fwdcast

Temporary file sharing - Stream local files as a public website without uploading anything.

Features

• Instant sharing - Get a public URL in seconds
• No upload - Files stream directly from your machine
• VS Code-style UI - Beautiful dark theme file browser
• File preview - View text, code, and images in-browser
• ZIP download - Download entire directories with one click
• Password protection - Secure your share with a password
• QR code - Easy mobile sharing with terminal QR code (shown by default)
• Live stats - View count and bandwidth in real-time
• Custom duration - Sessions from 1-120 minutes
• Exclude files - Skip .git, node_modules, etc.

Installation

Using npx (no install required)

npx fwdcast

Global install

npm install -g fwdcast
fwdcast

Usage

Basic - Share current directory

fwdcast

Share a specific folder

fwdcast /path/to/folder

Password protect your share

fwdcast -p mysecretpassword

Hide QR code (shown by default)

fwdcast --no-qr

Custom session duration (60 minutes)

fwdcast -d 60

Exclude additional files/folders

fwdcast -e .git node_modules dist

Use a custom relay server

fwdcast --relay wss://your-relay.com/ws

Combine options

fwdcast ~/Documents -p secret123 -d 60 -q

CLI Options

| Option | Description | Default | |--------|-------------|---------| | -p, --password <pass> | Require password to access | None | | -d, --duration <mins> | Session duration (1-120) | 30 | | -q, --qr | Show QR code in terminal | true | | --no-qr | Hide QR code | false | | -e, --exclude <patterns> | Exclude files/folders | See below | | -r, --relay <url> | Custom relay server | Public relay |

Default Excludes

These are always excluded: .git, node_modules, .DS_Store, __pycache__, .env

How It Works

1. You run fwdcast - CLI scans your directory and connects to relay
2. Get a URL - Relay assigns a unique session URL
3. Share the URL - Anyone with the link can browse your files
4. Files stream on-demand - When someone requests a file, it streams from your machine
5. Session ends - When you stop the CLI or session expires, files become inaccessible

Live Stats

While sharing, fwdcast shows real-time statistics:

[2 viewers] Total: 15.3 MB | Requests: 42 | 1.2 MB/s

Limits

• Maximum total size: 100 MB
• Maximum file size: 50 MB per file
• Session duration: 1-120 minutes (default: 30)
• Maximum concurrent viewers: 3

Security Considerations

• Password protection - Add -p flag to require authentication
• Passwords hashed - Passwords are hashed with bcrypt, never stored in plain text
• Rate limiting - 5 failed password attempts triggers a 30-second lockout
• Temporary by design - Sessions auto-expire, reducing exposure window
• No persistence - Nothing is stored on the relay server
• Path traversal protection - CLI validates all file paths
• Default excludes - Sensitive files like .env are excluded by default
• Secure cookies - HttpOnly, Secure, SameSite flags enabled
• Minimal logging - No session IDs, URLs, or passwords in server logs

Warning: Without a password, anyone with your session URL can access your shared files.

Self-Hosting

You can run your own relay server. See the relay documentation for setup instructions.

License

MIT