Preview deploys
Share an app preview without making your reviewer sign up
When you want to share a working version of your app with someone who doesn't have a Doable account, a designer, a client, a teammate reviewing a feature branch, `doable preview` gives you a public URL in under a minute. No signup from you, no signup from them.
Previews live for 8 hours by default. If you want to keep the app, click the claim link in the URL to migrate it to a real account without redeploying.
Step by step
- 1
Install the CLI
Same CLI as full deploys.
npm install -g doable-cli - 2
Run preview from your project directory
No login required.
doable preview - 3
Share the URL
You'll get a `<slug>.doable.do` URL. Send it to anyone, it works for the next 8 hours.
- 4
Optional: keep it
The CLI also prints a claim link. Open it in a browser, sign up (or log in), and the preview migrates to your account permanently with one click.
What previews are good for
Showing a stakeholder a feature before merging it. Demoing a freelance project to a client who shouldn't have to make an account just to see the result. Sharing a side project on a forum where you don't want to commit to a recurring URL. PR previews that auto-expire so they don't pile up.
Anything where the deploy is meant to be ephemeral and you don't want signup friction blocking the share.
How it works under the hood
Each preview gets a ghost account, an isolated record on Doable's side that owns the project. The CLI generates a claim token (random hex, 24 chars) that, when used by an authenticated user, transfers the project to their real account in one transaction. After 8h the preview's containers stop, S3 artifacts are deleted, and the ghost account is purged.
Abuse protection: rate-limited per IP, AI-scanned for high-traffic content, and admins can suspend in seconds if something problematic gets flagged.
FAQ
Do I need an account to use `doable preview`?
No. The first preview can be created without any login. The CLI prints a claim link that lets you sign up later if you want to keep the app.
How long does a preview last?
8 hours. After that the container stops, the URL stops responding, and the underlying record is purged. If you provided an email during preview, you get a notification 2 hours before expiry with the claim link.
Can I extend a preview?
Not directly, but claiming it converts the preview into a regular project on your account, with no expiry. That's the intended path for previews you want to keep.
Are previews indexed by Google?
No, previews ship with `X-Robots-Tag: noindex` so they don't pollute search results. The 8-hour TTL plus noindex keeps the namespace clean.
No credit card. Deploy your first project in under a minute.