launch_socket_server
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Description:
Bind to privileged ports without running a server as root
Type: Formula  |  Latest Version: 2.0.0@0  |  Tracked Since: Dec 4, 2025
Links: Homepage  |  formulae.brew.sh
Category: Networking
Tags: networking security privilege-escalation sockets system-utilities
Install: brew install launch_socket_server
About:
Launch Socket Server allows services to bind to privileged ports like 80 or 443 without requiring root privileges. It acts as a root-level proxy that launches a user-space server process on demand when a connection is established. This significantly improves security by eliminating the need for your main application to run as the root user.
Key Features:
  • Non-root privileged port binding
  • On-demand process launching
  • Automatic socket passing to child processes
  • Simple configuration and integration
Use Cases:
  • Running web servers on port 80/443 without root privileges
  • Launching background services on-demand for security-sensitive environments
  • Proxying connections to user-space applications
Alternatives:
  • authbind – Linux-specific alternative for non-root port binding
  • setcap – Granting CAP_NET_BIND_SERVICE capability directly to binaries
  • nginx reverse proxy – More complex but feature-rich proxy solution
Version History
Detected Version Rev Change Commit
Dec 4, 2025 3:04am 0 VERSION_BUMP 9e4675c9
Dec 3, 2025 11:33am 0 VERSION_BUMP 79fe7330
Sep 15, 2025 3:30pm 0 VERSION_BUMP ebb71d8b
Sep 14, 2024 1:02pm 0 VERSION_BUMP 1e98bb44