diff --git a/cmd/helm/delete.go b/cmd/helm/delete.go
index dabc11c76..73187ee82 100644
--- a/cmd/helm/delete.go
+++ b/cmd/helm/delete.go
@@ -18,12 +18,13 @@ deleting them.
 var deleteDryRun bool
 
 var deleteCommand = &cobra.Command{
-	Use:        "delete [flags] RELEASE_NAME",
-	Aliases:    []string{"del"},
-	SuggestFor: []string{"remove", "rm"},
-	Short:      "Given a release name, delete the release from Kubernetes",
-	Long:       deleteDesc,
-	RunE:       delRelease,
+	Use:               "delete [flags] RELEASE_NAME",
+	Aliases:           []string{"del"},
+	SuggestFor:        []string{"remove", "rm"},
+	Short:             "Given a release name, delete the release from Kubernetes",
+	Long:              deleteDesc,
+	RunE:              delRelease,
+	PersistentPreRunE: setupConnection,
 }
 
 func init() {
diff --git a/cmd/helm/get.go b/cmd/helm/get.go
index 9bc976d8f..015cb815b 100644
--- a/cmd/helm/get.go
+++ b/cmd/helm/get.go
@@ -46,10 +46,11 @@ var getOut = ""
 var errReleaseRequired = errors.New("release name is required")
 
 var getCommand = &cobra.Command{
-	Use:   "get [flags] RELEASE_NAME",
-	Short: "Download a named release",
-	Long:  getHelp,
-	RunE:  getCmd,
+	Use:               "get [flags] RELEASE_NAME",
+	Short:             "Download a named release",
+	Long:              getHelp,
+	RunE:              getCmd,
+	PersistentPreRunE: setupConnection,
 }
 
 var getValuesCommand = &cobra.Command{
diff --git a/cmd/helm/helm.go b/cmd/helm/helm.go
index 9590ead7e..d995f5eaf 100644
--- a/cmd/helm/helm.go
+++ b/cmd/helm/helm.go
@@ -35,22 +35,22 @@ It will also set up any necessary local configuration.
 
 Common actions from this point include:
 
-- helm search: search for charts
-- helm fetch: download a chart to your local directory to view
-- helm install: upload the chart to Kubernetes
-- helm list: list releases of charts
+- helm search:    search for charts
+- helm fetch:     download a chart to your local directory to view
+- helm install:   upload the chart to Kubernetes
+- helm list:      list releases of charts
 
 Environment:
-  $HELM_HOME    Set an alternative location for Helm files. By default, these are stored in ~/.helm
-  $HELM_HOST  Set an alternative Tiller host. The format is host:port (default ":44134").
+  $HELM_HOME      Set an alternative location for Helm files. By default, these are stored in ~/.helm
+  $HELM_HOST      Set an alternative Tiller host. The format is host:port (default ":44134").
 `
 
 // RootCommand is the top-level command for Helm.
 var RootCommand = &cobra.Command{
-	Use:              "helm",
-	Short:            "The Helm package manager for Kubernetes.",
-	Long:             globalUsage,
-	PersistentPreRun: bootstrap,
+	Use:               "helm",
+	Short:             "The Helm package manager for Kubernetes.",
+	Long:              globalUsage,
+	PersistentPostRun: teardown,
 }
 
 func init() {
@@ -59,9 +59,6 @@ func init() {
 		home = "$HOME/.helm"
 	}
 	thost := os.Getenv(hostEnvVar)
-	if thost == "" {
-		thost = defaultHost
-	}
 	p := RootCommand.PersistentFlags()
 	p.StringVar(&helmHome, "home", home, "location of your Helm config. Overrides $HELM_HOME.")
 	p.StringVar(&tillerHost, "host", thost, "address of tiller. Overrides $HELM_HOST.")
@@ -74,12 +71,32 @@ func main() {
 	}
 }
 
-func bootstrap(c *cobra.Command, args []string) {
+func setupConnection(c *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
+	if tillerHost == "" {
+		// Should failure fall back to default host?
+		tunnel, err := newTillerPortForwarder()
+		if err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+
+		tillerHost = fmt.Sprintf(":%d", tunnel.Local)
+		if flagVerbose {
+			fmt.Printf("Created tunnel using local port: '%d'\n", tunnel.Local)
+		}
+	}
+
 	// Set up the gRPC config.
 	helm.Config.ServAddr = tillerHost
 	if flagVerbose {
 		fmt.Printf("Server: %q\n", helm.Config.ServAddr)
 	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+func teardown(c *cobra.Command, args []string) {
+	if tunnel != nil {
+		tunnel.Close()
+	}
 }
 
 func checkArgsLength(expectedNum, actualNum int, requiredArgs ...string) error {
diff --git a/cmd/helm/install.go b/cmd/helm/install.go
index 3863a0a69..c1a260cda 100644
--- a/cmd/helm/install.go
+++ b/cmd/helm/install.go
@@ -35,10 +35,11 @@ var (
 )
 
 var installCmd = &cobra.Command{
-	Use:   "install [CHART]",
-	Short: "install a chart archive.",
-	Long:  installDesc,
-	RunE:  runInstall,
+	Use:               "install [CHART]",
+	Short:             "install a chart archive.",
+	Long:              installDesc,
+	RunE:              runInstall,
+	PersistentPreRunE: setupConnection,
 }
 
 func init() {
diff --git a/cmd/helm/list.go b/cmd/helm/list.go
index 1f1bd0fca..2a8751845 100644
--- a/cmd/helm/list.go
+++ b/cmd/helm/list.go
@@ -37,11 +37,12 @@ flag with the '--offset' flag allows you to page through results.
 `
 
 var listCommand = &cobra.Command{
-	Use:     "list [flags] [FILTER]",
-	Short:   "List releases",
-	Long:    listHelp,
-	RunE:    listCmd,
-	Aliases: []string{"ls"},
+	Use:               "list [flags] [FILTER]",
+	Short:             "List releases",
+	Long:              listHelp,
+	RunE:              listCmd,
+	Aliases:           []string{"ls"},
+	PersistentPreRunE: setupConnection,
 }
 
 var (
diff --git a/cmd/helm/status.go b/cmd/helm/status.go
index 7a14cc6f0..6e6afa97c 100644
--- a/cmd/helm/status.go
+++ b/cmd/helm/status.go
@@ -13,10 +13,11 @@ This command shows the status of a named release.
 `
 
 var statusCommand = &cobra.Command{
-	Use:   "status [flags] RELEASE_NAME",
-	Short: "Displays the status of the named release",
-	Long:  statusHelp,
-	RunE:  status,
+	Use:               "status [flags] RELEASE_NAME",
+	Short:             "Displays the status of the named release",
+	Long:              statusHelp,
+	RunE:              status,
+	PersistentPreRunE: setupConnection,
 }
 
 func init() {
diff --git a/cmd/helm/tunnel.go b/cmd/helm/tunnel.go
index 34e696e51..97de02960 100644
--- a/cmd/helm/tunnel.go
+++ b/cmd/helm/tunnel.go
@@ -9,12 +9,17 @@ import (
 	"github.com/kubernetes/helm/pkg/kube"
 )
 
+// TODO refactor out this global var
+var tunnel *kube.Tunnel
+
 func newTillerPortForwarder() (*kube.Tunnel, error) {
 	podName, err := getTillerPodName("helm")
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, err
 	}
-	return kube.New(nil).ForwardPort("helm", podName, 44134)
+	// FIXME use a constain that is accessable on init
+	const tillerPort = 44134
+	return kube.New(nil).ForwardPort("helm", podName, tillerPort)
 }
 
 func getTillerPodName(namespace string) (string, error) {
@@ -23,6 +28,7 @@ func getTillerPodName(namespace string) (string, error) {
 		return "", err
 	}
 
+	// TODO use a const for labels
 	selector := labels.Set{"app": "helm", "name": "tiller"}.AsSelector()
 	options := api.ListOptions{LabelSelector: selector}
 	pods, err := client.Pods(namespace).List(options)