nginx: each module should be in a separate port

[ryandesign (Ryan Carsten Schmidt)]

The nginx port has many variants for installing modules. These should all be moved to subports. We've discussed this years ago (e.g. #52103). I believe nginx has support for building modules standalone now but you were waiting for all the modules to adopt this. If this hasn't happened by now, maybe it's time to cut those ancient modules loose.

[Schamschula (Marius Schamschula)]

In the nginx documentation I do not see a way of building modules separately from nginx.

However, we currently use static modules, and could convert to building dynamic modules.

See: ​https://www.nginx.com/resources/wiki/extending/converting/#compiling-dynamic

[ryandesign (Ryan Carsten Schmidt)]

Ok, dynamic then. Whatever it's called. It should (I say this from a MacPorts standpoint, with no knowledge of the nginx build system) be possible to build nginx and then later build and use a module. See for example how we handle php modules in MacPorts.

[Schamschula (Marius Schamschula)]

As of nginx 1.9.11 dynamic modules are supported. However, at this point only a few of the modules provided by the Portfile can be built this way.

When more modules can be built as dynamic modules, we can make this change.

[ryandesign (Ryan Carsten Schmidt)]

It's been years. Has the situation improved? Can this topic be revisited now?

[Schamschula (Marius Schamschula)]

Unfortunately, the situation has not changed upstream. Fewer than a third of the modules can be dynamically loaded. That means most still have to be compiled in.