kubefwd

Project Overview

kubefwd is a command-line utility that bulk port forwards Kubernetes services to your local workstation. Each service gets its own unique loopback IP (127.x.x.x), eliminating port conflicts and enabling local development with cluster services accessible by name.

Key Features

• Interactive TUI: real-time service monitoring with traffic metrics
• Unique IP per service: each service gets its own 127.x.x.x address
• Auto-reconnect: reconnects when pods restart or connections drop
• Bulk forwarding: forward all services in a namespace with one command
• Live traffic monitoring: see bytes in/out and HTTP activity
• MCP support: integration with AI assistants (Claude Code, Cursor)

Target Audience

• Kubernetes developers
• Engineers who need local access to cluster services
• DevOps and platform engineers

Quick Start

1. macOS: brew install kubefwd
2. Linux: download .deb, .rpm, or .tar.gz from Releases
3. Windows: winget install txn2.kubefwd
4. Forward all services in a namespace: sudo -E kubefwd svc -n my-namespace --tui
5. Press ? for help, q to quit

Core Advantages

• Eliminates environment-specific connection configuration
• Production connection strings work the same way locally
• No Docker Compose or local service setup required
• Open-source and free

System Requirements

• OS: macOS, Linux, Windows
• Architectures: x86_64, arm64
• Additional Dependencies: kubectl, Kubernetes cluster access

Notes

• Requires sudo privileges to modify /etc/hosts
• Supports multiple namespaces and label filtering