When coming from Apache to Nginx, many administrators miss the convenient a2ensite/a2dissite commands for managing virtual hosts. While Nginx doesn't include equivalent commands by default, the nginx-common package in Ubuntu/Debian provides this functionality.

First, ensure you have the package installed:

sudo apt-get install nginx-common

The package provides three essential commands:

sudo nginx-enable example.com
sudo nginx-disable example.com 
sudo nginx-list-sites

These commands follow the same principle as Apache's tools:

# Enabling creates symbolic link
ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/example.com /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/

# Disabling removes the link
rm /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/example.com

Here's a complete workflow for a new site:

# 1. Create config in sites-available
sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/myapp.conf

# 2. Enable the site
sudo nginx-enable myapp

# 3. Verify configuration
sudo nginx -t

# 4. Reload Nginx
sudo systemctl reload nginx

# 5. List active sites
sudo nginx-list-sites

If you prefer not to use the package, you can create custom scripts:

# /usr/local/bin/ngxensite
#!/bin/bash
if [ -f "/etc/nginx/sites-available/$1" ]; then
  ln -s "/etc/nginx/sites-available/$1" "/etc/nginx/sites-enabled/$1"
else
  echo "Site $1 doesn't exist in sites-available"
fi

Remember that after enabling/disabling sites, you need to:

sudo nginx -t  # Test configuration
sudo systemctl reload nginx

While Apache users enjoy the convenience of a2ensite/a2dissite commands for managing virtual hosts, Nginx traditionally lacks such built-in utilities. This often forces administrators to manually create symlinks between sites-available and sites-enabled directories.

The package you're remembering is nginx-common, which provides two crucial scripts:

sudo apt-get install nginx-common

After installation, you'll gain access to:

• nginx-enable - Activates a site configuration
• nginx-disable - Deactivates a site
• nginx-list - Shows enabled/available sites

Enable a site (creates symlink automatically):

sudo nginx-enable example.com.conf

Disable a site (removes symlink):

sudo nginx-disable example.com.conf

List all sites:

sudo nginx-list

For systems without nginx-common, here's the traditional method:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/example.com.conf /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
sudo nginx -t && sudo systemctl reload nginx

Ensure your Nginx config files follow this pattern in /etc/nginx/sites-available/:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name example.com www.example.com;
    root /var/www/example.com;
    index index.html;
    
    location / {
        try_files $uri $uri/ =404;
    }
}

Remember to test configurations before reloading:

sudo nginx -t