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Creating a Shared Tunnel

This guide explains how to create a shared tunnel to expose your local development site to the internet, and how to delete it when no longer needed.

Overview​

Shared tunnels allow you to share your local development environment with others or access it from anywhere. DevSpaces creates secure, public tunnels for your applications.

Prerequisites​

  • An active DevSpaces account with tunnel access (Subscription required)
  • An application already created and running
  • The application must be started: dvs start

Creating a Tunnel​

Step 1: Navigate to Your Application​

Make sure you're in your application directory:

cd /path/to/your/app

Step 2: Start the Tunnel​

Start a shared tunnel for your application:

dvs tunnel start

The command will:

  • Create a tunnel to your application
  • Automatically reconfigure the application to work with the tunnel
  • Generate a public URL
  • Display the tunnel information

Note: When starting a tunnel, DevSpaces automatically reconfigures your application. Your browser may cache the old version, so you may need to force a refresh (Ctrl+Shift+R or Cmd+Shift+R) to see the updated configuration.

Step 3: Access Your Shared URL​

After the tunnel is created, you'll receive a public URL that looks like:

https://<unique-id>.share.dvsapp.sh

This URL is accessible from anywhere on the internet.

You can also view the tunnel URL using:

dvs info

The tunnel URL is displayed in the "Links" section of the output.

Viewing Tunnel Status​

Check the status of your tunnel:

dvs tunnel status

Example output:

Tunnel active for <app>
Public URL: https://f17tttfb1hhf.share.dvsapp.sh
Mode: public

This will show:

  • Tunnel status (active, stopped, error)
  • Public URL
  • Application name
  • Mode (public)

You can also view the tunnel URL in the application information:

dvs info

The tunnel URL appears in the "Links" section:

Links
    Application  https://<app>.dvs.sh
    Backoffice   https://<app>.dvs.sh/adminQkoog8tsEr
    Tunnel       https://f17tttfb1hhf.share.dvsapp.sh
    PHP INFO     https://<app>.dvs.sh/phpinfo
    phpMyAdmin   https://phpmyadmin.svc.dvs.sh
    mailpit      https://mailpit.svc.dvs.sh

Listing All Tunnels​

View all active tunnels:

dvs tunnel list

Stopping a Tunnel​

When you no longer need the tunnel, stop it:

dvs tunnel stop

This will:

  • Stop the tunnel
  • Remove the public URL
  • Clean up the tunnel resources

Note: Stopping the tunnel does not affect your local application - it will continue running locally.

Deleting a Tunnel​

If you need to completely remove a tunnel (for example, if it's in an error state):

The dvs tunnel stop command removes the tunnel completely. If you need to force removal, you can also use:

dvs tunnel stop

This will delete the tunnel from both your local system and the DevSpaces server.

Troubleshooting​

Tunnel Creation Fails​

If tunnel creation fails:

  1. Verify your account has tunnel access (Subscription required)
  2. Check that your application is running: dvs start
  3. Verify network connectivity
  4. Check tunnel limits in your account

Tunnel Not Accessible​

If the public URL doesn't work:

  1. Check tunnel status: dvs tunnel status
  2. Verify the application is running locally
  3. Check application logs: dvs logs
  4. Ensure the tunnel is in "active" status

Multiple Tunnels​

You can have multiple tunnels active at the same time, but only one tunnel per application.

Security Considerations​

  • Shared tunnels are public - anyone with the URL can access your site
  • Use tunnels only for development and testing
  • Don't share tunnel URLs publicly if your site contains sensitive data
  • Stop tunnels when not in use

Next Steps​

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