Linux in a Nutshell, Fourth Edition

Name

watch

Synopsis

watch
  { { on | off } | { add | remove } [ -a action ] }
  [ -l | -R ]
  file ...

The watch command controls CVS’s edit tracking mechanism. By default, CVS operates in its concurrent development mode, allowing any user to edit any file at any time. CVS includes this watch mechanism to support developers who would rather be notified of edits made by others proactively than discover them when doing an update. The CVSROOT/notify file determines how notifications are performed.

Table 15-27 shows the watch subcommands and their uses.

Table 15-27. watch subcommands

Subcommand	Description
add	Start watching files.
off	Turn off watching.
on	Turn on watching.
remove	Stop watching files.

The standard meanings of the common client options -l and -R apply. The only other option that can be used with the watch command is -a action. The -a option is used in conjunction with one of the actions listed in Table 15-28.

Table 15-28. watch Actions

Action	Description
all	All of the following.
commit	A user has committed changes.
edit	A user ran cvs edit.
none	Don’t watch. Used by the edit command.
unedit	A user ran cvs unedit, cvs release, or deleted the file and ran cvs update, re-creating it.

See also edit, editors, unedit, and watchers.