WebChangeMonitor

WebChangeMonitor is a utility that monitors web pages and detects modifications in their content. It supports HTTP and HTTPS protocols, records differences between versions, and notifies the administrator via sound, email, log file, or HTML report. Multiple pages can be checked simultaneously on Windows, Linux, and Raspberry Pi systems.

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• Web content monitoring. The primary function periodically examines the text or source code of specified URLs. It compares the current version against a previously stored version and identifies any additions, deletions, or modifications. The administrator defines which page elements are considered relevant for detecting real changes.
• Multi-channel notifications. When a change is detected, the program triggers audible alerts, sends an email to a configured address, writes an entry to a plain text log file, or generates an HTML report. Each notification channel can be enabled independently based on administrator preference.
• Taskbar and system tray status indicators. The tool displays status icons next to each monitored item. A balloon notification appears in the system tray, and the icon color changes according to the condition of each page (normal, modified, unreachable, error). The taskbar also reflects aggregated status summaries.
• Full protocol support for HTTP, HTTPS and others. WebChangeMonitor can monitor secure web pages (SSL/TLS), unencrypted connections, and additional protocols such as FTP or local files. It handles redirects, basic authentication, and cookies required to access restricted content.
• Multi-threaded background execution. Each monitored URL is processed in a separate thread. The program remains active in the background without blocking the user interface. The administrator configures the maximum number of simultaneous connections and the time interval between checks.
• Bulk import and export via CSV. Dozens of monitoring items can be added or extracted using CSV files. Each CSV line contains URL, description, check interval, alternate double-click address, and filtering options. This function accelerates initial setup and migration between machines.
• Export results to CSV for external processing. All detected changes can be dumped to a CSV file with columns including: date and time of change, URL, modification type, content length before and after. This file can be opened with spreadsheet applications or data analysis tools.
• Execute commands based on item state. The administrator assigns a system command (script, executable, external tool) that launches automatically when a page changes, stops responding, or becomes operational again. Content differences can also be displayed using any configurable external diff tool.
• Filtering and selective comparison options. Dynamic page parts such as timestamps, visitor counters, or rotating advertisements can be ignored. Regular expressions can be defined to extract only a specific section of the HTML. Comparison runs on filtered text, reducing false alarms.
• HTML report generation with change history. The program creates an HTML document listing all detected modifications for each URL in chronological order. Each entry shows the change date, a link to the original page, and a summary of differences. The report can be saved or sent via email.
• Headless operation (console mode). WebChangeMonitor can run from the command line with predefined arguments, loading an existing configuration and operating invisibly. Suitable for servers or scheduled tasks where user interaction is not required.
• Portable configuration files. The entire list of monitored pages and all settings are stored in XML or INI files that can be saved on a USB drive or synchronized between computers. This allows the complete configuration to be transferred without reinstallation or system registry modifications.

WebChangeMonitor was created in 2008. The official project registration on SourceForge dates to September 2, 2008. The application is written in C++ using the wxWidgets framework for the graphical interface and cross-platform portability. The original developers maintained the project as open source software aimed at system administrators who need to detect unauthorized changes or critical updates on websites. Over the years, IPv6 support, improved handling of outdated HTTPS certificates, and fixes for Windows 10/11 and modern Linux distributions such as Ubuntu and Debian were incorporated. The latest stable release continues to work on Raspberry Pi under Raspberry Pi OS.

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