How to set up nginx to log real client IP address when the Plesk server is behind an external proxy server

Kuzma Ivanov

Updated November 18, 2025 08:55

kb: how-to Plesk for Linux

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How to set up nginx to log real client IP address when the Plesk server is behind an external proxy server?

For one domain (nginx reverse proxy is enabled)

Log in to Plesk.
Go to Domains > example.com > Hosting & DNS > Apache & nginx Settings.
Add the following lines to the additional nginx directives field:

CONFIG_TEXT: set_real_ip_from 192.0.2.2/8;
real_ip_header X-Forwarded-For;
real_ip_recursive on;
- where 192.0.2.2/8 is an IP address of the external proxy server.
Apply the changes.

For one domain (nginx reverse proxy is disabled)

Log in to Plesk.
Go to Domains > example.com > Hosting & DNS > Apache & nginx Settings.
Add the following lines to the additional directives for HTTP/HTTPS fields:

CONFIG_TEXT: RemoteIPHeader X-Forwarded-For
RemoteIPInternalProxy 192.0.2.2/8;
- where 192.0.2.2/8 is an IP address of the external proxy server.
Apply the changes.

For all domains (nginx reverse proxy is enabled)

Connect to the server via SSH.
Create the file with additional nginx configuration:

# touch /etc/nginx/conf.d/ext_proxy_server.conf
Open the file in a text editor. In this example, we are using vi editor:

# vi /etc/nginx/conf.d/ext_proxy_server.conf
Add the following lines to the additional nginx directives:

CONFIG_TEXT: set_real_ip_from 192.0.2.2/8;
real_ip_header X-Forwarded-For;
real_ip_recursive on;
- where 192.0.2.2/8 is an IP address of the external proxy server.
Save the changes and close the file.
Restart nginx service:

# service nginx restart