NetHost  

NetHost is a lightweight networking tool that leverages Serveo, enabling you to expose local servers to the internet effortlessly, without requiring router or firewall configuration.

Whether you’re a developer looking for quick web hosting or a hobbyist needing secure SSH access, NetHost makes networking simple and effective.

Key Features

• Expose Local Services: Seamlessly expose HTTP, TCP, and SSH traffic from your local network to the internet for development and testing.
• Custom Web Hosting: Host web pages online with a custom subdomain. NetHost ensures your website stays live by periodically sending requests.
• Public SSH Server: Expose a local SSH server securely, allowing remote connections from any network.
• Network Flexibility: Run NetHost on one device to expose services running on another within the same local network.

Steps to Install

1. Download the .deb File

   download the .deb file from the GitHub repository. Or just use this wget command

   • wget https://github.com/aviyall/NetHost/raw/refs/heads/main/nethost_v1.2.0.deb   

2. Install the Package

   Open a terminal and navigate to the directory where the .deb file is located. Then, run the following command:

   sudo dpkg -i nethost_v1.2.0.deb && sudo apt-get install -f

Usage

Usage: nhost [OPTIONS]

Options:
  -o,  --option       'http' or 'tcp' or 'ssh' 
  -h,  --hostname     Specify the hostname
  -lp, --local-port   Set the local port number
  -rp, --remote-port  Set the remote port number
  -s,  --subdomain    Coustom subdomain of http tunnel
  -a,  --alias        Assign an alias for ssh

  -H,  --help         Show this help message 

Examples

HTTP Tunnels

Without Subdomain:

nhost -o http -h hostname -lp 8080
or
serveo -o http -h hostname -lp 8080

With Subdomain:

nhost -o http -h hostname -lp 8080 -s mysubdomain
or
serveo -o http -h hoatname -lp 8080 -s mysubdomain

TCP Tunnels

Default Remote Port:

nhost -o tcp -h hostname -lp 1234  #set --remote-port empty or 0 for random remote port
or
serveo -o tcp -h hostname -lp 1234

Specific Remote Port:

nhost -o tcp -h hostname -lp 1234 -rp 32545
or
serveo -o tcp -h hostname -lp 1234 -rp 32545

SSH tunnel

THIS EXPOSES YOUR LOCAL SSH SERVER TO THE PUBLIC

nhost -o ssh -h hostname -a myalias #leave --local-port(-lp) empty or 22
or 
serveo -o ssh -h hostname -a myalias

connect to ssh server with : ssh -J serveo.net user@myalias

Special Notes

HTTP Tunnel with Subdomain:

• Provides a custom URL for your web services: https://<subdomain>.serveo.net.

TCP Tunnels:

• Recommended range for local port : 1024–65535.
• If the remote port is kept as 0, Serveo assigns a random port. (better to use 0 in most cases)

SSH Tunnels:

• For SSH tunnel to work local port should be 22 .
• An alias is mandatory, allowing connections like:

  ssh -J serveo.net user@myalias

System Requirements

• Ensure curl, ssh, and awk are installed.
• For TCP tunnels, ncat (Netcat) is required.
• Supported operating systems: Linux (any common distros).

Error Handling

• Network Issues:
  • Automatically detects and waits for network reconnection, resuming tunnels afterward.
• Serveo Downtime:
  • Detects Serveo unavailability and retries until the service is back online.
• Invalid Subdomain:
  • Prompts an error if the chosen subdomain is unavailable.

Advanced Functionality

• Long-Term Hosting: NetHost ensures reliability by sending periodic requests to keep the connection alive.
• Multi-Device Support: Use NetHost on one device to expose services hosted on another device in the same network.

Pull Requests

The script.sh file is provided to help you understand the code and to encourage your contributions. After making changes, submit a pull request, and I will merge it into the main branch. After a particular number of changes to this file a new version of this tool (nethost_*.*.*.deb) will be released.

Tip

Instead of the keyword nhost you can also use serveo on the terminal.

Note

Serveo.net is often reported as being unreliable or down for extended periods.