Nginx return 444 depending on upstream response code

Solution 1:

Yes, it is possible. As per the documentation of error_page, it could be done like this...

error_page  500 502 503 504 =444 /50x.html;

In the same way...

error_page 404 =444 /404.html;

So, your entire sample configuration would become...

location / {
    return 444;
}

location ^~ /service/v1/ {
    proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:3333;
    proxy_next_upstream error timeout http_502;
    error_page  500 502 503 504 =444 /50x.html;
}

error_page  404 =444 /404.html;

Solution 2:

If the backend is actually returning a 502, and it's not being generated by nginx internally because the backend is unreachable, then you'll need to turn on proxy_intercept_errors for your error_page directive to take effect.