Serve HTTP

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Enable the Web surface and start an HTTP listener with Mal.serve. Set an explicit bind address and port for a service whose address other programs need to know.

Start a listener

maligator.build.ts

import { defineBuild } from "@maligator/cli";

export default defineBuild({
	entry: "src/index.ts",
	surface: { webPlatform: true },
});

http.ts

import { ready } from "maligator:application";

const server = Mal.serve({
	hostname: "127.0.0.1",
	port: 3000,
	fetch(request) {
		if (new URL(request.url).pathname === "/") {
			return new Response("hello", { headers: { "content-type": "text/plain" } });
		}
		return new Response("Not found", { status: 404 });
	},
});
console.log(`Listening on http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`);
ready();

Save the example as src/index.ts, then run:

shell

maligator dev
curl http://127.0.0.1:3000/
curl -i http://127.0.0.1:3000/missing

The first request returns hello; the second returns status 404. ready reports startup completion to the development supervisor after the listener has started.

The fetch handler may return a Response or an awaited response. The server handle exposes its actual bound port; port 0 asks the OS to choose. The current public handle has no stop method, so this listener lives with the application process.

Set connection limits

MaligatorServeOptions includes header, request, and keep-alive deadlines in milliseconds, plus a concurrent connection limit. Use integer values; 0 selects the host default. Invalid limit values throw.

Mal.serve remains experimental. Invalid handler options and bind failures are not yet consistently reported as exceptions. Use valid options, confirm the bound port, and inspect startup output. Do not assume a complete production server lifecycle API.

Use node:http

Enable surface.node to use the supported Node HTTP personality instead:

src/index.ts

import { createServer } from "node:http";
import { ready } from "maligator:application";

createServer((_request, response) => {
	response.writeHead(200, { "content-type": "text/plain" });
	response.end("hello");
}).listen(3000, "127.0.0.1", () => ready());

Use one of these examples at a time on port 3000. Consult Compatibility for supported Node and Web APIs before using a framework. Continue with production builds for packaging.