How AI coding agents can show local previews.

Coding agents can edit files, run tests, and start local servers. The missing piece is often visual: you need to see the app, report, video, or generated file the agent created.

Quackshell gives the agent a display channel. The agent serves the work from localhost, starts the relay, and sends you one temporary browser link.

Questions this answers

• How can Codex show me the app it built?
• How can Claude Code preview a local app in my browser?
• How do I inspect an AI-generated UI without deploying it?
• How can an agent show a generated PDF, video, or report?

The agent workflow

1. The agent builds or edits the local project.
2. The agent starts the normal local dev server.
3. The agent verifies the local page works.
4. The agent runs Quackshell for that port.
5. You open the signed, random preview URL.

Why not just deploy?

Many agent outputs are not ready for deployment. A preview may be a design iteration, one-off static file, generated analysis, or temporary demo. Quackshell is built for that short review loop. It is not meant to replace production hosting.

What to ask the agent

Please start the local app and give me a qshell link.

A qshell link is shorthand for a Quackshell link. The agent should keep the local server and Quackshell process running while you review the result.