Focus Sentinel

A local-first focus companion for the Mac

One priority, kept in view.

Write down the one thing that matters today. Focus Sentinel watches which app is in front, notices when you drift from it, and asks before it assumes. It keeps no score, and nothing it learns leaves your Mac unless you switch that on.

Watch releases on GitHub See what is left to ship

Not released yet. On GitHub, choose Watch, then Custom, then Releases, and GitHub tells you when the first signed build is out. Needs macOS 26 or later; built and tested on Apple silicon.

How a day goes

Four moments, in order.

No dashboard to tend. Write a sentence, start a session, answer the odd question, and read the record when you like.

  1. Write the priority as one sentence.

    Focus keeps one. A new one replaces it and the old one moves to Recent. If the sentence has no verb or no outcome, Focus offers a rewrite; your wording still wins. Add a Done when line so finished is clear. Focus can also ask once a day, when it first opens: what is the one thing today?

    Priority Draft the grant budget  ·  Done when Every line has a number

  2. Start a session, timeboxed if you like.

    Pause it, take a break, log a detour when you leave on purpose, and finish when you stop. Stop with a note to record what happened and where to pick up; every field is optional. The timer lives in the menu bar.

  3. Get a question, not a verdict.

    Focus checks the app in front against the priority and the rules you have made for it. Drift for a while and the menu-bar mark changes; nothing else happens. Drift longer and a small panel names the app and offers a way back. When Focus cannot tell, it asks. Your answer becomes a rule, and it stops asking.

    A small question.

    Is Numbers part of Draft the grant budget?

    No apps have been added to this priority yet.

    Yes, add itNo, it isn'tAsk later

    Applies to this whole app for this priority.

  4. Read the record.

    History lists each nudge, where it was shown and what you answered. If Focus should have spoken and did not, say so there. Records older than the retention limit you choose are deleted daily.

What it does

Small instruments, one job each.

  • The context pack

    Keywords, sites and files that belong to the priority. Add them in Context on the Details tab, and Focus can open them when a session starts. Recent priorities return with their pack and rules.

  • Rules you can read

    Mark an app related or unrelated, for this priority or for this session only. Same facts, same answer, every time.

  • Timeboxes that never stop you

    Set a limit and Focus shows time left, then time over. Sessions keep wall-clock time: an hour asleep is an hour spent, and the app says so.

  • A menu-bar mark

    The mark shows what Focus believes right now. Click it for the priority, the timer, open questions and session controls. A global shortcut sets a new priority from any app.

  • Quiet when it should be

    A daily cap on interruptions. Silence while an app is full screen, such as a presentation, while a microphone is live, while you are away, and in the quiet hours you set.

  • Interrupt me less

    One switch sends nudges and questions to the menu bar instead of panels. Reduce Motion turns it on for you. Every panel can be answered, snoozed or closed.

  • It tells you first

    On first launch, one page says what Focus reads, what it never reads, and where your data is kept. Help lists every keyboard shortcut.

  • Yours to export or delete

    Export your activity and your settings as separate files. Delete everything from Privacy settings, and Focus restarts empty.

  • Private apps stay private

    Password managers, banking, health and private messaging apps are never judged. When one comes to the front, Focus stops looking and the session pauses.

How it is different

Not a blocker, not a tracker, not a timer.

Each of those does one job well. Focus Sentinel does a different one: it knows what you meant to be doing, and checks in when the app in front does not fit.

Focus Sentinel compared with app blockers, time trackers and plain timers
Focus Sentinel App blockers Time trackers Plain timers
What it knows Your one priority, in your words, and which apps belong to it. A list of what to keep out. Where the time went, sorted afterwards. How many minutes are left.
When you drift Changes the menu-bar mark, then names the app and offers a way back. Stops you. Logs it for a report. Keeps counting.
When it cannot tell Asks. Your answer becomes a rule, and it stops asking. Follows the list. Guesses a category, or leaves it for you. Does not need to know.
When time is up Shows time over. It never stops you working. Often holds the lock until then. Keeps recording. Rings.
Where the record lives One folder on this Mac. No account, and it goes online only if you opt in. Varies; some sync lists between devices. Often a cloud account. Usually nowhere; there is no record.

The other columns describe typical tools in each category, not any particular product.

Privacy

Local first. More power if you opt in.

No account, no sync, no usage reports, and nothing leaves your Mac unless you switch it on. Every extra it can do is off until you choose it, and each one you choose lets Focus see more and judge your work better. This follows the app's own Privacy settings, and the build gate checks the shipped binary against the default.

  • What it reads by default

    Which app is active, by name. With nothing switched on, it reads no window titles, web addresses, file paths or document text, and it stores no raw titles even when you do.

  • Permissions are yours to give

    Accessibility, Screen Recording and your calendar are each listed in Privacy settings, off, with a note of what they let Focus read. Switch Accessibility on and Focus can tell which window, chat or project you are in, on this Mac.

  • Online only if you opt in

    Focus goes online for two things, both off until you turn them on: update checks, which send the app's name and version, and Ask Decision-1.

  • Opt in for the full picture

    Switch on Ask Decision-1 and, when its own rules cannot tell, Focus may send Microsoft's Decision-1 model on Azure everything it knows that helps: your priorities and their context, the window in front, your busy times and your tasks. It can only keep Focus quiet, never make it speak, and nothing is sent from password managers or private windows.

  • Away means quiet

    Three minutes without keyboard or mouse (anything from one to thirty, if you choose), and Focus stops counting and stays quiet until you are back.

  • You can check

    The source will be published under the MIT licence with the first release. The data file is one folder in Application Support; Privacy settings show it in the Finder.

The companion is decoration, not a sign of surveillance. Nothing in the app praises, scores or scolds. A nudge describes the activity; a question is a real question.

Who it is for

Work that lives across many apps.

  • Writers and researchers who keep one question open all day and drift into a browser without noticing.
  • Engineers and designers whose task spans an editor, a terminal, a few sites and a handful of files, and who would rather tell the app that list than have it guess.
  • Anyone on calls who needs silence while a microphone is live, while presenting, and after hours.
  • People who read the privacy page first. Every signal is listed, every permission and every connection is off until you switch it on, and the record can be inspected, exported or deleted.

Questions

Straight answers.

Does it read my screen?

Not unless you ask it to. By default it reads which app is active, by name. Focus asks macOS for Accessibility, Screen Recording or your calendar only if you switch that on in Privacy settings. With Accessibility on, it reads the title and selected item of the window in front so it can tell your work from a distraction in the same app.

Does it need the internet, or phone home?

No, and only if you say so. Everything works offline, and by default Focus never connects to the internet. Two things can go online, both off until you switch them on: update checks, and Ask Decision-1, which sends context to a model on Azure for sharper judgement. The build gate checks the shipped app on every run, so no other code can reach the network.

Does it block apps or sites?

No. Focus blocks, hides and closes nothing, and a timebox never stops you working. It notices, asks, and offers a way back.

Does it work with Shortcuts?

Yes. It offers three actions: Set Focus priority, Start Focus session and Finish Focus session. Each opens Focus and makes the same change the window would. If it cannot, it says why, for example that a session is already running.

What happens on a call or a presentation?

A live microphone keeps Focus quiet, because a call is not a distraction. The same goes while an app is full screen, such as a presentation, while you are away, and in quiet hours. Switch the microphone rule off and a nudge may arrive mid-call.

Where is my data, and can I take it with me?

One folder under Application Support on your Mac; Privacy settings show it in the Finder. Export your activity and your settings as separate files from the File menu. Delete everything from Privacy settings; that cannot be undone.

When can I download it?

There is no public build yet. The release tracker lists what remains before the first signed, notarised build: crmitchelmore/focus-sentinel, issue 12. To hear when it is out, watch the repository's releases on GitHub.

What will it cost?

Not announced yet. The source will be published under the MIT licence with the first release, so you will be able to build it yourself. How the signed build is offered will appear on the release tracker.

Hear when the first build is out.

Focus Sentinel is not released yet. Watch the repository's releases on GitHub and you will be told when a signed, notarised build is published. There is no mailing list and nothing to sign up for here.

Watch releases on GitHub Read the source

On the repository page, choose Watch, then Custom, then Releases. Needs macOS 26 or later; built and tested on Apple silicon.