Fixing "No input file specified" Error in Nginx and PHP on Windows Server

When setting up a web server with Nginx and PHP on Windows Server, a common issue is the "No input file specified" error when accessing PHP files, such as http://localhost/info.php. This error typically indicates that Nginx successfully connects to the PHP FastCGI process, but PHP-CGI cannot locate the requested PHP file. This article outlines a step-by-step guide to diagnose and resolve this issue, based on a real-world scenario involving PHP 8.4.10, Nginx, and nginxWebUI on Windows Server, with the website directory at D:\program\nginx\html.

Background

The setup includes:

• PHP 8.4.10 (non-thread-safe, installed at D:\program\php\php-8.4.10-nts-Win32-vs17-x64).
• PHP-CGI running as a service via NSSM, listening on 127.0.0.1:9000.
• Nginx installed at C:\nginx, with the website root at D:\program\nginx\html.
• nginxWebUI for managing Nginx configurations.
• Directory permissions set with IUSR:(RX) and Everyone:(RX) using icacls.
• Initial Nginx configuration issues, including incorrect root and fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME settings.

The error stemmed from an incorrect fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME /scripts$fastcgi_script_name; and root html; in the Nginx configuration, causing PHP-CGI to look for files in the wrong path (e.g., /scripts/info.php instead of D:\program\nginx\html\info.php).

Step-by-Step Solution

1. Verify PHP-CGI Service

Ensure the PHP-CGI service is running and listening on the correct port.

• Check Service Status:

  Get-Service php-cgi
  

  • Expected output:

    Status   Name               DisplayName
    ------   ----               -----------
    Running  php-cgi            php-cgi
    

  • If stopped, restart the service:

    & "D:\program\nssm\nssm.exe" start php-cgi
    

• Verify Port Listening:

  netstat -an | Select-String 9000
  

  • Expected output:

    TCP 127.0.0.1:9000 0.0.0.0:0 LISTENING
    

  • If the port is not listening, check for conflicts:

    netstat -aon | Select-String 9000
    Get-Process -Id <PID>
    

    • Terminate non-PHP-CGI processes:

      Stop-Process -Id <PID> -Force
      

• Confirm Single PHP-CGI Process:

  Get-Process | Where-Object { $_.Path -like "*php-cgi.exe*" }
  

  • Should show one process at D:\program\php\php-8.4.10-nts-Win32-vs17-x64\php-cgi.exe.
  • If multiple processes exist, stop them:

    Stop-Process -Name php-cgi -Force
    

  • Reinstall the NSSM service if needed:

    & "D:\program\nssm\nssm.exe" remove php-cgi confirm
    & "D:\program\nssm\nssm.exe" install php-cgi "D:\program\php\php-8.4.10-nts-Win32-vs17-x64\php-cgi.exe" -b 127.0.0.1:9000
    & "D:\program\nssm\nssm.exe" start php-cgi
    

2. Verify Website Directory and Permissions

The website directory (D:\program\nginx\html) must exist and have appropriate permissions.

• Check Directory:

  Test-Path "D:\program\nginx\html"
  

  • If False, create it:

    New-Item -Path "D:\program\nginx\html" -ItemType Directory
    

• Set Permissions:

  icacls "D:\program\nginx\html" /grant "IUSR:(RX)"
  icacls "D:\program\nginx\html" /grant "Everyone:(RX)"
  

• Create Test File:
  Create info.php in D:\program\nginx\html:

  Set-Content -Path "D:\program\nginx\html\info.php" -Value '<?php phpinfo(); ?>'
  

  • Verify file:

    Test-Path "D:\program\nginx\html\info.php"
    Get-Content "D:\program\nginx\html\info.php"
    

  • Set file permissions:

    icacls "D:\program\nginx\html\info.php" /grant "IUSR:(RX)"
    

3. Fix Nginx Configuration

The No input file specified. error was caused by incorrect root and fastcgi_param settings. Update the Nginx configuration in C:\nginx\conf\nginx.conf:

http {
    include mime.types;
    default_type application/octet-stream;
    sendfile on;
    keepalive_timeout 65;

    server {
        listen 80 default_server;
        listen [::]:80 default_server;
        server_name _;

        # Block direct IP access
        if ($host ~* "^[0-9.]+$|^[0-9a-f:]+$") {
            return 444;
        }

        root D:/program/nginx/html;
        index index.html index.htm index.php;

        location / {
            try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$args;
        }

        error_page 500 502 503 504 /50x.html;
        location = /50x.html {
            root D:/program/nginx/html;
        }

        location ~ \.php$ {
            fastcgi_pass 127.0.0.1:9000;
            fastcgi_index index.php;
            fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
            include fastcgi_params;
        }
    }
}

• Key Changes:

  • Set root D:/program/nginx/html; at the server block level to avoid redundancy.
  • Use fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name; to dynamically resolve the file path (e.g., D:/program/nginx/html/info.php).
  • Add try_files in location / to handle PHP routing correctly.
  • Fix error_page root to D:/program/nginx/html.

• Verify fastcgi_params:
  Ensure C:\nginx\conf\fastcgi_params exists:

  Test-Path "C:\nginx\conf\fastcgi_params"
  

  • If False, create it:

    Set-Content -Path "C:\nginx\conf\fastcgi_params" -Value @"
    fastcgi_param  QUERY_STRING       \$query_string;
    fastcgi_param  REQUEST_METHOD     \$request_method;
    fastcgi_param  CONTENT_TYPE       \$content_type;
    fastcgi_param  CONTENT_LENGTH     \$content_length;
    fastcgi_param  REQUEST_URI        \$request_uri;
    fastcgi_param  DOCUMENT_URI       \$document_uri;
    fastcgi_param  SERVER_PROTOCOL    \$server_protocol;
    fastcgi_param  GATEWAY_INTERFACE  CGI/1.1;
    fastcgi_param  SERVER_SOFTWARE    nginx;
    fastcgi_param  REMOTE_ADDR        \$remote_addr;
    fastcgi_param  REMOTE_PORT        \$remote_port;
    fastcgi_param  SERVER_ADDR        \$server_addr;
    fastcgi_param  SERVER_PORT        \$server_port;
    fastcgi_param  SERVER_NAME        \$server_name;
    "@
    

• Validate Configuration:

  & "C:\nginx\nginx.exe" -t
  

  • Expected output:

    nginx: the configuration file C:\nginx\conf\nginx.conf syntax is ok
    nginx: configuration file C:\nginx\conf\nginx.conf test is successful
    

• Restart Nginx:

  & "C:\nginx\nginx.exe" -s reload
  

4. Update nginxWebUI (if applicable)

If using nginxWebUI:

• Access http://<server_ip>:8080.
• In the Reverse Proxy or Static Files module, update the server block to match the above configuration.
• Save and restart Nginx via nginxWebUI.

5. Test PHP

• Access http://localhost/info.php in a browser (use localhost due to the return 444 rule for IP access).
• If the PHP info page appears, the issue is resolved.
• If errors persist:
  • No input file specified:
    • Confirm D:\program\nginx\html\info.php exists.
    • Check Nginx error logs:

      Get-Content "C:\nginx\logs\error.log" -Tail 10
      

    • Test PHP directly:

      & "D:\program\php\php-8.4.10-nts-Win32-vs17-x64\php.exe" "D:\program\nginx\html\info.php"
      

  • 403 Forbidden: Re-check permissions:

    icacls "D:\program\nginx\html"
    

  • 502 Bad Gateway: Verify PHP-CGI service and port.

6. Addressing Linux chown Context

The user inquired about the Linux command chown -R www:www ./*, which sets file ownership to the www user and group. In Windows, this is handled with icacls. The provided permissions (IUSR:(RX) and Everyone:(RX)) are sufficient. For Linux environments (e.g., WSL):

• Check Nginx user:

  grep user /etc/nginx/nginx.conf
  

• Set permissions:

  sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /path/to/nginx/html
  

Conclusion

The No input file specified. error was resolved by correcting the Nginx configuration:

• Setting root D:/program/nginx/html; in the server block.
• Using fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $document_root$fastcgi_script_name; to provide the correct file path to PHP-CGI.
• Ensuring the PHP-CGI service is running and the website directory has proper permissions.

By following these steps, you can successfully configure Nginx and PHP on Windows Server, enabling dynamic PHP content delivery. Always verify configurations and logs to catch any residual issues.