How to Share a Local Folder with a Public URL (No Upload Required)

The problem every developer knows

You have a folder on your machine — maybe a build output, a set of design assets, or project documentation — and someone else needs it right now.

Your options?

• Google Drive / Dropbox: Upload everything, wait for sync, share the link. If the folder is 500MB, you're waiting.
• python -m http.server: Works, but no password protection, no HTTPS, and only accessible on your local network.
• Slack / Discord: Compress, upload, hit the file size limit, split into parts... pain.
• nginx: Great for production, but configuring TLS certs and DNS for a 30-minute share is absurd.

None of these are designed for what you actually need: share this folder, right now, with a public URL, and add a password.

The one-command solution

Local Bridge turns any folder into a browser-friendly, password-protected share:

localbridge --password "demo123" ./my-folder

That's it. You get:

• A public HTTPS URL (powered by Cloudflare tunneling)
• Password protection built in
• A file browser your recipient opens in any web browser
• No upload step — files stay on your machine and are served directly

How it works under the hood

1. Local Bridge starts a local HTTP server that serves your folder
2. It creates a Cloudflare Tunnel to make that server publicly accessible
3. Anyone with the URL sees a password prompt first
4. After authentication, they get a clean file browser with download links

Your files never leave your machine until the recipient downloads them. There's no intermediate cloud storage.

When this actually saves time

• Sharing build outputs with QA: Run localbridge ./dist after a build and send the URL to your tester
• Sending design assets to a client: No more compressing and uploading to Google Drive
• Sharing documentation internally: Point it at your docs folder during a meeting
• Quick code review artifacts: Share coverage reports, test results, or generated docs

Compared to the alternatives

Get started

Local Bridge is a single binary — no Docker, no runtime, no config files:

# Share a folder with password protection
localbridge --password "s3cret" ./project-files

# Share on LAN only (no public URL)
localbridge --lan ./internal-docs

# Set an expiry timer
localbridge --password "demo" --expiry 1h ./release

Check the quickstart guide for installation and setup, or visit the proof page to verify the architecture and security model before buying.