In short
- Many Mac apps already post a notification when a job ends: Xcode, Final Cut Pro, Compressor, HandBrake, Carbon Copy Cloner, and more.
- Forwarding that notification to your iPhone needs no change to the app. NotiFerry does it through the free ntfy app.
- Some apps post nothing, including Blender and DaVinci Resolve. For those, a script has to raise the alert.
- The Mac must stay awake until the job ends.
Let the Mac's own alert follow you
Most long jobs already end with a signal. Xcode reports that a build succeeded, Final Cut Pro reports that a share finished, a backup tool reports that it is done. The signal is a macOS notification, and it appears on a screen you have walked away from.
Nothing needs to change in those apps. A forwarder reads the notification when it lands in Notification Center and sends it to your iPhone. NotiFerry does that for any Mac app that posts a normal notification, through the free ntfy app on the phone. The first question is therefore not how to forward, but whether your app posts a notification at all.
Which apps post a notification when they finish
We checked each vendor's documentation, release notes, or source on 2 October 2026. Versions change, so treat this as a starting point: the reliable test is whether the alert shows up in Notification Center on your own Mac.
| App | macOS notification when a job ends? | Where it is controlled |
|---|---|---|
| Xcode | Yes, for builds and test runs. “Notify using bezel or system notification” is on by default for success and failure. | Xcode, Settings, Behaviors |
| Final Cut Pro | Yes, after you share (export) a project or clip. | System Settings, Notifications, Final Cut Pro |
| Compressor | Yes, when a job succeeds, fails, or is canceled. | System Settings, Notifications, Compressor |
| HandBrake | Yes. “Show notification when queue is completed” is on by default; a notification per job is optional. | HandBrake, Preferences, Queue |
| Adobe Media Encoder, After Effects | Yes, through the Creative Cloud desktop app, once render-queue notifications are enabled. | The app’s Notifications preferences, and Creative Cloud in System Settings |
| Carbon Copy Cloner | Yes, configurable per event. Nothing is sent while Carbon Copy Cloner is the front-most app. | The Dashboard’s Activity settings |
| SuperDuper! | Optional. Choose “Send a notification” as the action on completion. | The copy’s completion options |
| DaVinci Resolve | No built-in notification that we could find. A render job can trigger a script when it ends. | Deliver page, render settings |
| Blender | No. Blender removed its macOS notifications in version 3.5. | — |
| Logic Pro | None documented for a finished bounce. | — |
| Safari and Chrome downloads | No system notification; the download list updates in the window. | — |
| Time Machine | Documented for problems, such as needing more space, not for routine successful backups. | — |
| Docker Desktop | In-app notifications only. | — |
Two details are worth knowing. Xcode's setting covers both an on-screen bezel and a system notification, and Apple does not document when it uses which, so run one build and look in Notification Center. And every app in the first group also needs permission to notify under System Settings, Notifications; an app you once silenced posts nothing to forward.
Sources:
- Apple: Final Cut Pro User Guide, “notification”
- Apple: Compressor release notes
- HandBrake 1.11 preferences source
- Adobe: Media Encoder preferences
- Adobe: After Effects, basics of rendering and exporting
- Bombich: Carbon Copy Cloner notifications
- Shirt Pocket: SuperDuper! user guide
- Blackmagic Design forum: render-complete notification
- Blender: “macOS: Remove user notifications”
- Apple: Download items from the web using Safari
- Google: Download a file in Chrome
- Docker: Desktop settings
Set it up and test with a real job
- Install NotiFerry on the Mac, authorize the Notification Center folder, and subscribe your iPhone in the ntfy app. The setup guide has the details.
- Confirm the phone test, which starts the trial.
- Run a short version of the real job: a small export, a quick build. When it ends, the alert should appear on the Mac and then on the phone.
- In Settings, under Apps, switch off any app whose alerts you do not want to carry.
The default privacy mode sends the app and the title only. That is usually enough to know which job finished. Switch to the full notification if you want the project or file name that many apps put in the message.
When the app posts nothing
For the apps in the second half of the table, something has to create the alert. If the app can run a script when a job ends, as DaVinci Resolve can for a render job and Xcode can through Behaviors, have that script post a Mac notification:
osascript -e 'display notification "Render finished" with title "DaVinci Resolve"'macOS files these under Script Editor, which must be allowed to notify in System Settings before the first one appears. The forwarder then carries it like any other alert. The script can also skip Notification Center and publish to your phone directly; sending a notification from Mac to iPhone covers that, including a wrapper for long terminal commands.
If the app offers neither a notification nor a script hook, no forwarder can help, because there is no event to see.
Keep the Mac awake until the job ends
A sleeping Mac neither finishes the job nor forwards the alert, and NotiFerry does not keep the Mac awake for you. On a laptop that is plugged in, or on a desktop Mac, turn on the option that prevents automatic sleeping while the display is off; it is in System Settings under Battery or Energy. For a terminal job, macOS includes a command that holds the Mac awake exactly as long as the job runs:
caffeinate -i ./long-job.shKeep it to the alerts that matter
Forwarding is meant for a handful of meaningful alerts a day. On the public ntfy.sh service NotiFerry sends about twelve messages a minute, and ntfy.sh documents a limit of 250 messages a day. Switch off chatty apps so a finished export is not buried under chat and mail alerts that your iPhone already receives by itself.
It is also not a monitoring system. Use it to save a walk back to the desk, not for anything where a late or missing alert would cause harm.
Questions
How do I get a notification on my iPhone when an Xcode build finishes?
Xcode can post a system notification when a build succeeds or fails; the option is under Settings, Behaviors, and is on by default. Forward that Mac notification to your iPhone with NotiFerry and the ntfy app. Check once that the build alert appears in Notification Center on the Mac.
Can I be notified on my phone when a Final Cut Pro export finishes?
Yes. Final Cut Pro posts a macOS notification after you share a project or clip. With NotiFerry forwarding Notification Center, that alert reaches your iPhone while the Mac stays awake.
What if my app does not post a notification when it finishes?
Then something has to create one. If the app can run a script when the job ends, the script can post a Mac notification with osascript or publish to your phone directly with a service such as ntfy. If the app offers neither, there is no event to forward.
Does it work for a long terminal command?
Yes, in two ways. The command can publish to your phone directly with one line of curl, or it can post a Mac notification that NotiFerry forwards along with your other alerts.
Will I be notified if the Mac goes to sleep during the job?
No. A sleeping Mac pauses the job and forwards nothing. Prevent sleep for the duration of the job, for example with the caffeinate command for terminal work.