waitress-serve

Pure-Python WSGI production server

TLDR

Serve a WSGI app on the default port 8080

$ waitress-serve [myapp:app]

Bind to a specific host and port

$ waitress-serve --host=[127.0.0.1] --port=[8080] [myapp:app]

Listen on multiple addresses

$ waitress-serve --listen=[127.0.0.1:8080] --listen=[127.0.0.1:8443] [myapp:app]

Use an application factory function

$ waitress-serve --call [myapp:create_app]

Listen on a Unix socket

$ waitress-serve --unix-socket=[/tmp/app.sock] [myapp:app]

Set number of worker threads

$ waitress-serve --threads=[8] [myapp:app]

Serve under a URL prefix (behind a reverse proxy)

$ waitress-serve --url-prefix=[/api] [myapp:app]

SYNOPSIS

waitress-serve [--host addr] [--port port] [options] module:app

waitress-serve is a production-quality WSGI server for Python web applications, implemented entirely in pure Python with no C extension dependencies. It serves frameworks like Flask, Django, and Pyramid and runs on any platform including Windows, Linux, and macOS.The server uses a multi-threaded architecture with a configurable number of worker threads to handle concurrent requests. It accepts connections on a TCP port or Unix socket and supports URL prefix configuration for applications mounted at sub-paths behind a reverse proxy.Waitress is designed to be simple and reliable for production deployments, requiring minimal configuration while providing solid performance. It is commonly used behind a reverse proxy like Nginx for static file serving and SSL termination.

PARAMETERS

--host ADDR

Hostname or IP address to listen on. Default: `0.0.0.0`.

--port PORT

TCP port to listen on. Default: `8080`.

--listen HOST:PORT

Bind to a specific host:port pair. May be repeated for multiple listeners. Supports `*` as a wildcard host.

--threads N

Number of worker threads to handle requests. Default: `4`.

--unix-socket PATH

Path to a Unix domain socket (not available on Windows).

--unix-socket-perms OCTAL

Octal permissions for the Unix socket. Default: `600`.

--url-scheme SCHEME

Value for `wsgi.url_scheme`. Default: `http`.

--url-prefix PREFIX

Value for `SCRIPT_NAME` (for apps mounted at a sub-path). Default: empty.

--ident STRING

Server identity sent in the `Server` response header. Default: `waitress`.

--call

Treat the positional argument as a callable factory that returns the WSGI app, rather than using it directly as the app.

--connection-limit N

Maximum number of simultaneous connections. Default: `100`.

--channel-timeout SECONDS

Timeout for inactive connections. Default: `120`.

--trusted-proxy IP

IP address of a trusted reverse proxy that may supply forwarding headers.

CAVEATS

WSGI only. No ASGI support. Configure behind proxy.

HISTORY

Waitress was created by the Pylons Project as a production-quality pure-Python WSGI server.