TCP Tunnel

Learn how to start a TCP tunnel with the Portr CLI to expose local databases, SSH, and other raw TCP services to the public internet.

Use the following command to tunnel a TCP connection:

portr tcp 9000

TCP tunnels are useful for exposing services like databases, SSH servers, or any service that uses raw TCP connections.

How it works

TCP tunnels work differently from HTTP tunnels:

Portr establishes a direct TCP connection between the remote client and your local service
No HTTP processing is involved - raw TCP data is forwarded
The connection is bidirectional and maintains the TCP session state

Common Use Cases

Database access: Connect to local databases from remote applications
SSH tunneling: Access local SSH servers from remote locations
Custom protocols: Tunnel any service that uses TCP connections
Legacy applications: Connect to services that don't use HTTP

Port Requirements

Your Portr server needs to have the port range 30001-40001 open to accept incoming TCP connections. Make sure your server administrator has configured these ports.

Configuration

TCP tunnels do not use subdomains — the server assigns a public port from the 30001-40001 range and prints the address when the tunnel starts. Define one in the config file like any other tunnel:

tunnels:
  - name: postgres
    type: tcp
    port: 5432