Remote Debugging for Backend Servers & Cloud VMs
Inspect remote backend processes, diagnose unhandled promise rejections, and evaluate live state across cloud instances.
Server remote debugging connects developer workstations directly to backend services running in cloud VMs or private subnets via secure outbound-only WebRTC channels, enabling live log inspection, memory sampling, and REPL evaluation without open firewall ports.
Why SSH Tunnels & Raw Inspect Sockets Fail
Traditional server debugging relies on running Node or Python with --inspect and creating SSH port-forwarding tunnels (ssh -L 9229:localhost:9229 user@server).
In production and zero-trust corporate environments, this approach violates security protocols: - SSH access grants broad operating system shell permissions beyond the target process. - Bastion hosts and VPN tunnels introduce latency and maintenance overhead. - Ephemeral auto-scaled instances disappear before SSH sessions can be configured.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does ReMOAT require inbound firewall ports on the server?
No. ReMOAT initiates an outbound-only WebSocket handshake to exchange WebRTC SDP offers/answers, establishing a direct peer-to-peer data connection through standard NAT firewalls.