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ProxyNT is a reverse proxy server that can expose a local server to the internet through NATs and firewalls

Principle

Features

• Easily manage port forwarding from anywhere via a browser
• Uses WebSocket encryption for secure communication between the public server and local client
• Easy to install with pip.
• Stable, automatically reconnects, and has been used in production environments

Common Use Cases

1. Host web servers from home
2. Manage IoT devices

Installation

pip install proxynt

Usage

Client

nt_client --help
# start client
nt_client -c config_c.json

Server

# view help
nt_server --help
# start server
nt_server -c config_s.json

After starting the server, open the management page in a browser:

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The management page URL is the WebSocket path plus /admin,
for example:
http://192.168.9.224:18888/websocket_path/admin

Example: Accessing an Internal Network Machine via SSH

Suppose the public server's IP is 192.168.9.224.

1. Configure config_s.json on the public server

{
  "port": 18888,
  "password": "helloworld",
  "path": "/websocket_path",
  "admin": {
    "enable": true,  
    "admin_password": "new_password"  
  }
}

Explanation:

• port: listening port
• password: connection password
• path: WebSocket path
• admin: management page configuration (not required)
• admin.enable: whether to enable the management page
• admin.admin_password: management password

Then start the server with:

nt_server -c config_s.json

2. Configure config_c.json on the machine to be accessed

{
  "server": {
    "port": 18888,
    "host": "192.168.9.224",
    "https": false,
    "password": "helloworld",
    "path": "/websocket_path"
  },
  "client_name": "home_pc",
  "client": [
    {
      "name": "ssh1",
      "remote_port": 12222,
      "local_port": 22,
      "local_ip": "127.0.0.1"
    }
  ]
}

Explanation:

• server: configuration for the server to connect to, including port, IP address, whether to use HTTPS, password, and WebSocket path.
• client_name: name of the client, which must be unique.
• client: list of port forwarding configurations, mapping port 22 on the local machine to port 12222 on the server in this example.

Then start the client with:

nt_client -c config_c.json

3. SSH connection

ssh -oPort=12222 [email protected]

Open the management page

http://192.168.9.224:18888/websocketpath/admin

Full Configuration Description (please delete the comments when using)

• Client config_c.json

{
  "server": {  // Server configuration to connect to
    "port": 18888,  // Port
    "host": "192.168.9.224",  // IP address
    "https": false,  // Whether the server is using HTTPS
    "password": "helloworld",  // Password
    "path": "/websocket_path"  // WebSocket path
  },
  "client": [  // List of forwarding configurations
    {
      "name": "ssh",
      "remote_port": 1222,
      "local_port": 22,
      "local_ip": "127.0.0.1"
    },
    {
      "name": "mongo",
      "remote_port": 1223,
      "local_port": 27017,
      "local_ip": "127.0.0.1"
    }
  ],
  "client_name": "ubuntu1",  // Client name, must be unique
  "log_file": "/var/log/nt/nt.log"  // Path to log file
}

• Server config_c.json

{
    "port": 18888,  // Listening port
    "password": "helloworld",  // Password
    "path": "/websocket_path",  // WebSocket path
    "log_file": "/var/log/nt/nt.log",  // Path to log file
    "admin": {  
        "enable": true,  // Whether to enable admin page
        "admin_password": "new_password"  // Password for admin page
    }
}

Update history

• 1.1.7: Fixed duplicate client_name
• 1.1.6: Fixed client WebSocketException: socket is already opened.