witr
A tool for tracing the startup chain of processes, ports, containers, or files
About witr
witr maps processes, ports, services, containers, and commands to a PID, then builds a causal chain explaining how that PID came into existence. It supports exploring processes, ports, containers, and file locks through a single command's output, machine-readable JSON, or an interactive terminal interface, making it suitable for troubleshooting objects indirectly started by supervisors, containers, services, or shells in a system.
Best for
Best use cases
Trace which process occupies a port
Identify where a process or service was started
Analyze process relationships between containers and commands
Explore file locks and related processes
Features
Causal chain tracing
Builds a causal chain explaining why a process exists, starting from its PID.
Interactive terminal interface
Explore processes, ports, containers, and file locks in real time across four tabs.
Cross-platform support
Supports Linux, macOS, Windows, and FreeBSD in a single static binary.
Pros
- Supports Linux, macOS, Windows, and FreeBSD
- Provides command-line, JSON, and interactive terminal interfaces
Cons
- Checking system directories may require elevated privileges