Cloudflare Tunnel

Cloudflare Tunnel

Expose any local web service to the internet instantly using Cloudflare Tunnel (cloudflared). Supports two modes: quick tunnels (zero config, temporary URL) and named tunnels (persistent, reusable).

Quick Start

For the fastest path to a public URL, run the helper script with the local port:

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh quick <port>

This creates a temporary *.trycloudflare.com URL with no authentication required.

Workflow

1. Check Prerequisites

Before starting a tunnel, verify cloudflared is installed:

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh status

If not installed, install it:

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh install

On macOS this uses Homebrew. On Linux it detects apt/yum/pacman automatically.

2. Choose Tunnel Type

Quick Tunnel (recommended for most dev work):

• No Cloudflare account or authentication needed
• Generates a random *.trycloudflare.com subdomain
• URL changes each time the tunnel restarts
• Max 200 concurrent in-flight requests
• No Server-Sent Events (SSE) support
• Will not work if a config.yaml exists in ~/.cloudflared/

Named Tunnel (for persistent access):

• Requires a Cloudflare account and authentication
• Stable tunnel identity (UUID-based)
• Can be mapped to custom DNS hostnames
• Supports all protocols

3. Start the Tunnel

Quick Tunnel

To expose a local HTTP service:

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh quick <port>

To expose an HTTPS local service:

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh quick <port> https

The script outputs a public URL like https://random-words.trycloudflare.com. Share this URL for remote access.

Named Tunnel

First authenticate (one-time):

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh login

Create the tunnel (one-time per project):

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh create my-project

Run the tunnel:

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh named my-project <port>

4. Stop the Tunnel

Press Ctrl+C in the terminal, or:

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh stop

Script Reference

The helper script at scripts/tunnel.sh supports these commands:

Common Patterns

React dev server (port 3000):

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh quick 3000

Vite dev server (port 5173):

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh quick 5173

Django/Rails/Express (port 8000):

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh quick 8000

PHP built-in server (port 8080):

~/.claude/skills/cloudflare-tunnel/scripts/tunnel.sh quick 8080

Troubleshooting

• "config.yaml exists" error with quick tunnels: Quick tunnels fail if ~/.cloudflared/config.yaml exists. Temporarily rename or remove it.
• HTTP 429 errors: Quick tunnels cap at 200 concurrent in-flight requests. For higher traffic, use a named tunnel.
• SSE not working: Quick tunnels do not support Server-Sent Events. Use a named tunnel instead.
• Tunnel stops when terminal closes: Run with nohup or screen/tmux to persist across terminal sessions.