Nginx service not starting on Windows 10 - nginx: [alert] could not open error log file: CreateFile()

Question

I have an Nginx service that's configured to start automatically on my Windows 10; however, this morning, the service wouldn't start. The error log says: nginx: [alert] could not open error log file: CreateFile() "C:\someForlderName\build\distribution\.\nginx/logs/error.log" failed (3: The system cannot find the path specified)

Looking at the path in the error log above, I do NOT have the /logs/ folder on my local system so it looks like Nginx doesn't have the proper permissions to create that folder?

I'm setup as an admin user and my service is set to Log On As - Local System Account

This only happens on Windows 10; but the service starts and works on older Windows i.e 8.1

So does anyone know how to grant administrator's permissions to Nginx so that Nginx can create folders and files on Windows 10 ?

Answer 1

You need:

To install nginx/Windows, download the latest mainline version distribution (1.13.8), since the mainline branch of nginx contains all known fixes. Then unpack the distribution, go to the nginx-1.13.8 directory, and run nginx. Here is an example for the drive C: root directory: (Run cmd as administrator)

cd c:\
unzip nginx-1.13.8.zip
cd nginx-1.13.8
start nginx

Go to: http://localhost:80 -> test install

Goback to console cmd: "nginx -s stop"

Run for next time:

1. Config with file: "C:\nginx-1.13.8\conf\nginx.conf"
2. Open cmd as administrator
3. Run bash: "cd C:\nginx-1.13.8"
4. Run nginx with bash: "start nginx" . If you run with bash: "nginx", will get trouble for exit nginx.

5. And

   nginx -s stop #fast shutdown

   nginx -s quit #graceful shutdown

   nginx -s reload #changing configuration, starting new worker processes with a new configuration, graceful shutdown of old worker processes

   nginx -s reopen #re-opening log files

Answer 2

Under the directory that you run nginx.exe, try to create a directory named logs, and a file named error.log under log. It should pass this error.