How do I configure health checks in Nginx?
Add max_fails and fail_timeout to each server in the upstream block. Example: server 127.0.0.1:3000 max_fails=3 fail_timeout=30s. Nginx removes the server after 3 failed attempts within 30 seconds and tries again after 30 seconds.
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More FAQs in Nginx Load Balancing Running Multiple Node.js Instances for High Availability
Node.js is single-threaded and uses only one CPU core. Running multiple instances (with PM2 cluster mode or Nginx load balancing) lets you use all CPU cores, provides high availability if one crashes, enables zero-downtime deployment, and increases throughput.
Define an upstream block with multiple server entries (e.g., server 127.0.0.1:3000; server 127.0.0.1:3001;), then use proxy_pass http://upstream_name in the location block. Nginx distributes requests using round-robin by default.
Round-robin (default, distributes in order), least_conn (sends to server with fewest connections), ip_hash (same client always goes to same server, good for sessions), and weighted (distribute based on server capacity with weight parameter).
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