One of the Apache features that Nginx chose not to replicate is the support for the so-called .htaccess files. Those files were invented as a way to easily configure access control for individual virtual hosts in a virtual hosting environment where clients are only able to see their own subfolders via the magic of chroot (often called from ftpd). The implementation is rather simple; this is an autoincluded piece of configuration that Apache constantly monitors for changes. Not every possible Apache configuration directive is allowed in .htaccess (but many of them are, essentially, all that do not require a restart).

This feature was (ab)used as a convenient way to distribute the relevant web server configuration inside the source code for a website or a web application. Although the idea is still relevant, the Apache implementation with a silent change monitoring and transparent reconfiguration is not considered well designed. So, instead of the proper .htaccess...