CloudWatch Log Tailer (cwtch)

A simple CLI tool to easily search, tail, and manage CloudWatch log groups. Built with TypeScript.

Features

• Search for CloudWatch log groups with pattern matching
• Filter logs with specific keywords or patterns
• Tail logs in real-time with optional filtering
• Save and manage favorite log groups for quick access
• Track recent searches for easy reuse
• Color-coded output for better readability
• Fully typed with TypeScript

Installation

# Install globally
npm install -g cwtch

# Or use with npx
npx cwtch

Development Setup

# Clone the repository
# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build the TypeScript code
npm run build

# Run in development mode with auto-recompile
npm run dev

Make sure you have AWS credentials configured via:

• AWS CLI (aws configure)
• Environment variables (AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID, AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY)
• Shared credentials file (~/.aws/credentials)
• IAM role when running on AWS resources (EC2, Lambda, etc.)

AWS Permissions Required

Your AWS credentials need the following permissions:

• logs:DescribeLogGroups
• logs:GetLogEvents
• logs:FilterLogEvents

Usage

Basic Usage

# Search and tail logs (interactive mode)
cwl [search_term]

# Quick access to favorite logs
cwl -f <favorite_keyword>

# Quick access with filtering
cwl -f <favorite_keyword> -k "error"

Available Commands

# Search for log groups and tail logs
cwl search [query]

# Filter logs for specific text
cwl filter <logGroupName> "<pattern>" [options]
cwl filter <favorite_keyword> "<pattern>" [options]

# Filter options:
#   -s, --start-time <time>  Start time in ISO format or minutes ago (e.g., "30m")
#   -e, --end-time <time>    End time in ISO format (defaults to now)

# Add a log group to favorites
cwl favorite <keyword> <logGroupName>
cwl fav <keyword> <logGroupName>

# List all favorites
cwl list-favorites
cwl ls

# Remove a favorite
cwl remove-favorite <keyword>
cwl rm <keyword>

# View recent searches
cwl recent

# Show help
cwl --help

Examples

# Search for all log groups containing "production"
cwl production

# Tail logs from a favorite log group with keyword "api"
cwl -f api

# Tail logs with filtering for errors
cwl -f api -k "ERROR"

# Add a log group to favorites
cwl favorite api /aws/lambda/production-api-service

# List all favorites
cwl ls

# Search logs from the last hour with a specific pattern
cwl filter api "timeout" --start-time "60m"

License

MIT