For developers, the struggle to share a local web application with clients, testers, or personal devices often involves complex port forwarding, insecure workarounds, or paid services that demand installations. Enter localhost.run, a game-changing tunneling solution that leverages the SSH client already on your machine to create secure, instant connections—no downloads or signups required.

Seamless and Secure Sharing

At its core, localhost.run simplifies exposing local servers to the internet. By running a single SSH command, users can generate a public URL (e.g., your-app.lhr.rocks) to share running applications. This is ideal for:
- Demonstrating in-progress work to stakeholders.
- Accessing a local dev environment from a phone or tablet.
- Hosting lightweight IoT applications, such as those on a Raspberry Pi.

Security is baked in: TLS certificates are automatically provisioned for HTTPS, ensuring encrypted client connections, and all tunnels are end-to-end encrypted. For teams needing branded solutions, a custom domain subscription ($9/month annually) allows attaching your own domain, enhancing professionalism without compromising security.

Beyond the Basics: Developer-Centric Flexibility

The service's free tier is a standout—offering stable .lhr.rocks subdomains indefinitely, making it accessible for hobbyists and bootstrapped projects. But it doesn't stop at HTTP; localhost.run supports advanced scenarios like tunneling encrypted TLS traffic and non-web protocols (e.g., databases or APIs), catering to complex development and testing workflows.

Why does this matter? In an era of remote collaboration and rapid prototyping, tools like this reduce setup time and security risks. Developers can focus on building rather than configuring, while the auto-TLS feature addresses common vulnerabilities in ad-hoc sharing. As one developer might say, it's like ngrok but SSH-native and more cost-effective for everyday use.

Ultimately, localhost.run exemplifies the shift toward frictionless developer tooling—where simplicity meets enterprise-grade security. For those tired of juggling VPNs or temporary URLs, this could be the tunnel to a more productive workflow.

Source: localhost.run