Lsyncd – Live Syncing Daemon

Lsyncd is a live file synchronization daemon that watches local directory trees for filesystem changes and then synchronizes those changes to a remote target.

It uses the kernel event notification interface, such as inotify on Linux and fsevents on macOS, to detect changes efficiently, then batches events for a short period before launching synchronization jobs. By default it uses rsync, making it a practical solution for keeping local directories mirrored to remote systems without requiring special filesystems or block-level replication.

This is free and open source software.

Key Features

  • Monitors local directory trees using filesystem event interfaces such as inotify and fsevents.
  • Aggregates file events before synchronizing, which helps reduce unnecessary transfer activity.
  • Uses rsync by default to synchronize changed files to remote targets.
  • Supports rsync over SSH, including handling remote moves more efficiently.
  • Offers flexible configuration through Lua-based configuration files.
  • Can be extended with custom action configurations ranging from shell scripts to Lua code.
  • Designed for lightweight one-way live mirroring of directories to remote systems.

Website: github.com/lsyncd/lsyncd
Support:
Developer: lsyncd developers
License: GNU General Public License v2.0

Lsyncd is written in Lua and C. Learn Lua with our recommended free books and free tutorials. Learn C with our recommended free books and free tutorials.


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