HTTPS Localhost For Node.JS

#node #javascript #security #tooling

Do you need a secure connection for your local Node.js web server? No problem! This tutorial will show you how to create a self-assigned certificate on your local machine using a few CLI commands.

Note: I don't maintain the source code. Specific OS trouble shooting can be found here.

Prerequisites

This guide assumes you're comfortable executing terminal commands, navigating, and modifying the file system.

To follow along, you will need to have the following installed on your host machine:

OpenSSL
Homebrew
Terminal
Node.js
macOS

Not your OS? Not to worry. Linux and Windows MAY require just a tad few more steps. I promise! You can find those steps here.

Let's get started, shall we...

Create A Node.js Project

Create a folder and change directories. We can do this in one line, like so:

$ mkdir sample-project && cd sample-project

Next, create a file inside the project root directory:

$ touch server.js

Copy-paste the sample code below into the server.js file:

// server.js
const https = require('https');
const fs = require('fs');

const options = {
  key: fs.readFileSync('key.pem'),
  cert: fs.readFileSync('cert.pem')
};

const app = function (req, res) {
  res.writeHead(200);
  res.end("hello world\n");
}

https.createServer(options, app).listen(3000);

If you launch the server now, it will output an error. Why? Because we have not generated our two pem files referenced in the const options variable.

Create Self-Assigned Certificate

To generate a self-assigned certificate on your host machine, you need to install mkcert using Homebrew like so:

$ brew install mkcert

Generate a certificate locally

Navigate to your Node.js project root directory, open your preferred terminal app, type the following command, and then press Return(enter).

It's essential that you add a localhost string at the end to allow HTTPS to secure your localhost URL.

$ mkcert -key-file key.pem -cert-file cert.pem example.com *.example.com localhost

This command will generate two pem files.

key.pem
cert.pem

If you noticed, the names of these two files reflect the two objects in the const options variable. You project setup should now look similar to the image below.

Verify HTTPS Connection

To verify that everything is working, launch the Node.js server by typing this command in the terminal.

$ node server.js

Next, open a browser, preferably a Chromium OS-based browser, and verify the HTTPS connection in the search bar to the far left has a secure HTTPS icon. See example images below.

Another way to verify your new HTTPS connection is using the web console provided by the browser. Simply navigate to the Security tab.

I will guarantee you that this quick setup will save you hundreds if not thousands of hours googling. I know it did for me!

Note, that this is not a replacement for a real-world secure HTTPS connection and you're expected to implement secure endpoints anywhere and everywhere where security is required and or needed.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Until next time!