---
name: "lidwatch"
subtitle: "Sleeps a docked MacBook when you close the lid"
date: 2026-07-13
link: "https://github.com/KristijanKocev/lidwatch"
linkText: "GitHub"
source: "Hacker News — Show HN"
topics: [macos-apps, cli-and-automation]
tags: [open-source, background-service, utility]
description: "A lightweight background service that overrides macOS's default clamshell behavior so a MacBook with an external display actually sleeps when the lid closes."
---

macOS deliberately stays awake in clamshell mode whenever an external display is connected and power is plugged in — lidwatch overrides exactly that one behavior, sending the Mac to sleep when the lid closes regardless. It runs as a `brew services` background daemon rather than a menu-bar app, by design: the author wanted something you enable once and forget, not another icon competing for space. It reacts to native macOS lid-state, power, and display-connection events directly instead of polling every few seconds, which is what caused a competing tool to occasionally sleep the Mac with the lid still open.