Setting Up a Node.js Server on AWS EC2 with Nginx and SSL

Amazon EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) is widely used for hosting applications because it is scalable and flexible. In this tutorial, we will install a Node.js server on an EC2 instance, configure a static IP address, install Nginx as a reverse proxy, configure security groups, and install an SSL certificate with Certbot.

Step 1: Launch an EC2 Instance

1. Go to the AWS Management Console and navigate to the EC2 dashboard.
2. Click Launch Instance and choose an Amazon Machine Image (AMI), such as Ubuntu 22.04 LTS.
3. Select an instance type (e.g., t2.micro, which is free-tier eligible).
4. Configure instance details and select Create new key pair for SSH access.
5. Launch the instance and download the key file (.pem).

Step 2: Assign a Static IP (Elastic IP)

1. In the AWS EC2 dashboard, navigate to Elastic IPs under Network & Security.
2. Allocate a new Elastic IP and associate it with your running instance.
3. Update your domain’s DNS settings if needed to point to the static IP.

Step 3: Connect to Your EC2 Instance

Use SSH to connect to the instance:

ssh -i your-key.pem ubuntu@your-ec2-ip

Step 4: Install Node.js and PM2

Update the system and install Node.js:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_18.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt install -y nodejs

Verify installation:

node -v
npm -v

Install PM2 for managing Node.js processes:

npm install -g pm2

Step 5: Deploy Your Node.js Application

1. Clone or copy your Node.js project into the instance:

git clone https://github.com/your-repo.git
cd your-repo
npm install

1. Start the Node.js server using PM2:

pm start
# OR
pm run start:prod
# To keep it running in the background
pm2 start app.js --name "node-server"
pm2 save

Step 6: Configure Security Groups

1. In the AWS EC2 dashboard, go to Security Groups.
2. Edit inbound rules to allow:
   • SSH (port 22) – only for your IP.
   • HTTP (port 80) – open to the world.
   • HTTPS (port 443) – open to the world.
   • Custom (port 3000) – if your Node.js app runs on port 3000 (for internal access only).

Step 7: Install and Configure Nginx as a Reverse Proxy

1. Install Nginx:

sudo apt install nginx -y

1. Configure Nginx:

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/default

Replace the contents with:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name your-domain.com;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:3000;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection 'upgrade';
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_cache_bypass $http_upgrade;
    }
}

1. Restart Nginx:

sudo systemctl restart nginx

Step 8: Install SSL Certificate using Certbot

1. Install Certbot:

sudo apt install certbot python3-certbot-nginx -y

1. Generate and install an SSL certificate:

sudo certbot --nginx -d your-domain.com -d www.your-domain.com

1. Auto-renew SSL:

sudo certbot renew --dry-run

Conclusion

You have successfully installed a Node.js server on AWS EC2 with Nginx as the reverse proxy and SSL encryption through Certbot. This installation provides a secure and scalable deployment for your application. Happy coding!