host

host is a simple, static, web server for easily hosting files over LAN. host makes no security guarantees, so it should only be used on a LAN that you trust (no port forwarding and probably no coffee shops).

why host?

host offers files over http instead of ftp or ssh, making files much more accessible to any device with a browser (which is every device). your browser can also render html, svgs, pictures, videos, pdfs, etc. without the need of additional software. of cource, host is read-only, so if you need your clients to write to your server too, it's better to use real file sharing software/protocols. any linux box should have built-in support for sftp.

how do i get host?

host is written in Nim and uses pure Nim standard libraries, meaning the only thing you need to build host is the Nim compiler. to build and install the project:

1. install Nim (try your package manager, sudo pacman -Syu nim or sudo apt install nim) after some helpful people told me that package managers have a tendency of holding outdated versions of Nim, it is now recommended by this README to get Nim from choosenim.

2. install host via running nimble install host

to uninstall, use nimble uninstall host

using host

quick examples

host directory we are in

host .

host it on port 9001

host --port 9001 .

host a cool file

host my-cool-website.html

host something from stdin

find | host

learn more about host

host --help
man host # Linux only!

usage

host --help

file/directory mode

host [-h] [-q] FILE

host [--hidden] [--quiet] [--output OUTPUT_FILE] [--port PORT] FILE

stdin mode

host -i [-h] [-q]

host --stdin [--hidden] [--quiet] [--output OUTPUT_FILE] [--port PORT]

description

once host starts, you'll see an IP address and a port. that ip and port combo need to be used to access host on other devices. take out a phone (or other device on the same wifi network) and type into the url bar IP_ADDRESS:PORT. if you want to access host from the same machine that is running host, simply point your web browser of choice to localhost:PORT.

modes

host runs in three different modes: file, directory, and stdin

in file mode, host will respond to all requests with the file inputted as the FILE parameter, regardless of the path, body, or headers sent. every time host handles a request in file mode, host will read the file first, then send it. if this isn't behavior you want, you can use stdin mode (cat FILE | host)

in stdin mode, host will do the same thing as if it was in stdin mode, however, host will send back the data it got from standard in, instead of the file from the FILE parameter.

in directory mode, host will act like a real server. host will read the path of any request and act accordingly. if the path points to a file, then host will send the file back. if the path is a directory, host searches for a index.html in that directory. if host does not find index.html, host will send back a view of all the file and folders in the directory (otherwise known as directory.html). if the ls query is sent (so host sees IP:PORT/path/to/foo/bar/?ls), host will automatically send the directory view without checking if the directory has a index.html if the path points to nothing (in other words, a 404), host will send back a directory view of the parent directory (so IP:PORT/path/to/nothing/404 will return the directory view of path/to/nothing).

these modes are selected based on the settings host is launched with. if there is a stdin option (host -i ..., host --stdin ...), host will start in stdin mode. if host is given a file for the FILE parameter, host will start in file mode. if host is given a directory for the FILE parameter, host will start in directory mode.

mimetypes

the way host handles mimetypes depends on the mode host is in. if host is in directory or file mode, host will respond with the mimetype appropriate for the file, based on the file extension, with the default being text/plain. if host is started in stdin mode, host will respond with the text/plain mimetype.

using the --mime option, and if host is in file or stdin mode, host will start with the mimetype described. note: the --mime option expects file extentions, so use html instead of text/html, txt instead of text/plain, etc

options

--help

shows host's help text

-h, --hidden

shows hidden files (the files that start with .). this is only useful in directory mode.

-i, --stdin

starts host in stdin mode. read the description/modes section for more info

--mime [mimetype]

sets the mimetype host will send. [mimetype] must be a file extension, not a normal mimetype. only useful in file and stdin modes. read description/mimetypes for more info

--output [file]

sets the file host will log requests to.

--port [port]

sets the port host will run on

-q, --quiet

prevents logging