Live Server Plus for Sublime Text

A lightweight development server with WebSocket-based live reload and directory listings—all from within Sublime Text.

Usage

To use Live Server Plus, first open a folder or workspace (File » Open Folder) in Sublime Text. Then choose either of the following methods:

1. Main Menu

1. Go to Tools » Live Server Plus.
   
2. Choose one of the following:
   • Start Server
     
   • Stop Server
     
   • Open Current File

2. Command Palette

1. Press Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + P to open the Command Palette.
   
2. Type (and select) any of these commands:
   • Live Server Plus: Start
     Starts the server on the configured port (shows a message if it’s already running).
   • Live Server Plus: Stop
     Stops the running server.
   • Live Server Plus: Open Current File
     Opens the active file in your browser using the dev server.
   • Live Server Plus: Settings
     Opens the settings file for customizing port, host, live reload, etc.

Features

• Instant Refresh
  See your browser update the moment you save a file—no manual reloading needed.

• No Extra Installs
  Runs purely on Python (already included with Sublime), so you can start right away.

• Friendly Directory View & 404
  Browse your project’s files in a clean, auto-generated list, and get custom 404s with “did you mean?” suggestions.

• Easy Setup for File Watching

  • Sublime Events: Rely on Sublime’s built-in events for instant reloads.
    
  • Built-in Watcher: A fallback poll-based system to catch external file changes.

• Tweak How You Like
  Pick your server host, port, or enable compression—and optionally open your default browser on start.

• Status Bar Integration
  Stay in the flow: see if the server is running (and which port it’s on).

Installation

Via 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 Installation

1. Download or clone this repository.
2. In Sublime Text, go to Preferences > Browse Packages….
3. Move/copy the downloaded folder into the Packages directory.
4. Ensure the folder name is LiveServerPlus.

Optional Key Bindings

You can add keyboard shortcuts by editing your Sublime key bindings. For example:

[
        {
            "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"
        }
    ]

Settings

Access the settings via Preferences > Package Settings > Live Server Plus > Settings. By default, you’ll see something like:

{
        // Choose "localhost" or "0.0.0.0", etc.
        "host": "localhost",

        // Set to 0 to find an available ephemeral port automatically
        "port": 5500,

        // How often (in seconds) the built-in watcher checks for changes
        "poll_interval": 1.0,

        // Folders to ignore when scanning for changes
        "ignore_dirs": ["node_modules", ".git", "__pycache__"],

        // Automatically open default browser when the server starts
        "open_browser_on_start": true,

        // A specific browser to open (e.g., "chrome", "firefox", "")
        "browser": "",

        // Allowed file types rendered inline (others served as downloads)
        "allowed_file_types": [".html", ".css", ".js", "..."],

        // Enable gzip compression for text-based files
        "enable_compression": true,

        // Show server status in Sublime's status bar
        "status_bar_enabled": true,

        // Enable/disable CORS headers
        "cors_enabled": false,

        // Sublime-based live reload settings
        "live_reload": {
            "enabled": true,
            "css_injection": true,
            "delay": 500,
            "ignore_exts": [".log", ".map"]
        }
    }

Note: If you change port or host while the server is running, you must restart the server for those changes to take effect.

Requirements

• Sublime Text 4
• A browser with WebSocket support (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, etc.)

Known Limitations

• SSL/TLS (HTTPS) is not supported out-of-the-box. For secure local development, consider a reverse proxy or other HTTPS setup.
• Large projects with many files may see higher CPU usage in poll mode. You can disable poll-based watching (live_reload.enabled = true) for Sublime-based events or ignore large directories (ignore_dirs).

License

MIT License (see the LICENSE file for details).

Contributing

We welcome pull requests for bug fixes, new features, or documentation improvements. Feel free to open an issue or PR on GitHub.

Support / Issues

1. Check Issues for known problems or suggestions.
2. Open a new issue with:
   • Operating System (Windows, macOS, or Linux)
   • Steps to reproduce
   • Expected vs. actual behavior

Enjoy LiveServerPlus! If you find it useful, please consider giving the repo a star.