cross-platform-timeout
Run a command with a time limit in a cross-platform way. Do not rely on GNU timeout (coreutils)—it is not default on macOS. Use when agents may run on macOS or when timeout 10s npm run dev fails.
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- pmarashian/cursor-agent-skills
- Last source activity
- February 13, 2026 at 19:51
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- cross-platform-timeout
- description
- Run a command with a time limit in a cross-platform way. Do not rely on GNU timeout (coreutils)—it is not default on macOS. Use when agents may run on macOS or when timeout 10s npm run dev fails.
# Cross-Platform "Run with Timeout"
**Do not use `timeout`** (GNU coreutils) when agents may run on macOS—it is not installed by default.
## Options
- **macOS / BSD**: `(cmd &); sleep N; kill $!` — run command in background, sleep N seconds, then kill the background job.
- **Alternative**: Small Node script that spawns the command and kills it after N seconds.
## When to Use
- When a task uses something like `timeout 10s npm run dev` and it fails on macOS.
- Prefer documenting one cross-platform pattern rather than retrying with `timeout` repeatedly.
## Keep It Short
This skill should stay a few lines; the main point is "do not use `timeout` unless the environment is known to provide it."
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