Create an instant web server via Terminal command line
May 7, 2010 - 2 Comments
You can instantly create a web server from the command line by typing:
python -m SimpleHTTPServer
This will publish the current directory as a web server immediately, so if you have an index.html file that will immediately be displayed, otherwise it will just list the directory contents at your localhost IP. If you wish to specify a port you may do so by following the command with an open port number:
python -m SimpleHTTPServer 4104
This is a handy tip if you’re doing some quick web development and want to immediately check it in a browser or show it to someone else. This should work on any unix variant, FreeBSD, Linux, and of course Mac OS X included.
If you’re behind a router you’ll need to clear the port for outside access, but this is definitely helpful for quickly showing off projects and whatnot.
Personally I just run the web server built into Mac OS X, drop things in your Sites directory and you’re good to go.
I am running OSX leopard, and I can not access the server from another computer on the same local network.
Do you know how to open the port on OSX?