AI development workflow

Publish and verify localhost from Claude Code with Proxlane MCP

Authenticate Proxlane privately, register its local MCP server, publish a time-limited development tunnel, verify the public URL, and stop it from your AI agent.

Written and reviewed by: ProxlaneOperated by CloudruUpdated: 2026-10-03

Authentication

Human browser approval

Transport

Local stdio

Tunnel owner

OS background service

Before you start

Install and authenticate the CLI

Install the Windows or Linux CLI, run proxlane login as the same OS user, and approve the device in your browser. Start the local service you want to publish.

Read the installation guide

Use a local MCP client and service

Install Claude Code or another client that can run local stdio servers. Use the same OS account as CLI login. First-time Windows service installation needs an elevated terminal for that user.

proxlane service install
proxlane mcp config --client claude-code

Step by step

01
Register the local server
This registers a user-scoped stdio server in Claude Code. Replace proxlane after the separator with its absolute executable path if the client cannot find it. No login credential belongs in this configuration.
```
claude mcp add --scope user --transport stdio proxlane -- proxlane mcp
claude mcp get proxlane
```
02
Check authentication and the local app
Ask your agent to call auth_status and confirm configured is true. If it is false, run proxlane login yourself in a terminal. Ask it to inspect the local service before publishing.
03
Publish with a deadline
For a non-sensitive test app, ask: Publish port 3000 as demo for 30 minutes. The agent uses tunnel_publish with protocol http, target 3000, name demo, and expiresIn 30m. Review the client's tool request before allowing publication.
04
Verify, then stop
Ask for tunnel_status and tunnel_verify before sharing the public URL. If publication is pending, check status again. When finished, ask for tunnel_stop on demo; stopping your AI session alone does not stop its background tunnel.

Keep login and endpoint secrets distinct

No MCP tool accepts a Proxlane CLI login credential. A human performs browser login, and auth_status reports whether a credential is configured without returning its value. However, tunnel_publish accepts optional Basic Auth passwords and Bearer endpoint secrets. Do not paste real secrets into chat; configure a reserved endpoint's policy in the Dashboard instead.

For private sharing, reserve a Plus/Pro HTTP hostname, save its policy in the Dashboard, then request that hostname without a secret in MCP input.
For a CLI-protected profile, let the human publish it in a terminal and use MCP status, verify, expiry, and stop. Republish without the secret would overwrite its CLI protection.
tunnel_verify may return a short application-response preview. Keep private application data out of the test response.

Register another stdio client

Claude Desktop and Cursor use an mcpServers configuration containing a command and args [mcp]. VS Code's .vscode/mcp.json uses servers with type stdio; its portable workspace .mcp.json uses mcpServers. Use the client's current official configuration reference when choosing where to save the configuration.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "proxlane": {
      "command": "proxlane",
      "args": ["mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Use the available checks correctly

tunnel_status reports the background profile's runtime, local check, and deadline. tunnel_verify requests the public HTTP URL or checks a TCP connection. It cannot establish application success for UDP. Reserved domains and ports must already be reserved in the Dashboard. The share-dev-server, debug-tunnel, and cleanup prompts guide these workflows.

Troubleshooting

Authentication is not configured

Run proxlane login in your own terminal and approve the device in your browser. Check the MCP process uses the same OS user and configuration; do not send a token to the agent.

The service cannot start

Run proxlane service install or service start manually with the required OS permissions, then inspect service status. A saved profile does not prove it started successfully.

The client cannot connect

Check the executable's absolute path and the client's file/key format. The local server speaks stdio, so do not register it as a remote HTTPS server.

Frequently asked questions

Does Proxlane publish an MCP endpoint for the client to connect to?

This integration is a local stdio server that controls tunnels on your machine. It is different from exposing your own HTTP MCP server through an HTTP tunnel.

Will the tunnel stop when Claude Code exits?

No. The background service owns the profile. Use a publication deadline or explicitly call tunnel_stop.

Official sources

Proxlane