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PulseRN

Run in a browser

Run the same PulseRN debugger UI in a local browser without installing the Electron application. The published CLI requires Node.js 22.5 or newer.

Start with npx

Section titled “Start with npx”
Terminal window
npx @maahibhama/pulsern

PulseRN runs in the foreground, opens an authenticated browser page automatically, and prints the addresses for the browser UI, React Native SDK, Android emulator, physical devices, and Metro. Keep the terminal open while debugging and press Ctrl+C to stop all PulseRN services cleanly.

The default addresses are:

Service Address
Browser UI http://localhost:3000
SDK and iOS Simulator ws://127.0.0.1:9090
Android Emulator ws://10.0.2.2:9090
Metro and Hermes http://127.0.0.1:8081

If the browser does not open, copy the PulseRN web address printed in the terminal.

Install with Homebrew

Section titled “Install with Homebrew”

On macOS, Homebrew can install a compatible Node runtime and the PulseRN CLI together:

Terminal window
brew tap maahibhama/pulsern https://github.com/maahibhama/PulseRN
brew install maahibhama/pulsern/pulsern-cli
pulsern

The tap command is required once per computer. On later launches, run pulsern.

Update or remove the CLI with:

Terminal window
brew update
brew upgrade pulsern-cli
Terminal window
brew uninstall pulsern-cli
brew untap maahibhama/pulsern

Connect a React Native app

Section titled “Connect a React Native app”

The browser and desktop editions use the same @pulse-rn/sdk integration. Start PulseRN, then follow SDK setup. Use 127.0.0.1 for the iOS Simulator and 10.0.2.2 for the Android Emulator.

The SDK listener remains loopback-only until Allow LAN connections is enabled. Physical devices must complete the existing pairing flow. Plain ws:// LAN traffic is not encrypted; configure PulseRN TLS on networks you do not fully trust.

Command options

Section titled “Command options”

Homebrew users pass options to pulsern; npx users append them after the package name:

Terminal window
pulsern --no-open
pulsern --port 3001
npx @maahibhama/pulsern --help
--port <number>          Browser/API port; default 3000
--sdk-port <number>      SDK ingestion port; default 9090
--metro-host <hostname>  Metro host; default 127.0.0.1
--metro-port <number>    Metro port; default 8081
--host <address>         Browser bind address; default 127.0.0.1
--data-dir <path>        Override persistent data directory
--no-open                Do not open the browser
--reset-browser-token    Revoke saved browser sessions

The CLI never silently changes a busy port. Stop the conflicting process or choose another browser port with --port; use --sdk-port for SDK ingestion and configure the React Native client to match.

Security

Section titled “Security”

The browser endpoint binds to loopback and uses an authenticated browser session by default. Passing --host 0.0.0.0 exposes the interface to the local network and should only be used on a trusted development network.

Application events, storage values, and retained sessions can contain sensitive development data. Keep SDK redaction enabled, avoid secrets in free-form strings, and review PulseRN’s security model before enabling LAN access.

Persistence and updates

Section titled “Persistence and updates”

The CLI stores SQLite history, settings, trusted devices, themes, fonts, and TLS credentials in the platform-specific PulseRN web data directory printed at startup. Browser and Electron data directories are intentionally separate; use session archives to move history between them.

Homebrew installations update with brew update && brew upgrade pulsern-cli. To run the newest npm release explicitly, use:

Terminal window
npx @maahibhama/pulsern@latest

Electron’s native updater and launch-at-login controls are intentionally hidden in the browser edition.