Question 1

How to set up HTTPS with a custom certificate in dotnet-serve?

Accepted Answer

Use the --cert and --key flags for PEM files or --pfx for PKCS#12 files. For example, 'dotnet serve --cert cert.pem --key private.key' serves over HTTPS with your custom certificate, overriding defaults.

Question 2

Can dotnet-serve handle WebSocket connections?

Accepted Answer

No, dotnet-serve is designed for static file serving and reverse proxying; it does not support WebSockets or other real-time protocols, limiting its use for applications requiring bidirectional communication.

Question 3

dotnet-serve vs http-server for local development?

Accepted Answer

dotnet-serve offers more features like HTTPS with .NET integration, reverse proxy, and configuration persistence, but requires .NET. http-server (Node.js) is simpler and dependency-light but lacks advanced options, making it better for quick, cross-platform static serving.

Question 4

How to save and reuse server settings in dotnet-serve?

Accepted Answer

Append --save-options to your command to write settings to a .netconfig file in the current directory. Future runs in that directory will automatically apply those options, and you can use dotnet-config tool for global settings.

Question 5

Does dotnet-serve support authentication or basic auth?

Accepted Answer

No, authentication is not built-in; for secured access, you would need to rely on external proxies or tools, as dotnet-serve focuses on basic serving and development convenience.

Question 6

How to serve a single-page application with client-side routing?

Accepted Answer

Use the --fallback-file option to specify a file (e.g., index.html) that is served for unmatched requests, enabling SPA routing without server-side configuration.

Dotnet Serve

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