Nginx C Module Design

If you're writing nginx C modules, this is your guide for designing the configuration interface admins will actually use. It covers 46 rules across exposure decisions (what to make configurable vs hardcode), naming conventions, directive types, scope placement, defaults, and validation. The priority ranking is helpful: it puts the critical stuff like naming and exposure first, then works down to compatibility concerns. Think of it as the design phase counterpart to implementation skills like nginx-c-modules. The framework for deciding configurable vs hardcoded is solid, and the cross-module consistency rules will save you from inventing your own conventions poorly.

skills.sh installs: 369
GitHub stars: 222
last updated: Aug 21, 2026

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Install

$ npx -y skills add pproenca/dot-skills --skill nginx-c-module-design --agent claude-code

Installs into .claude/skills of the current project.

Files

nginx.org C Module Directive Design Best Practices

Comprehensive directive design guide for nginx C module authors, focused on creating clear, consistent, and admin-friendly configuration interfaces. Contains 46 rules across 8 categories, prioritized by impact to guide decisions about what to expose, how to name it, and how to evolve it safely.

When to Apply

Reference these guidelines when:

Deciding which values to expose as directives vs hardcode
Naming new directives and choosing argument types
Selecting scope placement (http, server, location)
Setting default values and validation behavior
Designing nginx variables for runtime data
Deprecating or renaming existing directives

Companion Skills

This skill focuses on design decisions (the "what" and "why"). For implementation mechanics, see:

nginx-c-modules — C implementation: memory pools, request lifecycle, config parsing, handlers, filters
nginx-c-perf — Performance: buffers, connections, locks, caching, timeouts
nginx-c-debug — Debugging: crash diagnosis, GDB, tracing, sanitizers