Keep helper processes in context
Browsers, editors and other applications often use many processes. Reading each row separately can hide the activity of the app as a whole. WattGuard groups process families and lets you inspect the details rather than assuming every helper is a separate problem.
A familiar system process name is not evidence of malware or a fault. Indexing, photo analysis and synchronization can all do legitimate work. The process library explains how to investigate each of these cases.
Understand the impact estimate
CPU activity, wakeups and disk work contribute to the diagnostic score. It is useful for comparing activity, but it is not a measurement of how many percentage points each app removed from the battery. Memory usage is shown as context.
Where macOS exposes suitable energy counters, the app can display measured power information. Coverage varies; a missing counter does not mean a process uses no power.
Look across time before taking action
A brief busy period and sustained activity deserve different responses. Period views help put a snapshot into context. Open a process inspector to see available details before deciding whether an application should be closed.
Save work and quit an app normally when possible. Ending protected system processes is not a general battery-saving strategy. WattGuard applies process-protection rules; it does not make arbitrary daemon termination safe.
Use Activity Monitor alongside WattGuard
Activity Monitor already provides Energy Impact, a laptop-only 12-hour average, and a Preventing Sleep column. WattGuard adds its own grouped activity views and connects process investigation with sleep history and chosen automation rules. Neither relative score should be treated as exact battery accounting.