Immediate Plesk 18, Ubuntu 22 System admin

Summary of Issues (For Job Description on Upwork)

On Monday this week, Plesk 18 performed its usual auto-update. Shortly after, a specific page encountered redirection issues. In an attempt to fix the issue, an admin who was unfamiliar with Plesk mistakenly tried to uninstall Nginx on a Plesk-managed server, causing the entire system to crash.

This is a Plesk 18-based server running on Ubuntu 22.04, hosting multiple websites, including Magento-based eCommerce stores and several WordPress sites. The server is now completely down due to a combination of Nginx, Passenger, Brotli, SSL, and proxy conflicts.

Core Issues:

1. Nginx is broken and fails to start due to a mix of misconfigurations, missing dependencies, and broken integrations with Phusion Passenger, Brotli compression, and SSL.

2. Plesk’s webserver configuration is corrupted. Plesk relies on a combination of Apache and Nginx, with Nginx acting as a reverse proxy. Both services are failing to start properly, making all websites inaccessible.

3. Phusion Passenger is installed but not properly configured. It must be correctly set up to function with Nginx or removed if not required.

4. Brotli compression is causing conflicts. The module is installed but is throwing errors that prevent Nginx from running correctly.

5. SSL and proxy issues are contributing to the failure. There are duplicate SSL directives and misconfigured proxy settings, possibly linked to the failed attempt to uninstall Nginx.

6. Magento API authentication is failing. API requests are being denied access, which could be related to the Plesk update, SSL issues, or broken reverse proxy configuration.

7. Varnish, Redis, and Elasticsearch need verification:
- Varnish runs inside Docker and is operational but may need to be restarted and reconfigured.
- Redis runs natively on the server and must be checked for stability.
- Elasticsearch is installed natively and should be verified for proper functionality.

The primary goal is to restore full server functionality, ensuring that all websites, logins, and Magento product pages load correctly. If manual fixes are not successful, a clean reinstall of Plesk with full backup restoration may be required.

Looking for an Expert Who Can:
- Diagnose and repair the current Nginx and Plesk setup.
- Properly configure Phusion Passenger or remove it if unnecessary.
- Resolve issues with Brotli compression, SSL, and proxy settings.
- Ensure Magento’s API authentication functions correctly.
- Verify and optimize the Varnish, Redis, and Elasticsearch setup.
- Determine whether a full reinstall is necessary and, if so, handle the process efficiently.

We need a highly skilled system administrator with deep experience in Plesk, Nginx, and Magento hosting, who can quickly identify the root cause of these failures and implement a permanent fix.