FAQ

Does Portal support browser transfers?

Not yet. CLI to Browser and Browser to CLI are both planned, but the currently shipped workflow is CLI to CLI.

Does Portal require a central server?

Not for the CLI transfer path documented here. Discovery uses local-network multicast, and the payload itself moves directly over TCP between the two machines.

What does identity verification mean in discovery mode?

The receiver advertises a node ID in its UDP beacon, then sends the same ID again after the TCP connection is opened. The sender compares both values and aborts if they do not match.

Why is there no identity verification in direct IP mode?

Because direct IP skips discovery entirely. Without the discovery beacon, there is no expected node ID to compare against.

What does portal config set do if I never ran setup?

It can still create a config file. The command loads an existing config if there is one, but it can also initialize an empty config and write just the key you set.

What does Portal store in history?

More than just a success marker. History records can include mode, status, peer details, intended and actual item counts, intended and actual byte totals, transfer descriptions, receiver path, and failure errors.