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nginx rewrite or internal redirection cycle
===========================================

### [\#Nginx](https://rocketeersapp.com/knowledge/nginx)

This error means nginx kept redirecting a request back to itself until it gave up. Almost always a try\_files directive that loops, producing a 500 error.

 Published by [Mark van Eijk](https://rocketeersapp.com/author/mark-van-eijk) on June 23, 2026 · 1 minute read

1. [About the error](#content-about-the-error)
2. [Why do I see this error](#content-why-do-i-see-this-error)
3. [Solution](#content-solution)
4. [Use the standard Laravel/PHP try\_files](#content-use-the-standard-laravelphp-tryfiles)
5. [Check the root actually contains index.php](#content-check-the-root-actually-contains-indexphp)

[\#](#content-about-the-error "Permalink")About the error
---------------------------------------------------------

The page returns a 500 and the nginx error log shows:

 ```
rewrite or internal redirection cycle while internally redirecting to "/index.php"

```

nginx tried to resolve a request, that resolution pointed at another location, which pointed back, and so on. After 10 internal redirects nginx assumes a loop and aborts with a 500.

[\#](#content-why-do-i-see-this-error "Permalink")Why do I see this error
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

The classic cause is a `try_files` that, when nothing matches, falls back to a target that itself triggers the same `try_files` again. For a PHP app it usually means:

- The fallback file (`index.php`) doesn't exist at the expected path, so the fallback re-enters the same block.
- The `root` is wrong, so nginx never finds the real file and keeps redirecting.
- A `try_files` pointing at a named location or URI that loops back.

[\#](#content-solution "Permalink")Solution
-------------------------------------------

### [\#](#content-use-the-standard-laravelphp-tryfiles "Permalink")Use the standard Laravel/PHP try\_files

A correct front-controller setup looks like this. Note the `$uri` and `$uri/` are tried first, and the final fallback passes the path as a query string rather than re-requesting a file:

 ```
server {
    root /var/www/html/public;
    index index.php;

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

    location ~ \.php$ {
        include fastcgi_params;
        fastcgi_pass unix:/run/php/php8.3-fpm.sock;
        fastcgi_param SCRIPT_FILENAME $realpath_root$fastcgi_script_name;
    }
}

```

### [\#](#content-check-the-root-actually-contains-indexphp "Permalink")Check the root actually contains index.php

The most common real cause is a wrong `root`. If `/var/www/html/public/index.php` doesn't exist, the fallback can never resolve and loops:

 ```
ls -l /var/www/html/public/index.php

```

Point `root` at the directory that genuinely contains the front controller (for Laravel that's `public`, not the project root).

Validate and reload after fixing:

 ```
nginx -t && systemctl reload nginx

```

For a deeper look at how `try_files` resolves requests, see [the nginx try\_files article](/nginx-try-files). A redirect loop that happens in the browser rather than inside nginx shows up as [ERR\_TOO\_MANY\_REDIRECTS](/err-too-many-redirects) instead.

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