8080/TCPHTTP-Alternative
Web · Registered port · OSI layer 7
Alternative port for web servers, proxies, and development servers such as Tomcat or Jenkins.
IANA: officially registered as http-alt
Look up and open a port
Port 8080: Check and open the alternative HTTP port
Port 8080 is the most common alternative port for HTTP and is often used for test servers, proxies and admin interfaces. Here you’ll find key details about the port and the relevant firewall commands.
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Firewall rule (inbound)
Firewall commands
Open port
sudo ufw allow 8080/tcpNotes on ufw
For Ubuntu and Debian. ufw creates the rule for both IPv4 and IPv6. If ufw is disabled, allow SSH first (sudo ufw allow 22/tcp), then enable it with sudo ufw enable, or you'll lock yourself out.
On a ZAP-Hosting VPS with an active network firewall, you also need to allow the port in the Customer Panel.
Port 8080 explained
What is port 8080 used for?
Purpose
Port 8080 is used whenever a web service should not or cannot run on port 80. Common examples include Java application servers such as Apache Tomcat, CI tools such as Jenkins, HTTP proxies and development servers. One advantage: on Linux, a regular user can open ports numbered 1024 and above without root privileges. A service on port 8080 often sits behind a reverse proxy that forwards requests from port 443 to it.
Origin and standard
IANA lists port 8080 as a Registered Port named “http-alt”, an official alternative for HTTP. The number was chosen because it resembles 80 and is above 1024, the threshold beyond which Unix does not require root privileges. It uses the same HTTP protocol as port 80, described in RFC 9110 and RFC 9112. Traffic on 8080 is encrypted only if the application itself supports TLS.
Typical use
- Apache Tomcat and other Java application servers
- Jenkins and other development tool web interfaces
- HTTP proxies and caching servers
- Backend services behind a reverse proxy, for example in Docker containers
- Test and development servers running alongside the production system
Security
Services on port 8080 are often admin interfaces or development servers never intended for the public internet. Check whether the port needs to be accessible externally at all. If your service runs behind a reverse proxy, bind it only to 127.0.0.1 or the internal network. If you must open it, allow access only from your own IP address and protect the interface with a login. Watch out for Docker, too: published container ports can bypass ufw rules because Docker sets its own iptables rules.
More ports
Related ports
These ports are often part of the same setup. Click one to see its explanation and firewall commands.
View all well-known ports and the complete IANA list
Port list source: IANA Service Name and Transport Protocol Port Number Registry, as of October 22, 2026. iana.org
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FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers about port 8080.
Port 8080 is an alternative port for HTTP. It is mainly used by Tomcat, Jenkins, proxies and development servers, or by services running behind a reverse proxy.
No, port 8080 uses plain, unencrypted HTTP by default. For encrypted access, put a reverse proxy with TLS on port 443 in front of it or configure TLS directly in the application.
With ufw, use sudo ufw allow 8080/tcp; with firewalld, use sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=8080/tcp followed by sudo firewall-cmd --reload. Restricting access to your own IP address is often better.
Both ports carry HTTP. Port 80 is the default port that browsers use automatically. With port 8080, you need to include the port in the address, for example http://example.com:8080.
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