Introduction

In this guide, you will learn how to configure Nginx to serve static files from a FastAPI container using Docker. We will show you how to define a volume in Docker Compose and configure the appropriate permissions so that Nginx can access your files. Let's get started!

Step 1: Project Structure

Make sure your project has the following directory structure:

/your-project │ ├── Dockerfile ├── docker-compose.yml └── img └── product └── your_image.jpeg

In your Fast Api application

from fastapi import FastAPI
from fastapi.staticfiles import StaticFiles

app = FastAPI()

app.mount("/static", StaticFiles(directory="static"), name="static")

Step 2: Create the Dockerfile

Create a Dockerfile for your FastAPI application. Here's a basic example:

# Use a Python base image
FROM python:3.9

# Set the working directory
WORKDIR /app

# Copy the required files
COPY requirements.txt .
RUN pip install -r requirements.txt

COPY . .

# Expose port 5000
EXPOSE 5000

# Command to run the application
CMD ["uvicorn", "main:app", "--host", "0.0.0.0", "--port", "5000"]

Step 3: Configure Docker Compose

Create a docker-compose.yml file that defines your FastAPI and Nginx service. Here's an example:

services:
   fastapi:
      build: .
      ports:
         - "8000:5000"
      volumes:
         - .{path_server}:{path_container} # Mount the volume for the static files

Step 4: Configure Nginx

Create an nginx.conf file to configure Nginx and serve the static files:

server {
   listen 80;
   server_name servername;

   location location_to_folder_share {
      alias path_absolute_to_folder_share or path_server absolute ; # /home/$User/projects/folder_shared
      try_files $uri $uri/ =404; # Return a 404 if the file does not exist
      add_header X-Content-Type-Options nosniff;
   }
}

Step 5: Adjust Permissions

Make sure Nginx has permission to access the static files folder. Run the following commands on your server:

sudo chmod -R 755 /home/$User/projects/folder_shared
sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /home/$User/projects/folder_shared

Also check that all the directories above have execute permissions:

sudo chmod +x /home
sudo chmod +x /home/$User
sudo chmod +x /home/$User/projects

Step 6: Start Containers

Once you have everything set up, start your Docker containers with the following command:

docker-compose up --build

Step 7: Check Access to Static Files

Try accessing one of your static files via the URL:

• https://host_url/location_to_folder_share/your_image.jpeg

You can view the image without errors if everything is set up correctly.

Conclusion

You have successfully configured Nginx to serve static files from a FastAPI container. Using Docker and Docker Compose, you can easily manage your services and ensure your application is production-ready. Good luck with your project!

Additional Notes:

• Make sure to customize the paths and file names to suit your project structure.
• This post includes basic steps and can be expanded depending on the complexity of your application and the configurations you want to implement.
• This setup was tested on a reverse proxy where local nginx is used on the server which uses stream for the docker containers on the same server.
• Also remember to configure the static folder in your FastAPI app