Web server settings (located at Service Plans > select a plan > Web Server tab) enable you to predefine web server configuration for all domains that will be created under a certain service plan.

Note: Web server settings can also be changed for each domain individually. Changes on the service plan level do not override custom settings of existing domains. Therefore, the changes you make in Service Plans > select a plan > Web Server take effect only for newly created domains.

To learn more about web server configuration, see Apache Web Server (Linux).

Common Apache settings

It is recommended to select the option Restrict the ability to follow symbolic links in order to increase server security. This option, if selected, prevents Plesk users from following symbolic links, which might point to directories that users should not be able to access. Users are unable to use/switch on the FollowSymLink directive in .htaccess.

Note: This option potentially breaks a wide range of applications (not only APS applications, but also when a user copied and pasted a .htaccess file that contains FollowSymLinks).

Directives for HTTP and Directives for HTTPS

To predefine Apache directives that will be used when the website is accessed over HTTP and HTTPS, use the Directives for HTTP and Directives for HTTPS fields. When editing the fields, use the syntax as in httpd.conf. For example, if you want to set a custom error page, add the line:

ErrorDocument 401 /my_error_page.html

Common nginx settings

By default, Apache is used with nginx, which proxies HTTP requests to Apache. You can exclude Apache from the process of handling requests for web content of websites, and use nginx alone for this purpose. Do do so, clear the Proxy mode option. This option will be turned off on all newly created domains within subscriptions that are synced with the plan. On existing domains, it will not change.

For details, see Adjusting Apache Web Server Settings.

nginx directives

To predefine nginx directives, use the nginx directives field. When editing the field, use the syntax as in nginx.conf. For example, if you want to pack all the proxied requests with gzip, add the line:

gzip_proxied any;