Publishing an App over HTTPS
Publishing an App over HTTPS
App Publishing HTTPS converts any local HTTP port on an enrolled device into a public HTTPS URL. GateBeacon handles SSL entirely at the edge — the application itself does not need to know anything about TLS.
It is available on both Linux and Windows devices, and is one of the few catalog entries you can install more than once on the same device — so you can publish several independent local ports as separate public URLs.
Step by Step
- In the customer portal, go to your device's application list and choose App Publishing HTTPS from the catalog (or Publish a custom app, if shown separately).
- Enter:
- Local port — the port your application listens on, on that device. If left blank, it defaults to
127.0.0.1:8080. - Label — becomes part of your generated public hostname.
- Local port — the port your application listens on, on that device. If left blank, it defaults to
- Save. GateBeacon automatically provisions a DNS record and a routing rule for the new hostname — you don't create either manually.
- Your app becomes reachable at the generated HTTPS URL within roughly 10 seconds, once the tunnel VM picks up the new route. First-time TLS certificate issuance can add a little more time on top of that.
Multiple Publishing Deployments
Unlike most catalog apps — which can only be installed once per device — App Publishing HTTPS supports multiple independent installs on the same device. Use this to publish, for example, a personal wiki on one port and a media server on another, each as its own HTTPS URL.
Limits
The number of applications you can publish is capped by your subscription plan:
| Plan | Published apps |
|---|---|
| Community | 1 |
| Standard | 10 |
| Premium | 10 |
See Subscription Plans for full plan details.
Defaults
- Local target defaults to
http://127.0.0.1:8080if you don't specify a port. - Point the local port field at whatever port your application actually listens on — it does not have to be 8080.
Understanding the Limitations
- Route propagation is not instant. Allow up to about 10 seconds for a new route to go live, and a little longer for first-time certificate issuance, before troubleshooting further.
- Large uploads. Very large file uploads through a published app can be sensitive to network-level timeouts. If you consistently see uploads fail partway through, contact support — this may need a longer timeout configured on your specific route.
- The device must actually be listening. Publishing a port doesn't start anything on the device — the local application must already be running and bound to the port you configured.
Basic Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Check |
|---|---|
| App unreachable at its public URL | Confirm the device shows Online in the portal. |
| App unreachable at its public URL | Confirm the local application is actually running and listening on the configured port (not just installed). |
| App unreachable at its public URL | Confirm no local firewall on the device is blocking loopback/local traffic to that port. |
| New route seems to not exist yet | Wait roughly a minute after saving before troubleshooting — propagation and certificate issuance are not instantaneous. |
| Upload fails partway through on a large file | Contact support — large uploads can hit network-level timeouts that may need adjustment for your route. |
Next Steps
Looking to publish an IIS website specifically? See Publishing IIS Websites instead — it uses a dedicated catalog app tailored to IIS.