What Is New in NGINX 1.5
NGINX 1.5 introduces experimental support for the SPDY protocol, a major step towards modern web performance. This release also includes significant enhancements to the mail module and core proxy functionality.
| Category | Key Changes |
|---|---|
| New Features | Experimental SPDY protocol support, mail proxy authentication server directive |
| Improvements | Enhanced proxy performance with buffering controls, SSL session reuse, mail module logging |
| Bug Fixes | Fixes for memory leaks, worker process shutdown issues, and specific module errors |
What are the major protocol additions in 1.5?
The headline feature is the experimental implementation of the SPDY protocol. This allows NGINX to handle SPDY connections alongside regular HTTP and HTTPS, reducing latency through multiplexing and header compression.
In practice, this was a foundational move that paved the way for HTTP/2 support in later versions. You could enable it in a server block with listen 443 ssl spdy;.
How was the mail proxy module enhanced?
The mail module got a new auth_http_server directive. This allows the mail proxy to pass authentication requests to an HTTP server, not just a specially formatted HTTP auth service.
This matters because it provides more flexibility for integrating with existing authentication systems. Logging for the mail module was also improved to provide better visibility into proxy operations.
What core performance tweaks were made?
Several changes focused on the proxy module. The proxy_buffering directive became more flexible, and improvements were made to SSL session reuse to reduce handshake overhead.
These are the kinds of tunings that make a real difference in high-throughput environments. You get finer control over how responses are buffered and delivered to clients.
Were there any critical stability fixes?
Yes, this release addressed a few important bugs. One fix resolved a memory leak that could occur on a worker process shutdown. Another corrected an issue where a worker might not terminate gracefully under certain conditions.
These fixes are crucial for long-term uptime. They prevent resource exhaustion and ensure clean restarts during configuration reloads or upgrades.
FAQ
Is the SPDY support in 1.5 production-ready?
It was marked as experimental. While functional, it was a stepping stone. For production use, you'd want to move to a later version with mature HTTP/2 support, which superseded SPDY.
What's the main benefit of the new mail auth_http_server directive?
It lets you use a standard HTTP server for mail authentication instead of requiring a custom service that speaks NGINX's specific protocol, simplifying integration.
Does the proxy buffering change affect performance?
It can. The enhanced control allows you to disable buffering for applications that require real-time response streaming, which can reduce latency for certain use cases.
The referenced changelog does not list any specific CVEs or security advisories for version 1.5. The fixes were primarily for functionality and stability.
Should I upgrade from 1.5 to a modern version?
Absolutely. NGINX 1.5 is ancient and unsupported. Modern versions offer HTTP/2, more robust TLS, and countless performance and security improvements that are essential today.