diff --git a/src/api/dev.ts b/src/api/dev.ts
index 524a4f9..4a20a3c 100644
--- a/src/api/dev.ts
+++ b/src/api/dev.ts
@@ -6,7 +6,6 @@ import * as ports from 'port-authority';
 import mkdirp from 'mkdirp';
 import rimraf from 'rimraf';
 import format_messages from 'webpack-format-messages';
-import prettyMs from 'pretty-ms';
 import { locations } from '../config';
 import { EventEmitter } from 'events';
 import { create_routes, create_main_manifests, create_compilers, create_serviceworker_manifest } from '../core';
@@ -172,6 +171,14 @@ class Watcher extends EventEmitter {
 						}, process.env),
 						stdio: ['ipc']
 					});
+
+					this.proc.on('message', message => {
+						if (message.__sapper__ && message.event === 'basepath') {
+							this.emit('basepath', {
+								basepath: message.basepath
+							});
+						}
+					});
 				});
 			}
 		});
diff --git a/src/api/export.ts b/src/api/export.ts
index 9e764c4..f0a0a57 100644
--- a/src/api/export.ts
+++ b/src/api/export.ts
@@ -66,7 +66,7 @@ async function execute(emitter: EventEmitter, {
 	const saved = new Set();
 
 	proc.on('message', message => {
-		if (!message.__sapper__) return;
+		if (!message.__sapper__ || message.event !== 'file') return;
 
 		let file = new URL(message.url, origin).pathname.slice(1);
 		let { body } = message;
diff --git a/src/middleware.ts b/src/middleware.ts
index bf9d3bd..1c5ef09 100644
--- a/src/middleware.ts
+++ b/src/middleware.ts
@@ -1,15 +1,12 @@
 import * as fs from 'fs';
 import * as path from 'path';
-import { resolve, URL } from 'url';
+import { URL } from 'url';
 import { ClientRequest, ServerResponse } from 'http';
 import cookie from 'cookie';
-import mkdirp from 'mkdirp';
-import rimraf from 'rimraf';
 import devalue from 'devalue';
 import fetch from 'node-fetch';
 import { lookup } from './middleware/mime';
 import { locations, dev } from './config';
-import { Route, Template } from './interfaces';
 import sourceMapSupport from 'source-map-support';
 
 sourceMapSupport.install();
@@ -61,6 +58,8 @@ export default function middleware({ App, routes, store }: {
 
 	const client_assets = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(path.join(output, 'client_assets.json'), 'utf-8'));
 
+	let emitted_basepath = false;
+
 	const middleware = compose_handlers([
 		(req: Req, res: ServerResponse, next: () => void) => {
 			if (req.baseUrl === undefined) {
@@ -69,6 +68,16 @@ export default function middleware({ App, routes, store }: {
 					: '';
 			}
 
+			if (!emitted_basepath && process.send) {
+				process.send({
+					__sapper__: true,
+					event: 'basepath',
+					basepath: req.baseUrl
+				});
+
+				emitted_basepath = true;
+			}
+
 			if (req.path === undefined) {
 				req.path = req.url.replace(/\?.*/, '');
 			}
@@ -139,8 +148,6 @@ function serve({ prefix, pathname, cache_control }: {
 	};
 }
 
-const resolved = Promise.resolve();
-
 function get_route_handler(chunks: Record<string, string>, App: Component, routes: RouteObject[], store_getter: (req: Req) => Store) {
 	const template = dev()
 		? () => fs.readFileSync(`${locations.app()}/template.html`, 'utf-8')
@@ -281,6 +288,7 @@ function get_route_handler(chunks: Record<string, string>, App: Component, route
 						if (process.send) {
 							process.send({
 								__sapper__: true,
+								event: 'file',
 								url: req.url,
 								method: req.method,
 								status: 200,
@@ -320,6 +328,7 @@ function get_route_handler(chunks: Record<string, string>, App: Component, route
 
 								process.send({
 									__sapper__: true,
+									event: 'file',
 									url: req.url,
 									method: req.method,
 									status: res.statusCode,
@@ -451,10 +460,6 @@ function compose_handlers(handlers: Handler[]) {
 	};
 }
 
-function read_json(file: string) {
-	return JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(file, 'utf-8'));
-}
-
 function try_serialize(data: any) {
 	try {
 		return devalue(data);
diff --git a/test/common/test.js b/test/common/test.js
index 2ed5311..19028dc 100644
--- a/test/common/test.js
+++ b/test/common/test.js
@@ -133,6 +133,7 @@ function run({ mode, basepath = '' }) {
 		let capture;
 
 		let base;
+		let captured_basepath;
 
 		const nightmare = new Nightmare();
 
@@ -179,7 +180,13 @@ function run({ mode, basepath = '' }) {
 				let handler;
 
 				proc.on('message', message => {
-					if (message.__sapper__) return;
+					if (message.__sapper__) {
+						if (message.event === 'basepath') {
+							captured_basepath = basepath;
+						}
+						return;
+					}
+
 					if (handler) handler(message);
 				});
 
@@ -597,6 +604,10 @@ function run({ mode, basepath = '' }) {
 						assert.ok(!hasProgressIndicator);
 					});
 			});
+
+			it('emits a basepath', () => {
+				assert.equal(captured_basepath, basepath);
+			});
 		});
 
 		describe('headers', () => {