v1.4.2

NGINX Defender v1.4.2 – Release Notes

Release Date: July 26, 2025

We’re excited to announce the release of NGINX Defender v1.4.2, a focused stability and performance update building on the foundation of v1.4.0. This version enhances rule processing, optimizes log handling, and patches minor issues to keep your NGINX defence layer robust and efficient.

What's New?

Improved Rule Evaluation Engine
Faster and more efficient rule parsing thanks to a new lightweight matching algorithm. Expect ~15% faster response filtering under heavy traffic.

Custom Response Templates
You can now configure custom HTML or JSON templates for blocked requests. Add branding or context to your security responses.

Fixes and Improvements

Fixed a rare crash when regex-based rules matched empty strings.

Improved compatibility with NGINX 1.26.x and OpenResty 1.25 builds.

Optimized memory usage in long-running instances — especially under high-concurrency reverse proxy setups.

Minor bug fixes and code cleanup in defender-core.lua and the ip-blacklist module.

Deployment Notes

Recommended upgrade for all users running v1.4.0.

Drop-in compatible with v1.4.0 and v1.4.1 configurations.

No breaking changes, just update your Lua module or Docker container as needed.

Installation

If using Lua module directly:

wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/anipaleja/nginx-defender/v1.4.2/defender.lua

If using Docker:

docker pull anipaleja/nginx-defender:v1.4.2

Testing & Feedback

Please file issues or improvements via GitHub Issues. Your feedback helps us shape future releases!