ez

ez is an open-source macOS command-line tool built in Swift that lets developers define command aliases scoped to individual project directories. Created by Tommi Urtti of Urtti Apps, it is distributed via Homebrew and licensed under MIT. The latest release is version 1.3.0, published in August 2026.

What It Is

ez solves the problem of memorizing long, context-specific shell commands by letting you define short aliases in a .ez_cli.json file inside any directory. Unlike global shell aliases, ez aliases only exist where they are defined, preventing accidental execution in the wrong project. The tool is a single native Swift binary with instant startup and zero runtime dependencies beyond Apple's own swift-argument-parser.

Core Workflow

The typical ez workflow involves three steps: adding an alias, running it, and optionally sharing it with a team:

• Add: ez add deploy "./scripts/deploy.sh --env prod" stores the command in the local .ez_cli.json.
• Run: ez deploy executes the stored command with full terminal passthrough.
• Share: Committing .ez_cli.json to version control gives every team member the same aliases immediately, similar to a Makefile or npm run script.

Aliases support {1}, {2} positional placeholders for parameterization, and extra arguments are automatically appended to the end of the command.

Secrets and Privacy

Secrets such as API keys are stored in Apple Keychain via ez add-secret and injected into the command environment at runtime. They are never written to disk, never printed to the terminal, and never visible in the process table. ez itself makes zero telemetry or external network calls. Run history is stored in a local SQLite file at ~/.ez/runs.db and never leaves the machine.

Update: Version 1.3.0

Version 1.3.0, released August 19, 2026, added three significant capabilities:

• Run history: Every alias execution is recorded locally. ez stats reports success rate, median duration, p90, and a duration trend per alias.
• Outlier alerts: When a run is meaningfully slower or faster than its own median, a notice is printed directly on the timing line (e.g., "↑ 56% slower than median").
• Parallel mode: Aliases added with -p run multiple commands concurrently, each with individual timing and shared Ctrl+C handling.

Architecture and Platform

ez requires macOS 15.0 or later and is built with Swift 6.0+ / Xcode 16.4+. The project structure separates source code in ezcli/, an automated acceptance test suite (acceptance-test.sh), and a manual interactive test script for TTY features. zsh tab completion is included for command discovery. The tool passes through real exit codes from driven processes, making ez test && ez deploy chains behave correctly in CI and scripts.