🕒 timeout.sh - Lightweight Bash-Based Timeout Command

A fast and portable timeout command written in POSIX-compliant shell script. Perfect for systems where GNU timeout isn't available or when a minimal dependency solution is preferred.

🧭 Overview

The timeout.sh script allows you to run any command with a time limit. If the command exceeds the specified duration, it is terminated with a configurable signal (default: SIGTERM). It is a drop-in replacement for GNU timeout, fully implemented in shell script, making it ideal for minimal or embedded environments.

Whether you're scripting automated jobs, running system diagnostics, or managing CI/CD pipelines, timeout provides a simple yet powerful way to manage long-running commands.

✨ Features

• ✅ Fully written in POSIX shell (no external dependencies)
• ⏳ Accepts durations in seconds, minutes, hours, or days (10, 5m, 2h, 1d)
• 🛑 Custom signal support: --signal=SIGKILL, --signal=SIGTERM, etc.
• 💣 Optional hard-kill after grace period via --kill-after
• 📦 Minimal and portable — great for Docker, initramfs, or restricted environments

🚀 Usage

timeout.sh [OPTIONS] DURATION COMMAND [ARGS]...

Options

• -s, --signal=SIGNAL — Signal to send to command (default: TERM)
• -k, --kill-after=DURATION — Send KILL after this delay if command is still running
• -h, --help — Show help message

Duration Formats

• s (seconds), m (minutes), h (hours), d (days)
• Default unit is seconds

Exit Codes

• 124 — Command timed out
• 125 — Invalid usage or internal error
• 126 — Command found but cannot be executed
• 127 — Command not found
• Otherwise — Exit code of the command itself

Examples

timeout.sh 10 sleep 5             # Success - finishes before timeout
timeout.sh 5 sleep 10             # Timeout - sleep killed after 5s
timeout.sh -s KILL 10 my_script   # Uses SIGKILL instead of SIGTERM
timeout.sh -k 2 10 long_task.sh   # Grace period before SIGKILL

⚙️ Requirements

• POSIX-compliant shell (e.g., /bin/sh)
• Basic Unix utilities: expr, sed, which or command -v

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! To propose enhancements or fixes:

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Submit a pull request with a clear description

If you encounter bugs or have feature suggestions, please open an issue.

📜 License

This project is licensed under the Apache 2.0 License — see the LICENSE file for details.