install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%

brew install lockrun

local Homebrew formula metadata

Linux

Alpine Linux apkverified · 92%

sudo apk add lockrun

Alpine Linux edge package indexes · lockrun · source: dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org

overview

Package summary

Run cron jobs with overrun protection

Project links

Commands and aliases

lockrun

history

Project history and usage

lockrun is a small public-domain Unix utility by Steve Friedl for running cron jobs with overrun protection. It wraps a command, takes an advisory file lock, and prevents overlapping invocations from piling up.

Project history

The official Unixwiz.net page explains that lockrun was created in response to network-monitoring cron jobs that could run longer than their schedule interval. The tool was designed as a protective wrapper that checks whether another protected instance is already running before launching the requested command.

lockrun is distributed as portable C source code rather than through a hosted source repository. The official page documents building it with `gcc lockrun.c -o lockrun` and installing it into `/usr/local/bin`.

Adoption history

The tool's natural audience is Unix administrators with cron jobs that must not overlap, especially polling and monitoring jobs. It was tested on FreeBSD and Linux, received a report of working on Mac OS X, and later gained portability work such as Solaris `lockf()` support.

Homebrew and Alpine packaging made the small C utility easier to install without manually downloading and compiling the source file.

How it is used

A typical crontab entry invokes `lockrun --lockfile=/var/run/name.lockrun -- command`. If the lock cannot be acquired, lockrun exits instead of launching a second copy; `--wait`, `--quiet`, `--verbose`, and `--maxtime` adjust behavior.

The official documentation warns that the lockfile should be placed in a directory protected from other users and not in `/tmp`, because a writable directory could enable symlink attacks against the lockfile path.

Why package nerds care

lockrun is package-manager-relevant because it solves a narrow operations problem with one C file and no daemon. It overlaps with `flock(1)` patterns, but its documented cron-oriented interface made it a remembered admin tool.

Its packaging story is also a reminder that not every useful Unix package has a modern VCS repository; sometimes the authoritative upstream is a source file and a carefully written HTML manual.

Timeline

2006: Initial lockrun release.
2009: Solaris 10 `lockf()` support was added.
2010: `--quiet` parameter was added.
2012: Documentation about no kill option, `--retries`, and `setsid()` support were added.

Related projects

flock(1), run-one, and daemon supervisors solve adjacent locking or single-instance execution problems.
Cacti poller scripts are used in the official documentation as a motivating cron example.

Sources

security posture

Risk level: green

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

Risk classifier

green risk · low confidence · appliance

Why

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

Signals

metadata:no-higher-risk-signals

Install behavior

No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 13 platform targets.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

executables

Installed executables

Command	Kind	Exposure	Note
`lockrun`	cli	global executable

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-07-08

manager version1.1.3

manager updated2026-05-19

local dataok

upstreamnot checked

latest detectednot detected

http://unixwiz.net/tools/lockrun.html

infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.http://unixwiz.net/tools/lockrun.htmlnone confidence

install metadata

Package metadata

Package key	brew:lockrun
Version	1.1.3
Package manager	Homebrew
Package manager page	https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/lockrun
Homepage	http://unixwiz.net/tools/lockrun.html
Upstream docs	http://unixwiz.net/tools/lockrun.html
License	LicenseRef-Homebrew-public-domain
Source archive	http://unixwiz.net/tools/lockrun.c
Last updated	2026-05-19T13:03:29-04:00
Pulse	updated
Bottle	available (on arm64_big_sur, arm64_linux, arm64_monterey, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, big_sur, catalina, monterey, sonoma, ventura, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-install	not defined
Service	none declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source Database	Homebrew formula API
Tap	homebrew/core
Full Name	lockrun
Version Scheme	0
Revision	0
Bottle Stable Root URL	https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecated	yes
Disabled	no
Keg Only	no
URL Keys	stable

source database matches

Other package-manager records

Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.

apk95%

lockrun 1.1.3-r1

Run cron job with overrun protection

http://unixwiz.net/tools/lockrun.html

sudo apk add lockrun

License: Public-Domain
Architecture: x86_64
Source Package: lockrun
1 dependencies
1 provides
normalized package name match
Matched by: Lockrun

Alpine Linux edge package indexes · dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org · Alpine Linux edge package indexes: lockrun from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/testing/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub.

combined/lockrun.yml

Used sources

Geiger risk classifier
Nucleus package database
av.db category and tag curation
cross-ecosystem install command graph
curated package history
external package-manager database matches
package relationship graph
package version freshness
package-page enrichment

Install lockrun with Homebrew, apk