serve

The tool provides a simple command‑line interface for serving static assets over HTTP. It can host a static website, single‑page application, or individual files from a local directory or network location, and includes built‑in support for HTTPS, CORS headers, and GZIP compression. A built‑in directory listing UI displays file contents when a folder is requested.

Developers can invoke it directly with `npx serve` or install it globally via npm, then run `serve` in the desired folder. Configuration is possible through a `serve.json` file placed in the public directory, and the underlying request handling logic is exposed as the `serve-handler` module, which can be used as middleware in custom Node.js HTTP servers or with frameworks such as micro.

The package is maintained by Vercel, requires Node 14 or newer (with a fallback version for older Node releases), and is considered stable. Source code, issue tracking, and contribution guidelines are hosted on GitHub.