BitL Documentation

Better Integrated Tools for Local

BitL is a native macOS app and bitl CLI that runs your local web stack — nginx, PHP-FPM and dnsmasq — plus databases, language runtimes, debugging tools and mobile simulators. Every project gets a .test domain, with HTTPS one command away.

Sixty seconds to a working site

# Link the project you are standing incd ~/Sites/my-appbitl link # Serve it over HTTPSbitl secure # Start a database and write its settings into .envbitl services start mysqlbitl env-sync # Open https://my-app.testbitl open

Installation

Install the app, trust the CA, link your first site

Sites

Link, park, HTTPS, isolation, groups, Docker proxies, tunnels

Runtimes

PHP, Node.js, Python, Go and Flutter versions

Services

MySQL, PostgreSQL, Redis, MongoDB, search, S3, snapshots

Frameworks

Artisan, WP-CLI, Composer, queues, Vite, nginx templates

Debugging

Debug Bar, SDKs, mail capture, Xdebug, profiler, logs

Mobile & AI

iOS Simulator, Android Emulator, Metro, Ollama, Jupyter

Configuration

Settings keys, file locations, shortcuts, plugins

CLI Reference

Every bitl command, subcommand and flag

Troubleshooting

DNS, certificates, ports, crashed services

What runs where

Piece	What it does
`BitL.app`	Menu-bar app: sites, services, runtimes, Debug Bar, mail viewer, log viewer, resource monitor.
`bitl`	CLI with the same powers, installed to /usr/local/bin/bitl by the privileged helper.
`BitLHelper`	Privileged helper, approved once. Writes /etc/resolver, installs the CLI, manages LaunchDaemons.
nginx · PHP-FPM · dnsmasq	The core stack. Resolves *.test to 127.0.0.1 and serves each site with the right PHP version.
launchd agents	MySQL, PostgreSQL, Redis and friends run as per-user launchd agents, so they survive app restarts and come back at login.

System requirements

• macOS 15.0 Sequoia or later
• Apple Silicon Mac (M-series) — pre-built PHP and service binaries are arm64
• An administrator account, to approve the helper and trust the local certificate authority
• About 500 MB of disk for the app, plus whatever runtimes and databases you install