zaz

zaz :: putting the zaz in pizzazz

A modern file-watching task runner and process manager for development environments, heavily inspired by modd.

Quick Start

Create a zaz.toml in your project root:

[[group]]
name = "backend"
patterns = ["**/*.go"]

[[group.task]]
name = "build"
command = "go build -o ./bin/server ./cmd/server"

[[group.daemon]]
name = "server"
command = "./bin/server"

Run zaz:

zaz

Minimal Configuration

The simplest valid configuration requires at least one group with a name and either patterns or commands:

[[group]]
name = "example"
patterns = ["**/*.txt"]

Or in JSON:

{
  "groups": [
    {
      "name": "example",
      "patterns": ["**/*.txt"]
    }
  ]
}

Configuration Reference

See docs/configuration.md for the complete configuration reference.

Commands

zaz                 # Start TUI mode (default)
zaz task            # Run task commands once and exit
zaz daemon          # Start as background daemon
zaz status          # Show daemon status
zaz restart [group] # Restart a group (or all)
zaz stop            # Stop the daemon
zaz ignores         # Show default ignore patterns

TUI Options

zaz --full          # Full style: split panes with group tree + logs
zaz --minimal       # Minimal style: one pane per task
zaz --no-autostart  # Don't auto-start daemon when TUI starts

Press F1/F2 to switch between Full and Minimal styles at runtime.

User Configuration

User preferences are stored separately from project configuration at ~/.config/zaz/config.toml (following XDG Base Directory specification):

# Don't auto-start daemon when running TUI
no_autostart = false

# Disable blinking/animation effects
disable_animations = false

# Default TUI style: "full" or "minimal"
tui_style = "full"

These settings are optional - zaz works fine without a user config file. CLI flags take precedence over user config values.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Navigation

Key	Action
j/k, ↓/↑	Move down/up
h/l, ←/→	Move left/right
Tab	Switch focus/pane
g/G	Go to top/bottom of logs
PgUp/PgDn	Scroll logs by page

Actions

Key	Action
r	Restart selected group
R	Restart all groups
c	Clear logs
F	Toggle follow mode

Search & Filter

Key	Action
/	Start search
f	Start filter
n/N	Next/previous match
Esc	Clear search/filter

Style

Key	Action
F1	Switch to Full style
F2	Switch to Minimal style
[/]	Previous/next page (Minimal, >6 tasks)

General

Key	Action
q	Quit
?	Toggle help overlay

License

MIT