Dynamic Configuration
Many Centmin Mod configuration file settings are dynamically configured based on detected server hardware — CPU cores, installed memory, available disk space, and server environment type (dedicated, OpenVZ, KVM, Xen). When migrating configuration files between servers, you may need to adjust settings for the new environment.
Command Shortcuts
Centmin Mod provides command line shortcuts for many config file paths. See the full list at Command Shortcuts and FAQ item 16.
Nginx Configuration Files
Core Nginx server configuration files and directories.
| File Path | Description |
|---|---|
/etc/init.d/nginx |
Nginx service init.d startup file |
/usr/local/nginx/conf/nginx.conf |
Main Nginx configuration file. The worker_processes value is dynamically configured based on CPU cores available. |
/usr/local/nginx/conf/conf.d/ |
Directory containing each Nginx vhost domain config file, created via centmin.sh menu option 2 or /usr/bin/nv. |
/usr/local/nginx/conf/conf.d/virtual.conf |
Default main Nginx vhost config for the server hostname. Web root at /usr/local/nginx/html with dynamically generated admin/stats files. |
/usr/local/nginx/conf/ssl/ |
SSL certificate directory. Letsencrypt certificates are stored per-domain in /usr/local/nginx/conf/ssl/yourdomain.com/. |
/usr/local/nginx/conf/staticfiles.conf |
Default static files include file, included in each Nginx vhost config file. |
/usr/local/nginx/conf/php.conf |
Main PHP include file, included in each Nginx vhost config file for PHP-FPM upstream processing. |
/usr/local/nginx/conf/pre-staticfiles-global.conf |
Global custom Nginx rules between location / {} and staticfiles.conf. Applies to all vhosts. |
/usr/local/nginxbackup/ |
Auto-backup directory for Nginx configs. Created each time you run centmin.sh menu option 4 to upgrade/downgrade Nginx. |
/var/log/nginx/localhost.access.log |
Default vhost access log (localhost-prefixed). |
/var/log/nginx/localhost.error.log |
Default vhost error log (localhost-prefixed). |
Nginx Site Domain Files
Per-domain configuration and web root files created when you add a new site via centmin.sh menu option 2 or /usr/bin/nv.
| File Path | Description |
|---|---|
/home/nginx/domains/yourdomain.com/ |
Domain directory structure root. |
/home/nginx/domains/yourdomain.com/public |
Web root directory for the domain. Place your site files here. |
/usr/local/nginx/conf/conf.d/yourdomain.com.conf |
HTTP Nginx vhost configuration file for the domain. |
/usr/local/nginx/conf/conf.d/yourdomain.com.ssl.conf |
HTTPS Nginx vhost configuration file (created if SSL is set up at vhost creation time). |
/home/nginx/domains/yourdomain.com/log/ |
Per-domain Nginx access.log and error.log for troubleshooting site-specific errors (404, 502, 504, 500). |
/usr/local/nginx/conf/pre-staticfiles-local-domain.com.conf |
Per-domain custom Nginx rules between location / {} and staticfiles.conf. Applies only to this vhost. |
/usr/local/nginx/conf/ssl/yourdomain.com/ |
Per-domain SSL certificate directory, including Letsencrypt certificates obtained via acmetool.sh. |
PHP-FPM Configuration Files
PHP-FPM process manager and PHP configuration files.
| File Path | Description |
|---|---|
/etc/init.d/php-fpm |
PHP-FPM service init.d startup file. |
/usr/local/etc/php-fpm.conf |
Main PHP-FPM configuration file. Values are dynamically configured based on available server memory. Restart php-fpm after editing. |
/etc/centminmod/php.d/ |
Directory for php.ini override files. Use this to customize PHP settings. See PHP custom ini guide. |
/var/log/php-fpm/www-error.log |
PHP-FPM process error log. |
/var/log/php-fpm/www-php.error.log |
PHP application error log (for PHP app-level errors). |
MariaDB MySQL Configuration Files
MariaDB MySQL server configuration and data files.
| File Path | Description |
|---|---|
/etc/my.cnf |
MariaDB MySQL main configuration file. Values are dynamically configured based on server memory. Restart mysql service after editing. |
/root/.my.cnf |
MySQL root user credentials file. Update this whenever you change the MySQL root password. Required by some Centmin Mod addons (e.g., dbbackup.sh). |
/var/lib/mysql/ |
MySQL database data directory. Do not directly backup these files — use mysqldump for safe backups. |
/var/log/mysqld.log |
MariaDB error log (before MariaDB 10.0.29/10.1.21). |
/var/lib/mysql/YOURHOSTNAME.err |
MariaDB error log (after MariaDB 10.0.29/10.1.21). Replaces the /var/log/mysqld.log path. |
Database Backup Warning
Never directly copy files from /var/lib/mysql/ — this will corrupt your data. Always use mysqldump for reliable database backups.
CSF Firewall Configuration
ConfigServer Security & Firewall (CSF) configuration files and logs.
| File Path | Description |
|---|---|
/etc/csf/csf.conf |
Main CSF Firewall config file. Some settings are dynamically configured per server environment (e.g., OpenVZ restrictions). Restart csf after editing. |
/etc/csf/ |
Directory containing all CSF config files (allow/deny lists, port configs, etc.). Restart csf after editing any file in this directory. |
/var/log/lfd.log |
Login Failure Daemon (lfd) log. Records auto-banned IPs from SSH brute force attacks and login failures. |
Memcached Configuration
Memcached in-memory caching server configuration.
| File Path | Description |
|---|---|
/etc/init.d/memcached |
Memcached config settings are located within this init.d startup file itself. Restart memcached service after editing. |
NSD DNS Configuration
NSD authoritative DNS server files. Only relevant if you set up local DNS via centmin.sh menu option 3. If using third-party DNS nameservers, NSD is not used.
| File Path | Description |
|---|---|
/etc/nsd/nsd.conf |
Main NSD configuration file for local domain DNS setup. |
/etc/nsd/ |
Directory for NSD config files and DNS zone files. Restart nsd service after editing any file here. |
Centmin Mod Configuration
Core Centmin Mod persistent configuration files that survive updates.
| File Path | Description |
|---|---|
/etc/centminmod/custom_config.inc |
Persistent custom settings file that survives Centmin Mod updates. Place your custom centmin.sh variable overrides here. |
/etc/centminmod/php.d/ |
PHP ini override files directory. Custom php.ini settings placed here persist across PHP updates. |
/usr/local/src/centminmod/ |
Centmin Mod installation directory containing centmin.sh and all supporting scripts. |
Persistent Configuration
Always use /etc/centminmod/custom_config.inc for your custom settings. This file persists across Centmin Mod updates, unlike editing centmin.sh directly which gets overwritten on update.
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