Linux is powerful.
But when it comes to daily development workflow, it still feels like we are stitching tools together manually.
Every day I do things like:
ps aux | grep node
lsof -i :8000
ss -tulnp
kill -9 4821
Not because I like terminals, but because the system has no idea what I’m actually working on.
Linux sees processes, developers see projects — and that mismatch is the problem.
So I started building a GNOME extension called DevWatch.
The idea is simple:
What if the desktop actually understood running projects?
Instead of showing raw system data, it should understand:
- which project is running
- which port is open
- which service is active
- what build is consuming CPU
- what workspace I left yesterday
The problem nobody talks about
When you’re working on multiple projects, the OS shows this:
node
python
bash
code
But what you actually care about is:
backend-api
frontend
inventory-system
crm-tool
You don’t want to know which PID is running.
You want to know:
- which project is active
- which port is open
- which dev server is still running
- why your CPU is high
- why your fan is spinning
- what you forgot to stop yesterday
And Linux doesn’t tell you that.
So every developer builds their own workflow using:
- htop
- lsof
- ps
- ss
- tmux
- scripts
- aliases
It works.
But it’s friction.
Every day.
What I wanted instead
I wanted the panel to show something like:
Not in terminal.
Right in the desktop.
So I built it.
Introducing DevWatch
DevWatch is a GNOME extension that makes the system aware of development environments.
It detects:
- running projects
- open ports
- active services
- build activity
- saved sessions
- resource usage
And shows them in the panel.
No terminal needed.
Project-aware process tracking
Instead of random processes, DevWatch groups them by project.
Example:
Now I know what is running instantly.
Port & service awareness
Instead of:
lsof -i :8000
You see:
You can stop it from the panel.
No terminal.
Session restore (the feature I needed the most)
Every day after reboot:
- open project
- start backend
- start frontend
- open editor
- start db
So I added session snapshots.
Save workspace → restore later.
Still improving this to restore everything automatically.
Goal:
Resume dev environment instantly.
Build activity tracking
Sometimes the system becomes slow and you don’t know why.
Now I see:
No guessing.
Why I built this
Linux has amazing tools, but they are system tools.
Developers need workflow tools. We don’t think in processes — we think in projects.
DevWatch is my attempt to fix that.
Not to replace the terminal, just to remove daily friction.
Current state
The extension works locally and is still in active development.
Before publishing it publicly, I want feedback from people who actually use Linux for development.
- Would you use something like this?
- What feature is missing?
- What feels unnecessary?
- What would make this a must-have tool?
Honest feedback is welcome.
Repo
https://github.com/Adithya-Balan/DevWatch
Not looking for stars — just honest feedback before release.
If this turns out useful, I’ll publish it as a proper GNOME extension. If not, at least I learned something from building it.
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