Dev Server Integration

How Tauri connects to your frontend dev server during development

Dev Server Integration

During development, Tauri loads your frontend from a local dev server rather than from bundled static files. This is a fundamental part of the Tauri development experience -- it gives you hot reloading, fast iteration, and the same browser DevTools you are used to.

How It Works

Tauri's dev workflow relies on two configuration fields in tauri.conf.json:

• beforeDevCommand -- a shell command Tauri runs before starting the Rust backend (typically your dev server start command)

• devUrl -- the URL Tauri's webview loads during development

{
  "build": {
    "beforeDevCommand": "pnpm exec vite --config vite.config.ts",
    "devUrl": "http://localhost:37461"
  }
}

When you run cargo tauri dev, Tauri:

1. Executes beforeDevCommand in a subprocess

2. Waits for the dev server to become available

3. Starts the Rust backend

4. Opens a webview window pointed at devUrl

Topics in This Section

This section covers practical patterns and pitfalls for dev server integration:

• Vite Integration -- Configuring Vite as your frontend dev server, including CWD gotchas and multi-config setups

• SSE Live Reload -- Building a custom SSE-based live-reload system for dev servers that do full rebuilds instead of HMR

• Watcher Loops -- Preventing infinite rebuild loops when your build writes to watched directories

Dev vs Production

The key architectural difference:

const IS_DEV: bool = cfg!(debug_assertions);

if IS_DEV {
    // Dev server is already running via beforeDevCommand
} else {
    // Production: spawn your own server or use bundled assets
}