In the ever-evolving landscape of web development, Node.js has emerged as a powerhouse for building scalable and efficient server-side applications. Among the plethora of frameworks available for Node.js, Nest.js stands out for its modularity, flexibility, and TypeScript support. If you’re venturing into the world of Nest.js and want to run your project on a local network for testing or demonstration purposes, you’re in the right place. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the steps to run a Nest project on your local network.

Step 1: Set Up Your Nest Project

Before diving into networking configurations, ensure you have a Nest.js project set up on your local machine. If you haven’t already, you can create a new Nest.js project using the Nest CLI (Command Line Interface) by running:

Step 2: Configure the Network Settings

By default, a Nest.js application binds to localhost (127.0.0.1), which means it’s only accessible from the local machine. To make it accessible on your local network, you need to configure the server to listen on your machine’s IP address.

Open the main.ts file in your Nest project's src directory. Look for the app.listen() method call. By default, it might look something like this:

Modify the app.listen() method to specify the IP address and port you want your Nest application to listen on. For example:

Here, '0.0.0.0' tells the application to listen on all available network interfaces.

Step 3: Run Your Nest Project

Once you’ve made the necessary changes, save the main.ts file and start your Nest.js application by running:

Your Nest project is now running and accessible on your local network.

Step 4: Access Your Nest Application

To access your Nest application from another device on the same local network, you’ll need to know the IP address of the machine running the Nest project. You can find this by running ipconfig (Windows) or ifconfig (Unix-based systems) in your terminal.

Once you have the IP address, open a web browser on another device connected to the same network and enter the IP address followed by the port number your Nest application is running on. For example:

Replace your-ip-address and port-no with the actual IP address of your machine and the port number on which the project is running, respectively.

Congratulations! You’ve successfully run your Nest.js project on your local network. Now you can test your application across different devices or showcase it to others within your local network environment.

Conclusion

Running a Nest project on your local network is a fundamental skill for any developer working with Node.js and Nest.js. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can easily configure your Nest application to be accessible across devices within your local network, facilitating testing, collaboration, and demonstration of your projects. So go ahead, experiment, and build amazing applications with Nest.js!

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