fswatch ☆

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Description:
Monitor a directory for changes and run a shell command

Type: Formula | Tracked Since: Dec 28, 2025

Links: Homepage | formulae.brew.sh

Category: Developer tools

Tags: file-monitoring developer-tools automation cli watcher

Install: brew install fswatch

About:
Fswatch is a cross-platform file change monitor that leverages native system APIs to detect filesystem events efficiently. It allows users to execute arbitrary shell commands or scripts whenever changes are detected in specified paths. This makes it an essential tool for automating development workflows like live-reloading, builds, or notifications.

Key Features:

Cross-platform support using native OS APIs (inotify, FSEvents, etc.)
Flexible event filtering by path, filename, or event type
Executes user-defined shell commands or scripts on triggers
Low-latency and CPU-efficient monitoring

Use Cases:

Automatically recompiling code or restarting a server on file changes
Triggering deployment scripts or linters when source files are updated
Sending desktop notifications for specific file modifications

Alternatives:

inotify-tools – Linux-specific and simpler, whereas fswatch is cross-platform and more feature-rich.
watchman – Developed by Meta, focused on large repos and indexing; fswatch is lighter and easier to configure for simple tasks.

Version History

Detected	Version	Rev	Change	Commit
Sep 11, 2025 8:19am		0	VERSION_BUMP	0acd0542