[domenkozar]

Recursive checkout watching follows directory symlinks into ignored dependency trees such as .devenv/profile, accumulating millions of directory-watch records. A captured desktop run reached 8.5 GiB RSS.

Build the watch list from gix's index and register nonrecursive watches for tracked-file parent directories and Git metadata. Filter unrelated file events, and rebuild the watch list when the index, refs, or tracked directory structure changes. Tracked files remain monitored even when an ignore rule matches them. Directory symlinks are not traversed. Diff contents continue to come from gix status, with untracked files excluded as before.

Validation

• Workspace tests: 156 passed, 1 ignored. Includes ignored trees, tracked files under ignored directories, index changes, recreated directories, linked worktrees, and symlinks.
• Clippy with warnings denied, formatting checks, and release build passed.
• On the affected checkout, the desktop held 162 total inotify watches and about 169 MiB RSS during a 60-second sample, with the checked dependency-tree directory inodes absent from watch registrations.
• After 100 watcher creation/drop cycles, the isolated probe remained around 9 MiB RSS and left zero inotify registrations.

Runtime verification was on Linux and covers short samples, not a multi-hour memory plateau.