Live Server Plus for Sublime Text

A lightweight development server with WebSocket‑based live reload.

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Installation

Package Control (recommended)

1. Open the Command Palette: Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + P
2. Select Package Control: Install Package
3. Search for “LiveServerPlus” and install.

Manual

1. Download or clone this repository.
2. In Sublime Text, choose Preferences ▸ Browse Packages…
3. Copy the folder into the Packages directory and name it LiveServerPlus.

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Usage

Open a file, folder or workspace (File ▸ Open Folder) first.

Main menu

Tools ▸ Live Server Plus:

Action	Description
Start Server	Starts the server (multi‑folder picker).
Stop Server	Stops the server.
Open in Browser	Opens the active file through the server.
Show Mobile QR Code	Displays a QR linking devices on the LAN to the dev URL.
Enable Live Reload	Switch to Sublime-driven reload (auto-save option).
Disable Live Reload	Return to Watchdog-based external file watching.
Change Port…	Enter any port or 0 for “find a free one”.
Settings…	Opens the user settings file.

Command Palette

Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + P → type:

• Live Server Plus: Start Server
• Live Server Plus: Stop Server
• Live Server Plus: Open in Browser
• Live Server Plus: Show Mobile QR Code
• Live Server Plus: Enable Live Reload
• Live Server Plus: Disable Live Reload
• Live Server Plus: Change Port…
• Live Server Plus: Settings

Example workflow

1. Open your project folder.
2. Run Live Server Plus: Start Server.
3. Edit and save—your browser refreshes automatically.

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Features

• Instant reload on file changes; optional CSS-only injection. Enable Sublime-only mode when you want immediate reloads on save, or leave it disabled to monitor external tools via Watchdog.
• GitHub-style Markdown preview with live scroll sync—defaults to editor→browser, switch to "sync" for two-way or false to disable.
• Mobile preview: scan a QR code to open the site on any device.
• Port selection: choose a port at startup or set "port": 0 for a free one.
• Automatic watcher fallback: native watchers for performance, seamless polling fallback when macOS hits the file-descriptor limit.
• Runs in Sublime’s bundled Python—no external runtime required.

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Optional key bindings

[
    { "keys": ["alt+shift+s"], "command": "live_server_start" },
    { "keys": ["alt+shift+o"], "command": "open_current_file_live_server" },
    { "keys": ["alt+shift+x"], "command": "live_server_stop" }
]

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Settings quick reference

// LiveServerPlus.sublime-settings (user)
{
    "customBrowser": "",
    "openBrowser": true,
    "showInfoMessages": true,
    "verifyTags": true,
    "fullReload": false,
    "liveReload": false,
    "host": "127.0.0.1",
    // WARNING: use "0.0.0.0" only on trusted networks; it exposes the server to your LAN.
    "maxThreads": 64,
    "maxWatchedDirs": 50,
    "renderMarkdownPreview": true,
    "markdownScrollSync": "editor", // "editor", "sync", or false
    "ignoreFiles": ["**/node_modules/**", "**/.git/**", "**/__pycache__/**"],
    "logging": false,
    "port": 5500,
    "showOnStatusbar": true,
    "useLocalIp": false,
    "useWebExt": false,
    "wait": 100
}

Restart the server after changing settings.

Security note: Binding the server to 0.0.0.0 exposes it to every device on your local network. Only use that host value on trusted networks.

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Requirements

• Sublime Text 4 (Build ≥ 4152)
• Browser with WebSocket support (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari)

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Known limitations

• Watchdog mode watches up to 50 directories; adjust ignore globs or reduce scope for very large projects. When Live Reload is enabled, only saves inside Sublime trigger refreshes.

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Contributing

Contributions welcome! Issues and pull requests are welcome.

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Vendored dependencies

• Watchdog – filesystem events
• PyQRCode and pypng – QR generation
• markdown2 – Markdown → HTML conversion

All vendored under liveserverplus_lib/vendor/.

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Support

Report bugs/issues on GitHub: https://github.com/ifrederico/sublime-liveserverplus/issues

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License

MIT