Ngrok

Comprehensive ngrok commands and usage patterns for efficient workflow management.

Overview

Ngrok is a powerful tool for various operations and system management. This cheat sheet covers essential commands, configuration options, and best practices.

Installation

Linux/Ubuntu

# Package manager installation
sudo apt update
sudo apt install ngrok

# Alternative installation
wget -O ngrok https://github.com/example/ngrok/releases/latest/download/ngrok-linux
chmod +x ngrok
sudo mv ngrok /usr/local/bin/

macOS

# Homebrew installation
brew install ngrok

# Manual installation
curl -L -o ngrok https://github.com/example/ngrok/releases/latest/download/ngrok-macos
chmod +x ngrok
sudo mv ngrok /usr/local/bin/

Windows

# Chocolatey installation
choco install ngrok

# Scoop installation
scoop install ngrok

# Manual installation
# Download from official website and add to PATH

Basic Commands

Command	Description
`ngrok --help`	Display help information
`ngrok --version`	Show version information
`ngrok init`	Initialize ngrok in current directory
`ngrok status`	Check current status
`ngrok list`	List available options
`ngrok info`	Display system information
`ngrok config`	Show configuration
`ngrok update`	Update to latest version

Essential Operations

Getting Started

# Initialize ngrok
ngrok init

# Basic usage
ngrok run

# With verbose output
ngrok --verbose run

# With configuration file
ngrok --config config.yaml run

Configuration

# View configuration
ngrok config show

# Set configuration option
ngrok config set key value

# Get configuration value
ngrok config get key

# Reset configuration
ngrok config reset

Advanced Operations

# Debug mode
ngrok --debug run

# Dry run (preview changes)
ngrok --dry-run run

# Force operation
ngrok --force run

# Parallel execution
ngrok --parallel run

File Operations

Command	Description
`ngrok create <file>`	Create new file
`ngrok read <file>`	Read file contents
`ngrok update <file>`	Update existing file
`ngrok delete <file>`	Delete file
`ngrok copy <src> <dst>`	Copy file
`ngrok move <src> <dst>`	Move file

Network Operations

# Connect to remote host
ngrok connect host:port

# Listen on port
ngrok listen --port 8080

# Send data
ngrok send --data "message" --target host

# Receive data
ngrok receive --port 8080

Security Features

Authentication

# Login with credentials
ngrok login --user username

# Logout
ngrok logout

# Change password
ngrok passwd

# Generate API key
ngrok generate-key

Encryption

# Encrypt file
ngrok encrypt file.txt

# Decrypt file
ngrok decrypt file.txt.enc

# Generate certificate
ngrok cert generate

# Verify signature
ngrok verify file.sig

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Issue: Command not found

# Check if installed
which ngrok

# Reinstall if necessary
sudo apt reinstall ngrok

Issue: Permission denied

# Run with sudo
sudo ngrok command

# Fix permissions
chmod +x /usr/local/bin/ngrok

Issue: Configuration errors

# Reset configuration
ngrok config reset

# Validate configuration
ngrok config validate

Debug Commands

Command	Description
`ngrok --debug`	Enable debug output
`ngrok --verbose`	Verbose logging
`ngrok test`	Run self-tests
`ngrok doctor`	Check system health

Best Practices

Security

Always verify checksums when downloading
Use strong authentication methods
Regularly update to latest version
Follow principle of least privilege

Performance

Use appropriate buffer sizes
Monitor resource usage
Optimize configuration for your use case
Regular maintenance and cleanup

Maintenance

# Update ngrok
ngrok update

# Clean temporary files
ngrok clean

# Backup configuration
ngrok backup --config

# Restore from backup
ngrok restore --config backup.yaml

Integration

Scripting

#!/bin/bash
# Example script using ngrok

if ! command -v ngrok &> /dev/null; then
    echo "ngrok is not installed"
    exit 1
fi

if ngrok run; then
    echo "Success"
else
    echo "Failed"
    exit 1
fi

API Integration

import subprocess
import json

def run_ngrok(command):
    try:
        result = subprocess.run(['ngrok'] + command.split(),
                              capture_output=True, text=True)
        return result.stdout
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error: \\\\{e\\\\}")
        return None

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Default
`NGROK_CONFIG`	Configuration file path	`~/.ngrok/config`
`NGROK_HOME`	Home directory	`~/.ngrok`
`NGROK_LOG_LEVEL`	Logging level	`INFO`
`NGROK_TIMEOUT`	Operation timeout	`30s`

Configuration File

# ~/.ngrok/config.yaml
version: "1.0"
settings:
  debug: false
  timeout: 30
  log_level: "INFO"

network:
  host: "localhost"
  port: 8080
  ssl: true

security:
  auth_required: true
  encryption: "AES256"

Examples

Basic Workflow

# 1. Initialize
ngrok init

# 2. Configure
ngrok config set host example.com

# 3. Run operation
ngrok run

# 4. Check results
ngrok status

# 5. Cleanup
ngrok clean

Advanced Workflow

# Comprehensive operation
ngrok run \
  --config production.yaml \
  --parallel \
  --verbose \
  --timeout 300

# Monitoring
ngrok monitor \
  --interval 60 \
  --alert-threshold 80

Resources

Official Documentation

Community

Tutorials

Last updated: 2025-07-05