccess.

1. Find the rewrite section below Cache exclusion. When no rules are listed, it shows No rewrites with an Add button.
2. Click Add. The section opens a row with Source path and Destination path. It also shows Add rewrite above the table.
3. Fill in Source path and Destination path for the rule you want to create.
4. Click Create and review the result. Use Cancel to close the row without creating a rule.

Purge the cache

Below the rewrite controls, Purge cache states that the action deletes all currently cached pages from the cache.

Check the domain shown at the top of Nginx, then click Purge in Purge cache when you want to perform that action. Read any message returned by the panel.

Opcode caching in Optimisation

1. Open Advanced → Optimisation in the website’s top menu.
2. Find Opcode caching.
3. Use its switch to turn the option on or off, then check the resulting state and any message displayed.

The panel describes this option as caching the compiled operation code of PHP scripts to serve the website’s content. The example below shows the switch on.