Ignoring Files

Local Bridge supports two methods for hiding files from the public listing. Hidden files cannot be accessed even with a direct URL - they are not served from the public share.

Method 1: .lbignore File

Create a file named .lbignore in the root of your served folder. The syntax is identical to .gitignore:

# Hide environment files
.env
.env.local

# Hide log files
*.log

# Hide entire directories
node_modules/
.git/
secrets/
__pycache__/

# Hide specific file types
*.key
*.pem

When the CLI starts, it reads this file and prints how many patterns were loaded:

Loaded 4 ignore patterns

Method 2: --ignore Flag

Pass comma-separated patterns directly as a CLI flag:

localbridge --ignore "*.log,.env,node_modules" ./project

Or via environment variable:

LOCALBRIDGE_IGNORE="*.log,.env,node_modules" localbridge ./project

Pattern Syntax

Pattern	Matches
*.log	All files ending in .log
.env	Exact file named .env
secrets/	Entire directory named secrets
temp*	All files starting with temp
build/**	All files in build directory (recursive)
!important.env	Negation — re-include this file
*.key	All files ending in .key (SSL certs, etc.)

Security Implications

Even if someone guesses the exact file path (for example /secret.env), they will receive a 404 Not Found response. The ignore system operates at the HTTP handler level, not just the directory listing.