System Alert - Advanced macOS System Monitor

A high-performance, feature-rich system monitoring tool for macOS with special optimizations for Apple Silicon chips. This tool provides real-time system metrics with an intuitive terminal user interface, smart notifications, and comprehensive configuration options.

🎯 Overview

System Alert is a professional-grade system monitoring application designed specifically for macOS, with enhanced support for Apple Silicon processors. It offers real-time monitoring of CPU, memory, battery, temperature, network, and power consumption with a beautiful terminal-based interface.

🌟 Highlights

• 🔋 Advanced Battery Monitoring: Real-time battery health, cycle count, and charging status
• ⚡ Apple Silicon Optimization: E-cluster/P-cluster monitoring with detailed power metrics
• 🎨 Beautiful TUI Interface: Clean, organized four-quadrant layout with progress bars
• 📊 Real-time Data: Live system metrics with configurable refresh rates
• 🔔 Smart Notifications: Configurable threshold-based alerts
• ⚙️ Highly Configurable: TOML-based configuration with CLI overrides

🚀 Key Features & Optimizations

Performance Improvements

• Async Architecture: Non-blocking data collection using Tokio
• Smart Caching: PowerMetrics data cached for optimal performance
• Efficient Memory Management: Reduced allocations and optimized data structures
• Selective Refresh: Only refresh necessary system components
• Optimized Build: Release profile with LTO, size optimization, and panic=abort

Enhanced User Experience

• Four-Quadrant Layout: Brand new sectioned layout with clear information grouping
• Interactive Controls: Keyboard navigation, notification toggle, manual refresh
• Smart Notifications: Configurable thresholds with cooldown periods
• Visual Power Monitor: Beautiful bordered display with progress bars
• Minimal Mode: Lightweight display for resource-constrained scenarios

Advanced Features

• Configuration Management: TOML-based config files with CLI overrides
• Apple Silicon Metrics: E-cluster/P-cluster monitoring with power analysis
• Temperature Monitoring: Component temperature tracking with smart status indicators
• Process Analysis: Top processes by CPU usage with detailed information
• Network Statistics: Real-time network traffic monitoring
• Real-time Power Statistics: Dedicated power consumption analysis

📋 System Requirements

• macOS: 10.15+ (Optimized for Apple Silicon)
• Root Privileges: Required for accessing system metrics via powermetrics
• Rust: 1.70+ (Required for building from source)

🛠 Installation

Install from Source

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/system-alert.git
cd system-alert
cargo build --release

Quick Start

# Run with default settings
sudo cargo run

# Run with custom refresh rate
sudo cargo run -- --refresh 2

# Run in minimal mode
sudo cargo run -- --minimal

# Run with custom config
sudo cargo run -- --config custom-config.toml

🎮 Usage & Controls

Command Line Options

sudo ./target/release/system-alert [options]

Options:
  -r, --refresh <seconds>     Set refresh rate (default: 1)
  -m, --minimal              Use minimal display mode
  -c, --config <file>        Specify custom config file
  -h, --help                 Show help message
  -V, --version              Show version information

Interactive Controls

• q or Ctrl+C: Quit application
• n: Toggle notifications
• r: Force refresh

Interface Layout

The application features a modern four-quadrant layout:

1. 🔵 CPU Section (Top Left):

   • CPU core usage with individual core monitoring
   • Apple Silicon E-cluster/P-cluster metrics
   • Real-time frequency and power consumption

2. 🔴 Power Monitor (Top Right):

   • Battery status with health percentage
   • Charging state and time remaining
   • Power adapter wattage and cycle count
   • Comprehensive power analytics

3. 🟢 Memory Monitor (Bottom Left):

   • RAM usage with detailed breakdown
   • Swap memory statistics
   • Memory pressure indicators

4. 🟡 Temperature Monitor (Bottom Left):

   • Component temperature readings
   • Thermal throttling status
   • Fan speed monitoring

5. 🟣 Process Monitor (Bottom Right):

   • Top processes by CPU usage
   • Memory consumption per process
   • Real-time process statistics

6. 🔵 Network Monitor (Bottom Right):

   • Network interface statistics
   • Bytes transmitted/received
   • Packet counts and rates

⚙️ Configuration Options

Default Configuration

The application will create a config.toml file with sensible defaults:

# System Monitor Configuration
refresh_rate = 1
minimal_mode = false

[thresholds]
cpu_warning = 75.0
cpu_critical = 90.0
memory_warning = 75
memory_critical = 90
temperature_warning = 70.0
temperature_critical = 85.0

[display]
show_temperatures = true
show_network = true
show_processes = true
show_history = true
history_size = 60

[notifications]
enabled = true
cooldown_seconds = 30

Configuration Options

Main Settings

• refresh_rate: Update interval in seconds
• minimal_mode: Enable simplified interface

Threshold Settings

• cpu_warning/critical: CPU usage alert thresholds (%)
• memory_warning/critical: Memory usage alert thresholds (%)
• temperature_warning/critical: Temperature alert thresholds (°C)

Display Settings

• show_temperatures: Enable temperature monitoring
• show_network: Enable network interface monitoring
• show_processes: Enable process monitoring
• show_history: Enable historical data tracking
• history_size: Number of data points to retain

Notification Settings

• enabled: Enable/disable system notifications
• cooldown_seconds: Minimum time between notifications

🏗 Architecture Overview

Optimized architecture with separation of concerns for better maintainability and performance:

src/
├── main.rs              # Application entry point with async event loop
├── cli.rs               # Command line parsing and input handling
├── config.rs            # Configuration management (TOML)
├── data_collector.rs    # Async system data collection
├── battery_collector.rs # Advanced battery data collection
├── ui.rs                # Terminal user interface (TUI)
├── notification.rs      # Smart notification system
├── history.rs           # Historical data tracking
├── types.rs             # Data structures and types
└── system_info.rs       # Legacy compatibility module

Key Improvements

1. Separation of Concerns: Clear separation between UI, data collection, and business logic
2. Async/Await: Non-blocking operations throughout
3. Error Handling: Comprehensive error handling without panics
4. Memory Efficiency: Reduced allocations and better data structures
5. Configurability: Extensive configuration options
6. Extensibility: Modular design for easy feature addition

🔧 Performance Optimization

Build Optimization

[profile.release]
strip = true           # Remove debug symbols
opt-level = "z"        # Optimize for size
lto = true            # Link-time optimization
codegen-units = 1     # Single codegen unit for better optimization
panic = "abort"       # Smaller binary size

Runtime Optimization

• PowerMetrics Caching: Reduce expensive system calls
• Selective Data Refresh: Only update changed components
• Efficient String Handling: Minimize allocations in hot paths
• Smart Rendering: Only redraw when necessary
• Async I/O: Non-blocking system calls

🚨 Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Permission Denied

# Make sure to run with sudo
sudo cargo run

PowerMetrics Not Found

# Verify powermetrics is available (macOS only)
which powermetrics

High CPU Usage

# Increase refresh rate to reduce system load
sudo cargo run -- --refresh 5

Configuration Issues

# Reset to defaults by removing config file
rm config.toml
sudo cargo run

📊 Apple Silicon Metrics

For Apple Silicon Macs, this tool provides detailed metrics:

• E-Cluster: Efficiency core usage and frequency
• P-Cluster: Performance core usage and frequency
• Power Consumption: CPU, GPU, ANE (Neural Engine), and total package power
• Real-time Monitoring: Live updates of power states

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Feel free to submit issues, feature requests, or pull requests.

Development Setup

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/system-alert.git
cd system-alert
cargo build
cargo test

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

🙏 Acknowledgments

• Built with Rust for performance and safety
• Uses TUI-rs for terminal interface
• Leverages sysinfo for system metrics
• Powered by Tokio for async runtime