How to Set Up a Self‑Hosted Reverse Proxy to Activate JRebel for Free

Introduction

Hot deployment tools like Spring Boot DevTools are well known, but the powerful JRebel remains relatively obscure. This article shows how to obtain a free activation for JRebel by setting up a personal reverse‑proxy service.

Why Build Your Own Reverse Proxy?

Many online tutorials simply share a public reverse‑proxy URL. When the owner shuts down the server, the URL becomes unusable. Creating your own proxy ensures continuous availability and eliminates dependence on external services.

Local Reverse Proxy

For personal use, you can run a reverse‑proxy executable on Windows.

ReverseProxy_windows_amd64.exe -l "127.0.0.1:9090"

The default listening port is 8888. The -l option lets you specify a custom address, e.g., 127.0.0.1:9090. After starting, the local proxy URL is http://127.0.0.1:9090.

To activate JRebel you also need a random GUID, which can be generated from http://www.ofmonkey.com/transfer/guid. The final activation URL becomes http://127.0.0.1:9090/guid.

Note: Keep the command window open; closing it stops the proxy. On Windows you can configure the proxy to start automatically as a service.

Server Reverse Proxy (Recommended)

On Linux the same binary is ReverseProxy_linux_amd64. Run it in the background: ./ReverseProxy_linux_amd64 & By default it listens on port 8888. To change the port, use: ./ReverseProxy_linux_amd64 -l "ip:port" & Replace ip with your server’s public IP and port with an open port. After the proxy is running, generate a GUID as described above. The activation URL will be http://ip:port/guid.

Installing JRebel in IntelliJ IDEA and Activating

JRebel provides an IDEA plugin. Install it via Settings → Plugins → Marketplace → JRebel, then restart IDEA.

Open Help → JRebel → Activation. In the activation dialog, enter the activation URL (e.g., http://127.0.0.1:9090/guid) and your email address, then click OK. If the response shows success, JRebel is activated.

Installing JRebel on a Remote Server and Activating

Download the no‑setup package jrebel-2020.1.1-nosetup.zip, unzip it, and locate the bin directory.

./activate.sh http://ip:port/guid [email protected]

Replace ip and port with the server’s address and proxy port (default 8888), and provide your email. The script contacts the activation URL and registers the license.

Summary

JRebel is a critical tool for Java hot deployment, useful for both local and remote development workflows. By building a simple reverse‑proxy service, developers can obtain a free activation URL and integrate JRebel into IDEA or server environments without relying on third‑party services.