https://github.com/gufranco/tmux-autoreload-revamped
Auto-reload your tmux config on save. fswatch, inotifywait, or a pure-shell polling fallback (no entr), one watcher per server, no stacking. 95%+ tested
https://github.com/gufranco/tmux-autoreload-revamped
autoreload bash config-reload dotfiles file-watcher fswatch inotify shell tmux tmux-plugin tpm
Last synced: 7 days ago
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Auto-reload your tmux config on save. fswatch, inotifywait, or a pure-shell polling fallback (no entr), one watcher per server, no stacking. 95%+ tested
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/gufranco/tmux-autoreload-revamped
- Owner: gufranco
- License: mit
- Created: 2026-06-22T19:52:00.000Z (9 days ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2026-06-22T23:23:50.000Z (9 days ago)
- Last Synced: 2026-06-23T01:12:08.674Z (9 days ago)
- Topics: autoreload, bash, config-reload, dotfiles, file-watcher, fswatch, inotify, shell, tmux, tmux-plugin, tpm
- Language: Shell
- Size: 21.5 KB
- Stars: 0
- Watchers: 0
- Forks: 0
- Open Issues: 0
-
Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.md
- Changelog: CHANGELOG.md
- License: LICENSE
Awesome Lists containing this project
README
tmux-autoreload-revamped
**Edit your tmux config, save, and watch it reload itself, no key, no command.**
[](https://github.com/gufranco/tmux-autoreload-revamped/actions/workflows/tests.yml) [](LICENSE)
**3** watcher backends · **no entr** · **tmux 1.9 to 3.5** · **42** tests · **95%+** coverage
Watches every loaded tmux config file and sources it the moment it changes. It uses `fswatch` or `inotifywait` when they are installed, and a built-in polling loop otherwise, so it works out of the box with no extra dependency. One watcher per server, tracked by pid, so reloads never stack up.
Built from [tmux-plugin-template](https://github.com/gufranco/tmux-plugin-template).
Three backends
fswatch, inotifywait, or a pure-shell poll fallback, picked automatically.
No dependency
The poll fallback needs nothing but tmux and a shell. No entr, no Python.
No stacking
The watcher pid lives in a server option; each load kills the previous watcher first.
Watches everything
Every file tmux actually loaded, plus any extra files you name.
## Usage
Install it and forget it. Save your `~/.tmux.conf`, or any sourced file, and tmux reloads on its own with a brief "tmux config reloaded" message.
## Install
With [TPM](https://github.com/tmux-plugins/tpm), add to `~/.tmux.conf`:
```tmux
set -g @plugin 'gufranco/tmux-autoreload-revamped'
```
Press `prefix + I`. For event-driven reloads install [fswatch](https://github.com/emcrisostomo/fswatch) or inotify-tools; without them the polling fallback takes over automatically.
## Configuration
| Option | Default | Meaning |
|--------|---------|---------|
| `@autoreload_revamped_files` | empty | the exact files to watch, comma or space separated, with `~` expanded; when set it replaces the default, so you can watch only your own config. Empty means watch every file tmux loaded |
| `@autoreload_revamped_entrypoints` | loaded config | files to source on reload |
| `@autoreload_revamped_interval` | `2` | seconds between checks in the polling fallback |
| `@autoreload_revamped_quiet` | `0` | set to `1` to suppress the reload message |
## Compatibility
Works on every tmux version TPM supports, 1.9 and up, on Linux (x86_64 and arm64) and macOS (Intel and Apple Silicon). The mtime check reads GNU `stat -c` first and BSD `stat -f` as a fallback, so it is correct on Linux, on native macOS, and on a Mac with GNU coreutils in `PATH`. The `#{config_files}` source list needs tmux 3.2 and up; on older tmux, name your files with `@autoreload_revamped_files`.
## Development
```bash
make test # bats suite
make lint # shellcheck
make coverage # kcov line coverage on Linux
```
Watcher selection, change detection, and path normalization live in [`src/lib/autoreload/autoreload.sh`](src/lib/autoreload/autoreload.sh) as pure functions, with the blocking watch loop split behind seams so the reload logic is fully tested without a real watcher.
## License
[MIT](LICENSE), copyright Gustavo Franco.