LocalTunnel Server Setup Documentation

Source: Dev.to

1. Files

1.1 docker-compose.yml

version: "3.8"

services:
  lt-server:
    image: defunctzombie/localtunnel-server:latest
    container_name: lt-server
    restart: always
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
    networks:
      - localtunnel-net
    command: bin/server --port 3000 --host 0.0.0.0

  localtunnel-nginx:
    image: nginx:latest
    container_name: localtunnel-nginx
    depends_on:
      - lt-server
    restart: always
    ports:
      - "8081:80"
    volumes:
      - ./nginx.conf:/etc/nginx/nginx.conf:ro
      - ./site.conf:/etc/nginx/conf.d/default.conf:ro
    networks:
      - localtunnel-net

networks:
  localtunnel-net:
    driver: bridge

1.2 nginx.conf

events {
    worker_connections 1024;
}

http {
    include /etc/nginx/conf.d/*.conf;
}

1.3 site.conf

server {
    listen 80;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://lt-server:3000;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
    }
}

1.4 Running LocalTunnel Client Command

nohup npx localtunnel --port 3000 --host http://34.68.37.115:8081 > tunnel.log 2>&1 &

• This runs LocalTunnel in the background and logs output to tunnel.log.

Example log output

nohup: ignoring input
your url is: http://angry-liger-20.34.68.37.115

2. Installation

2.1 Prerequisites

• Docker & Docker Compose installed.
• Node.js and npx installed (for running the LocalTunnel client).

2.2 Steps

1. Clone or copy the configuration files into a directory:

   mkdir ~/localtunnel
   cd ~/localtunnel
   # Add docker-compose.yml, nginx.conf, site.conf

2. Start the LocalTunnel server and Nginx reverse proxy:

   docker-compose up -d

   • lt-server listens internally on port 3000.
   • localtunnel-nginx exposes port 8081 externally.

3. Verify containers are running:

   docker ps

3. Usage

3.1 Start LocalTunnel Client

nohup npx localtunnel --port 3000 --host http://:8081 > tunnel.log 2>&1 &

• Replace “ with your public server IP or domain.
• tunnel.log stores the output, including your public URL.

Example

your url is: http://angry-liger-20.34.68.37.115

3.2 Check Logs

cat tunnel.log

• Confirms that the tunnel is running and shows the public URL.

3.3 Stop Tunnel

Find the background job and kill it:

jobs
kill %1   # or the relevant job number