Watch sandbox directory for changes

You can watch a directory for changes using the files.watchDir() method in JavaScript and files.watch_dir() method in Python.

Since events are tracked asynchronously, their delivery may be delayed. It’s recommended not to collect or close watcher immediately after making a change.

JavaScript & TypeScript

import { Sandbox, FilesystemEventType } from 'e2b'

const sandbox = await Sandbox.create()
const dirname = '/home/user'

// Start watching directory for changes
const handle = await sandbox.files.watchDir(dirname, async (event) => {
  console.log(event)
  if (event.type === FilesystemEventType.WRITE) {
    console.log(`wrote to file ${event.name}`)
  }
})

// Trigger file write event
await sandbox.files.write(`${dirname}/my-file`, 'hello')

from e2b import Sandbox, FilesystemEventType

sandbox = Sandbox.create()
dirname = '/home/user'

# Watch directory for changes
handle = sandbox.files.watch_dir(dirname)
# Trigger file write event
sandbox.files.write(f"{dirname}/my-file", "hello")

# Retrieve the latest new events since the last `get_new_events()` call
events = handle.get_new_events()
for event in events:
  print(event)
  if event.type == FilesystemEventType.WRITE:
    print(f"wrote to file {event.name}")

Recursive watching

You can enable recursive watching using the parameter recursive.

When rapidly creating new folders (e.g., deeply nested path of folders), events other than CREATE might not be emitted. To avoid this behavior, create the required folder structure in advance.

JavaScript & TypeScript

import { Sandbox, FilesystemEventType } from 'e2b'

const sandbox = await Sandbox.create()
const dirname = '/home/user'

// Start watching directory for changes
const handle = await sandbox.files.watchDir(dirname, async (event) => {
  console.log(event)
  if (event.type === FilesystemEventType.WRITE) {
    console.log(`wrote to file ${event.name}`)
  }
}, {
  recursive: true
})

// Trigger file write event
await sandbox.files.write(`${dirname}/my-folder/my-file`, 'hello')

from e2b import Sandbox, FilesystemEventType

sandbox = Sandbox.create()
dirname = '/home/user'

# Watch directory for changes
handle = sandbox.files.watch_dir(dirname, recursive=True)
# Trigger file write event
sandbox.files.write(f"{dirname}/my-folder/my-file", "hello")

# Retrieve the latest new events since the last `get_new_events()` call
events = handle.get_new_events()
for event in events:
  print(event)
  if event.type == FilesystemEventType.WRITE:
    print(f"wrote to file {event.name}")