macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install wait_onlocal Homebrew formula metadata
MacPortsverified · 94%
sudo port install wait_onMacPorts ports tree · sysutils/wait_on/Portfile · source: api.github.com
brew
Install wait_on with Homebrew, MacPorts
Provides shell scripts with access to kqueue(3). Version 1.1 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.
install
Additional install commands
overview
Package summary
Provides shell scripts with access to kqueue(3)
Project links
Commands and aliases
- wait_on
history
Project history and usage
`wait_on` is a small FreeBSD-oriented command that exposes file and directory change notifications to shell scripts. It lets scripts sleep until a watched path changes instead of polling in a loop.
Project history
The FreeBSD manual page gives the clearest project history: `wait_on` was written by Andrew Stevenson in January 2002 under FreeBSD 4.4. Its design is tied directly to kqueue, the BSD kernel event-notification facility that had recently made file, directory, and descriptor events available without busy polling.
How it is used
The command waits on one or more files or directories and exits when a requested event occurs. The manual gives examples such as watching a mailbox for writes, waiting for files to arrive in an incoming FTP directory, or using `-i` and `-t` so a script can tell which watched path changed or timed out.
Internally, `wait_on` uses kqueue's vnode notifications, including events for writes, extension, deletion, renames, link-count changes, attribute changes, and revocation. That makes it a compact bridge between shell scripting and kernel event delivery on systems with kqueue.
Why package nerds care
This is a classic small Unix package: one command, one system primitive, and a clean scripting use case. It is historically interesting because it predates the later wave of cross-platform file-watcher tools and shows early BSD users solving shell automation without periodic `stat` polling.
Timeline
- January 2002: `wait_on` was written under FreeBSD 4.4 by Andrew Stevenson.
- 2000s onward: the command remained useful as a shell-level wrapper around kqueue file and directory events.
Related projects
- The closest related primitive is kqueue itself. In the broader file-watching family, `wait_on` overlaps conceptually with inotify-based Linux tools and higher-level cross-platform watchers, but it stays intentionally close to the FreeBSD kernel interface.
Sources
security posture
Risk level: yellow
generalized runtime or code generation signal.
Risk classifier
yellow risk · medium confidence · runtime
Why
- generalized runtime or code generation signal
Signals
- text:shell
Install behavior
- No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
- Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 11 platform targets.
- Build metadata lists 1 build dependencies.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
wait_on | 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
manager updated
local dataok
upstreamnot checked
latest detectednot detected
https://www.freshports.org/sysutils/wait_on/
- infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence
- infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://www.freshports.org/sysutils/wait_on/none confidence
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:wait_on |
|---|---|
| Version | 1.1 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Package manager page | https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/wait_on |
| Homepage | https://www.freshports.org/sysutils/wait_on/ |
| Upstream docs | https://man.freebsd.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=wait_on |
| License | BSD-4-Clause |
| Source archive | https://pkg.freebsd.org/ports-distfiles/wait_on-1.1.tar.gz |
| Build dependencies | bmake |
| Bottle | available (on arm64_big_sur, arm64_monterey, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, big_sur, catalina, monterey, sonoma, ventura) |
| Homebrew post-install | not defined |
| Service | none declared |
registry facts
Source database details
| Source Database | Homebrew formula API |
|---|---|
| Tap | homebrew/core |
| Full Name | wait_on |
| Version Scheme | 0 |
| Revision | 0 |
| Requirements |
|
| Bottle Stable Root URL | https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core |
| Deprecated | no |
| Disabled | no |
| Keg Only | no |
| URL Keys |
|
source database matches
Other package-manager records
Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.
MacPorts95%
wait_on
sudo port install wait_on- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Wait On
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.
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