Monitor directory listing for changes?

Question

On a unix system, how do I monitor (like how \'tail\' works) a directory for changes made to files - either new ones created, or size changes, etc.

Looking for a com

Answer 1

you can craft your own then if you don't want to install tools. Just an idea. Create a base line file of your directory using find command. Use a loop or cron job, find the directory using the same parameters, and check the new file against the base line file. Use a tool like diff to get the differences..

eg

find /path [other options] >> baseline.txt 
while true #or use a cron job
do
  find /path [same options] >> listing.txt
  diff baseline.txt listing.txt
  # do processing here...
  mv listing.txt baseline.txt  # update the baseline.
  sleep 60
done