This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/selfhosted by /u/thehelpfulidiot on 2025-02-18 23:27:03+00:00.

---

Hey r/selfhosted,

Yesterday, I introduced GhostFile – a temporary, on-demand file uploader that shuts down automatically after use. It was built for those quick file transfers where a full-fledged file server (like SMB, NFS, or even PairDrop) is overkill AND ALLOWS TRANSFERRING FILES TO A TERMINAL SYSTEM.

🔥 New in This Update – Standalone Binary!

Thanks to community feedback, you no longer need Python or Docker to run GhostFile! Now, you can just download the binary, make it executable, and run it from anywhere.

👉 No dependencies – Works out of the box

👉 Can be placed in your $PATH – Call it from any directory

👉 Files upload directly to where you launched it

🛠️ How It Works

Instead of setting up Python or Docker, just:

1️⃣ Download the Latest Binary

Choose the correct binary based on CPU architecture.

🖥️ For x86_64 (Intel/AMD)

wget -O ghostfile $(curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/jon6fingrs/ghostfile/releases/latest | grep "browser_download_url" | grep "ghostfile\"$" | cut -d '"' -f 4)

🍏 For ARM64 (Raspberry Pi, Apple Silicon)

wget -O ghostfile $(curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/jon6fingrs/ghostfile/releases/latest | grep "browser_download_url" | grep "ghostfile-arm64" | cut -d '"' -f 4)

2️⃣ Make It Executable

chmod +x ghostfile

3️⃣ (Optional) Move It to Your PATH

To use ghostfile from anywhere:

sudo mv ghostfile /usr/local/bin/

Now, you can launch GhostFile from any directory. Uploaded files will appear exactly where you run it!

🚀 Running GhostFile

Just type:

ghostfile

This will:

👉 Start a temporary web server on 0.0.0.0:5000

👉 Let you upload multiple files via drag & drop or file picker

👉 Save them in the directory where ghostfile was executed

👉 Automatically shut down once the upload is complete

Example Workflow

cd ~/Downloads
ghostfile

Now, any file uploaded will appear in ~/Downloads.

Need to upload to a specific directory? Just cd there first, then run ghostfile.

⚙️ Command-Line Options

GhostFile supports the following command-line switches:

ghostfile --help

Actual Output:

usage: ghostfile [-h] [--dir DIR] [--host HOST] [--port PORT]

A Flask file uploader that stops after handling an upload.

optional arguments:
  -h, --help   show this help message and exit
  --dir DIR    Directory to save uploaded files (default: current directory).
  --host HOST  Host/IP to bind to (default: 0.0.0.0).
  --port PORT  Port to listen on (default: 5000).

Examples:

• Use a custom upload directory:ghostfile --dir /home/user/my_uploads
• Run on a different port (e.g., 8080 instead of 5000):ghostfile --port 8080
• Specify a different network interface (e.g., localhost only):ghostfile --host 127.0.0.1
• Run with a custom directory, port, and host:ghostfile --dir /tmp/uploads --port 9090 --host 192.168.1.100

💡 Why Use GhostFile?

👉 On-demand file transfers – No need to set up persistent services

👉 Works anywhere – No dependencies needed

👉 LAN-friendly – Accessible from any device on your network

👉 Zero overhead – Start, upload, and it shuts down

⚠️ NOT a Persistent File Server

GhostFile is not meant for long-term file hosting. It is designed for:

• Quick, temporary file transfers between machines
• One-time uploads where other tools aren't practical
• On-the-go use without keeping a service running

Once you upload your files, the server stops itself. No cleanup needed.

🖼️ Screenshot

Here's what GhostFile looks like in action:

Screenshot

🌐 Get GhostFile

💾 GitHub Repo:

Would love to hear your thoughts! 🚀 Have feature requests? Let me know in the comments. 🖖