Dev tunnels are a powerful tool to securely open your localhost to the internet and control who has access, so you can easily test and debug your web apps and webhooks from virtually anywhere. With dev tunnels, you can also share your local work in-progress with colleagues or clients to get feedback asynchronously without the hassle of deploying. Previously, the only way you could use dev tunnels was through Visual Studio 2022.
Today, we are thrilled to announce the public preview of the devtunnel CLI! To create, host, and connect to your first dev tunnel in seconds, please follow the documentation on Microsoft Learn.
Use cases
Here are some of the scenarios that dev tunnels enable with the devtunnel CLI or dev tunnels in Visual Studio 2022.
- Test an app with external services. For instance, test and debug Power Platform connectors, Azure Communication Services APIs, or Twilio webhooks.
- Test and debug a web app on other devices, like mobile phones and tablets.
- Make an app temporarily available to others to review your work in progress on a web app or API.
Benefits
- Secure by default – Each dev tunnel you create is only accessible to you using your Microsoft, Microsoft Azure Active Directory or GitHub account.
- Persistent URLs - Retain the same tunnel URL for extended periods of time.
- Support for multiple simultaneous ports - Host multiple ports on a single tunnel at the same time.
- Global service availability - The dev tunnels service is available globally. Tunnels are automatically created in the closest available region to ensure optimal performance.
- Tunnel inspection - Inspect tunnel traffic in a familiar interface, browser DevTools, to monitor and manage your web apps or webhooks.
To improve the devtunnel CLI, we encourage you to connect with us through GitHub issues to request a feature or submit a bug. We look forward to hearing your feedback!