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FAQ

Generating an SSH key

If you don't already have an SSH key you can generate one with this command:

ssh-keygen -t rsa

Common connectivity issues

I've set up my SSH key in my account but my custom domain tunnel is denied

try adding plan as your SSH user, like so:

ssh -R example.com:80:localhost:8080 plan@localhost.run

If this doesn't fix it then please send an email for help.

"localhost.run: Permission denied (publickey)" error in your terminal on a free tunnel

warning

If you are using a custom domain subscription you need to use an SSH key, this hint isn't for you.

If you are using a free tunnel you can skip the SSH key check by adding nokey as your SSH user, like so:

ssh -R 80:localhost:8080 nokey@localhost.run

My tunnel name changes every time I connect

Free tunnels change domain names after a few hours. To keep your domain name between connections make sure you have an SSH key and that you are not using the nokey username.

"connect_to localhost port 8080: failed" error in your terminal

Double check that your local application is accessible on localhost and your specificed port by accessing http://localhost:{your local port} in your browser.

"Something went wrong opening the port forward, check your SSH command output for clues!" in your browser

Check your running SSH command for hints, and double check that your local application is accessible on localhost and your specificed port by accessing http://localhost:{your local port} in your browser.

I can see requests to localhost:8080 when browsing my site thru localhost.run

Many web frameworks generate full URLs using the domain they think they're running under, which can sometimes be localhost and the port they listen on.

Google the name of your framework + reverse proxy for hints on how to fix issues like this.

My connection is unstable, tunnels go down often

Connections can go down for many reasons, but the most common is the TCP connection being broken by timeouts or routing changes on the open internet.

This is the nature of the internet, it's a little crazy out there, but there is something you can do to avoid router timeouts, and when something breaks the connection anyway to detect and recover them quickly.

The first, and simplest change, is to enable keepalives on your SSH connection by adding the -o ServerAliveInterval=60 to your SSH command, like in this example:

ssh -o ServerAliveInterval=60 -R 80:localhost:8080 localhost.run

SSH will send an empty packet after 60 seconds of inactivity on your tunnel. This serves two purposes:

  1. It wards off idle timeouts on internet routers by making the connection appear active.
  2. It quickly detects broken routes on the internet, closes the SSH command, and allows you to recover it quickly.

For most simple use cases this extra option alone is enough to keep tunnels healthy, and on the occasions where routes break to nudge you to restart them.

For use cases that require auto-healing, the ssh command could be wrapped in a loop (with a sleep to avoid spinning the command) or a more robust ssh client, like for example autossh. Either can be used to self-heal tunnels that the keepalives detect as down for you.

If you do use autossh the command options are the same as SSH, don't forget to include the keepalive option, but also be sure to include a -M 0 to disable autossh's own tunnel call as this won't work with localhost.run.

I want to move my domain(s) to a new email login

Sometimes this is because you've lost access to the email you used to sign up, or maybe you simply prefer another email.

To move a domain:

  1. Cancel your existing custom domain subscription if you still have access to your old account.
  2. Set up your domain in your new account. It is fine that it is the same domain name.
  3. Verify it by changing the TXT record on your_lhr subdomain to your new domain's id as instructed in the web console.
  4. Make payment for the new domain subscription. You will be credited for time remaining on the old domain in the next step, don't worry.
  5. Send a message to help@localhost.run explaining that you have to moved your domain to the new account. Your old subscription will be canceled and your new subscription credited with any remaining time.