Menu bar app for the Mac
How is your server doing right now?
ServerWatch polls a small script on your own server and shows CPU, RAM, load, disk and uptime right in the menu bar: as a number, a live graph, or both. No cloud service in between. The app talks to your server and to nothing else, unless you set up more yourself. Add a Docker overview, an incident log and a status page of your own for anyone who only needs the current state.
14 days with the full Pro feature set, then the Free limits apply. Everything you have stored stays put.
Monitoring in three steps
Required: macOS 14 or later for the app, plus a Linux server with PHP and a web server such as Apache or Nginx that can serve a single PHP file.
Upload the script
ServerWatch generates the PHP script with your API key already inserted. Upload it once to a folder your web server can reach, such as httpdocs/.
Connect
Enter the server address in the app and test the connection. A Linux server with PHP and a web server such as Apache or Nginx is all it takes, no agent installation required.
Done
The menu bar, dashboard, history and alerts start working right away, at the interval you choose: 30 seconds on Free, from 5 seconds on Pro.
Everything you see
Six views from the app, all in dark appearance. ServerWatch works in light appearance too. Every card opens into full resolution on click.
Live dashboard
Server map
Incident timeline
Thresholds and webhooks
Menu bar
Widgets
Your own live page
A status page your server serves by itself
No export from the app and no snapshot: the agent on your server renders the page live and refreshes it every 30 seconds on its own. You need no separate server for the page either, it runs on the same PHP script as the monitoring itself.
Dark
Light
Mobile
- Off by default, you turn it on per server.
- Shows only rounded percentages, load and uptime, never processes, containers, IP addresses or the hostname.
- Optionally reachable only with a link token; without the right token the page returns 404, never an access-denied message.
Free or Pro, one glance settles it
| Feature | Free | Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Servers monitored at once | 1 | 10 |
| Poll interval | from 30 seconds | from 5 seconds |
| Interactive charts (1h/6h/24h/7d) | Not included | Included |
| Top processes | Not included | Included |
| Docker monitoring | Not included | Included |
| Trend alerts with projection | Not included | Included |
| Webhooks (Slack, Discord, Telegram, PagerDuty, URL) | Included | Included |
| Public status page | Included | Included |
| Widgets and Siri shortcuts | Included | Included |
Free and Pro share the same install. A license key in Settings turns Pro on right away, with no server to set up again.
Pay once, use it for good
€29 one-off, VAT included. No subscription, no monthly charge. The full version runs free for fourteen days, then you decide.
- 14 days of the full Pro feature set to try
- 10 servers, polling from 5 seconds
- License key by email after purchase, checked offline
- Valid on all your own Macs
- Updates included
What ServerWatch sees, and what it does not
A tool with access to your servers needs a clear line for where the reading stops. These four points cover the essentials, the full explanation lives on its own page.
No telemetry
ServerWatch measures and sends nothing about how you use the app itself.
Everything stays local
Server addresses in macOS settings, API keys and SSH passwords in the Keychain, 30 days of metric history in a local database.
Five connection cases, no others
To your servers, to your webhook targets when an alert fires, to Apple for map tiles and location lookup, and to the update server only if you turn on update checking yourself.
Status page without detail
Shows only rounded percentages, load and uptime, never processes, containers, IP addresses or the hostname.
Frequently asked questions about ServerWatch
What is ServerWatch?
A macOS menu bar app that monitors your own Linux servers. A small PHP script on your server supplies the values, ServerWatch polls it on a schedule, and shows CPU, RAM, load, disk and uptime right in the menu bar, plus a detailed dashboard with history.
How secure is the agent on my server?
Every request needs the API key in the X-API-Key header; without a matching key the script replies with 401. Use HTTPS for the server address so the key never travels in plain text. The script also rate-limits itself to one request per second per sender IP.
Where does my data live?
Server addresses and settings sit in macOS settings, API keys and SSH passwords in the Keychain, and 30 days of metric history in a SQLite database under ~/Library/Application Support/ServerWatch/. All of it stays on your Mac.
What is the difference between Free and Pro?
Free monitors 1 server every 30 seconds with the core metrics CPU, RAM, load and disk. The €29 Pro license adds up to 10 servers, polling from 5 seconds, interactive charts, top processes, Docker monitoring and trend alerts: one-off, no subscription.
How long does the trial run, and what happens after?
A 14-day trial with the full Pro feature set starts on first launch, no sign-up needed. Once it ends, the Free limits apply without a license. Extra servers pause visibly, nothing gets deleted; activate a license later and they simply resume.
Can I use my license on more than one Mac?
Yes. One license covers all your Macs, with no activation limit and no account behind it. Enter the same key on the second machine; the check runs offline there too.
How does Docker monitoring work?
Once the script detects Docker on your server, ServerWatch shows every container with name, image, status, CPU and RAM usage, network and block I/O, and port mappings. The web server user needs no Docker permissions of its own; a cron job writes the values to a cache file.
What is the status page, and what does it never show?
A public, live-updating page that your agent serves by itself, no export, no snapshot. It shows CPU, RAM, disk and load as rings and bars, plus uptime and a 24-hour history. It never shows processes, containers, IP addresses or your server's hostname.
How do I set up a webhook?
In Settings under Webhooks, enter a name and the webhook URL and pick a template: ready-made ones exist for Slack, Discord, Telegram, PagerDuty and a free-form JSON option. From then on, ServerWatch sends a message automatically for every new incident.
Also running on your Mac already? Mausmeter counts how many metres your mouse covers every day. Go to Mausmeter
Ready to keep an eye on your server?
Fourteen days free, with the full feature set. The script takes a minute to upload, and the first reading appears after the first poll. There is nothing to cancel, since there was never a subscription.