Limrun Ios Simulator

--- name: limrun-ios-simulator description: "Drive an app running on a Limrun cloud iOS simulator: launch, tap, type, read the accessibility element tree, read app logs and simulator syslog, screenshot, record video, connect the app to local services or a persistent tunnel, play a video file as the camera, set the clipboard, read and write user defaults, post notifications, and run timed action chains. Use after a build (from any builder) when the user wants to see, test, or interact with their app on a simulator, or says 'show me a screenshot', 'tap', 'run the UI test', 'record a video', 'read the logs', 'connect localhost', 'reach my local server from the simulator', 'mock the camera', 'paste into the app', 'change the language', 'simulate Face ID', or 'launch on simulator'. To build the app first, use limrun-xcode-bazel (Bazel workspaces) or limrun-xcode (xcodebuild projects)." user-invocable: true effort: high --- # Limrun iOS Simulator Interact with an app running on a Limrun cloud iOS simulator, from any environment (Linux, Windows, macOS, VM, container). This skill is build-agnostic: it assumes the app was already built and installed by a build skill (`limrun-xcode-bazel` for Bazel, `limrun-xcode` for xcodebuild). Keep build concerns in those skills; this one is about driving the running simulator. Never use local Xcode, local simulators, or local macOS tools. ## Auth and CLI Install if needed: `npm install --global lim`. Auth is `lim login` or `LIM_API_KEY` (it may already be set in the user's environment even when `.env` and the shell do not show it; check before asking for it). The CLI is the source of truth: the commands in this skill are verified, but if a flag errors or you need one not shown here, check `lim ios --help` instead of guessing. ## Installing an app bundle You can either use Limrun remote Bazel or Xcode services to build the app bundle and have it installed to the simulator automatically or you can sync a pre-built local `.ipa` file or `.app` folder to the simulator. The main requirement is that it must be built for simulator. ### Build and install A build skill usually attaches the simulator for you (`lim xcode rbe --ios`, or `lim xcode build .` then attach). Check what's already there: ```bash lim xcode get # is a simulator attached to the current build target? lim ios list # all running iOS instances ``` If none is attached, create one. It installs the last build immediately, so you don't need to rebuild: ```bash lim ios create --attach ``` If the create (or `lim xcode rbe --ios`) output includes a signed stream URL, share it with the user as a Markdown link, like `[Live simulator]()`. If you have a browser the user can see, open the URL there and tell them. Otherwise pass `--no-open` to `create`: it skips opening the URL locally and still prints it for sharing. `lim xcode get` prints a Limrun console URL instead. It opens the same live view but requires a console login, so prefer the signed stream URL for sharing. If the console URL is all you have, share it and mention it needs login. ### Install app from local Create a new simulator: ```bash lim ios create ``` Share the signed stream URL with the user as a Markdown link, like `[Live simulator]()`. If you have a browser the user can see, open the URL there and tell them. You can then run the following command to upload a bundle from local: ```bash lim ios sync ``` You can run the same command every time you need to install a new version of the bundle. It will patch with the difference and reload it in the simulator. ## Fold an iPhone Duo Create a Duo instance in a region that offers it: ```bash lim ios create --model iphone-duo lim ios fold --json --id lim ios fold 90 --orientation landscape-left --id lim ios fold 90 --id lim ios fold 180 --id lim ios screenshot ./inner.png --display inner --id lim ios tap 300 200 --display inner --id ``` The hinge accepts fractional angles from **0° (closed)** to **180° (flat)**. Omit the angle to read fold state. `--orientation` accepts `portrait`, `pud` (portrait upside down), `landscape-left`, or `landscape-right`; it can change independently of the hinge angle. This changes the native simulator hinge, so apps receive Apple's hinge and layout updates. The browser stream starts in 2D and offers a lazy-loaded 3D frame. Both modes provide hinge and rotation controls, with touch input on the cover and inner display. The frame's Sleep/Wake and volume buttons accept clicks and holds even when position is locked. For automation, pair `buttonDown` and `buttonUp` actions with `button` set to `side`, `volumeUp`, or `volumeDown` in `client.performActions`. With an already connected TypeScript device client: ```ts const fold = await client.getFoldState(); // null on an ordinary simulator await client.setHingeAngle(110); await client.setDuoOrientation('landscape-left'); const inner = await client.screenshotDisplay('inner'); await client.tapDisplay('inner', inner.width / 2, inner.height / 2); ``` `setDuoOrientation` accepts `portrait`, `landscape-left`, `landscape-right`, and `pud` (upside down). Display screenshots are upright and report dimensions in points; `tapDisplay` uses those coordinates. Use `outer` for the cover or `inner` for the unfolding display. A display that iOS has turned off returns a black image. Use these display-specific methods for Duo automation. Existing screenshot, recording, and accessibility commands do not automatically follow the inner display. The 3D viewer supports single-finger touch and drag. Rotating the view changes the camera; **Rotate device** changes native orientation. **Laptop view** sets the hinge and orientation; it does not enable Apple's separate Table Mode. ## Targeting the right instance Most `lim ios` commands default to the last created instance and resolve the "current" one from the **git repo / worktree** of your cwd. So even when a simulator is attached and `lim xcode get` shows it, a `lim ios` command can still report `No instance ID provided and no recent ios instance found`, because your cwd isn't the git worktree where the instance was created (or isn't a git repo at all). This bites most often right after `lim xcode rbe --ios` in a fresh project. The reliable recipe when that happens: ```bash lim xcode get # shows the attached simulator's ID lim ios element-tree --id # pass --id to EVERY lim ios command ``` `lim xcode get` is the dependable source for the attached simulator's ID (`lim ios list` also works). Once you have it, pass `--id ` to all `lim ios` calls for the rest of the session (screenshot, tap, type, element-tree, record). Alternatively, `git init` the project so the workspace resolves on its own. When controlling multiple instances, always pass `--id`. ## Reaching services on the local machine Destination tunnels let an iPhone simulator app keep calling its normal destinations while the CLI dials them from the machine running `lim`. Select exact `localhost:port` or literal `IP:port` destinations, or domains that only your machine or VPN can reach: ```bash lim ios tunnel \ --id \ --selector localhost:3000 \ --selector localhost:8081 \ --selector "*.staging.example" \ --detach ``` Use the app's normal URLs, such as `http://localhost:3000`. Declaring `localhost:3000` also captures loopback forms such as `127.0.0.1:3000` and `[::1]:3000`, plus `[::ffff:127.0.0.1]:3000`. Domain selectors (exact `api.corp.example` or label-bound wildcard `"*.staging.example"`) are intercepted on the simulator and dialed from your machine whether or not the name resolves on public DNS, so your DNS and VPN apply. Apps that resolve DNS themselves over HTTPS bypass domain interception. A tunnel carries TCP only: up to ten exact selectors and 64 domain selectors, ports 1-65535 except 53; CIDRs and UDP are not supported. Start the tunnel before launching the app or opening the page: connections opened earlier keep their original route, so relaunch the app if it connected first. One instance accepts one active destination tunnel, and its selector set is immutable. To add or remove a destination, stop the tunnel and start it again with the complete selector list: ```bash lim ios tunnel status --id --json lim ios tunnel stop --id ``` If the simulator attempts a route while its local service is stopped, the tunnel remains active and reports `connection_refused`; restart the service without recreating the simulator or tunnel. ### Inspect HTTP traffic, capture HAR, persist a network log Inspection is on by default: every HTTP and HTTPS request through the tunnel is decoded, printed as one summary line per request (in the tunnel log file when detached), and shown live in the console's network panel. ```bash lim ios tunnel --selector "*.api.example" --har ./traffic.har --detach # write HAR 1.2 with bodies lim ios tunnel --selector "*.api.example" --persist --detach # network log survives the instance ``` `--persist` uploads a body-inclusive network log as a session artifact when the tunnel stops or the instance terminates; it appears on the instance's session page in the console with a HAR download (default lifetime 3 days, `--ttl ` up to 30 days). HTTPS is decoded with a simulator-trusted CA, so **apps with certificate pinning fail through inspected selectors**: leave the pinned host out of the selectors or pass `--no-inspect` to keep TLS end to end (no summaries, HAR, or persistence). ## Reaching a private network through a persistent tunnel An organization can run a persistent tunnel: a connector inside its network, created by an admin with `lim tunnel create` or in the console (Network) and run with `lim tunnel run`, that serves every instance naming it. When the user names one, pass it at create time instead of starting a tunnel yourself: ```bash lim ios create --tunnel ``` The app reaches the tunnel's selectors, such as `localhost:3000` or `*.internal.example`, at those addresses. They resolve on the connector's machine, not on yours. The tunnel takes the instance's one destination tunnel, so do not start or stop `lim ios tunnel` on it. Creation checks the tunnel and fails when it is not usable: - `tunnel does not exist`: the name is wrong or the tunnel was not created. Ask the user for the right name. - `tunnel is offline`: no connector is running. Ask the user to start it. - `did not attach within 30s`: the connector cannot attach the instance. Ask the user to check the connector's output. Retrying the create in a loop does not help in any of these cases. The tunnel's token belongs on the connector's machine. Never ask the user to paste it into the conversation. ## Launching the app The build skills reinstall and relaunch the app after every successful build, so you usually don't need to launch it yourself. When the app is closed (a fresh attach to an old build, or after a terminate), launch it by bundle ID: ```bash lim ios launch-app # foregrounds it if already running lim ios launch-app --mode RelaunchIfRunning # restart for a clean state lim ios launch-app --env API_URL=https://api.example.com --env FEATURE_FLAG=1 lim ios terminate-app # stop it, e.g. to reset app state ``` If you don't know the bundle ID, run `lim ios list-apps`. `--env KEY=VALUE` is repeatable and restarts the app so the variables take effect. An explicit `--mode ForegroundIfRunning` with variables is rejected. Use `KEY=` for an empty value; the last occurrence of a key wins. Managed Detox launches can combine `--runtime detox` with `--env`. `launch-app` streams the app's logs and returns when the app exits or the command is interrupted. Pass `--detach` to launch and return immediately. When the app ends, `launch-app` prints the exit reason (`crash`, `exit`, or `terminated`). After a crash it adds the exception and signal, the crash message (for example a Swift `Fatal error` line or an uncaught exception's reason), and the crashed thread's frames with the app's own function names. That report is the way to see why an app died; frames carry no file and line, which need the build's dSYM (`atos -l ` with the address from the report's `Binary Images` lines). A React Native or Expo red error screen is not an exit: the app process keeps running, so nothing is reported. In the TypeScript SDK, `launchApp`'s `onExit(logs, info)` gets the same report, and `watchApp(bundleId, onExit)` reports the next exit of an app you did not launch, for example one opened with `lim ios open-url`. ## App logs Log commands print recent lines and exit. Pass `--follow` only to keep streaming until interrupted. ```bash lim ios launch-app --detach # launch and return, no log stream lim ios app-log # last 100 lines, then exit lim ios app-log --tail 100 # last N lines lim ios app-log --follow # stream until interrupted lim ios syslog # up to 100 captured syslog lines, then exit lim ios syslog --follow # stream simulator syslog ``` Syslog snapshots read the buffer filled by the current or an earlier syslog stream. An empty buffer returns no lines. Snapshot reads need a runtime with `syslogTail` support. ## Testing changes When simulator interaction is part of the task, test new or changed functionality with the interaction commands after each build. Focus on what changed, plus a quick smoke test of core flows. Start by reading the element tree to see what's on screen before acting: ```bash lim ios element-tree ``` ## Interacting with the app Prefer tapping by accessibility id, then by label, then coordinates as a last resort: ```bash lim ios tap-element --ax-unique-id startButton lim ios tap-element --ax-label "Save" lim ios tap 201 450 ``` `tap-element` taps with a real synthesized touch. Elements the accessibility tree can see are scrolled into view automatically. A selector that matches nothing in the tree fails in about a second; iOS creates list rows lazily, so a below-the-fold row often isn't in the tree at all. For those, pass `--scroll-search`: the CLI pages the screen (a few pages down, then up) retrying the tap until the row materializes, which can take ~10s. Pass `--activate ax` to use an accessibility press instead of a touch (no scrolling, works on elements without a usable frame). **Toolbar / nav-bar items usually can't be tapped by id.** SwiftUI collapses toolbar children into a single nav-bar group, and those items report `AXUniqueId: null` even when you set `.accessibilityIdentifier(...)` (regular content `Button`s do expose it). So `tap-element --ax-unique-id` finds nothing for a nav-bar button. Set an `.accessibilityLabel` / `.accessibilityIdentifier` anyway for documentation, but to actually tap it, read its `AXFrame` from the element tree and tap the center by coordinate: ```bash lim ios element-tree --id | grep -i -A6 -B2 moon # find the item's AXFrame lim ios tap --id # tap the frame's center ``` For text input, focus a field first (tap it), then type: ```bash lim ios type "hello world" # real key events; errors if no field is focused lim ios type "hi" --no-require-focus # skip the focus check: for fields focused by coordinate taps when the accessibility focus scan is unreliable lim ios press-key backspace lim ios press-key @ # shifted symbols work directly ``` `type` presses real keys, so text delegates fire and the field's own keyboard behavior applies (a default text field autocapitalizes the first letter, for example). To set a value verbatim with no keyboard behavior, use `set-text`: ```bash lim ios set-text "P@ssw0rd!" --focused # into the focused field lim ios set-text "hello" --ax-unique-id emailField # by selector ``` For scrolling and drags: ```bash lim ios scroll down --amount 300 # from the screen center lim ios scroll down --amount 300 --coordinate 200,400 # from a specific point lim ios swipe --from 200,600 --to 200,200 # explicit drag; --duration 800 for a slower, precise one ``` After every interaction, re-run `element-tree` to confirm the UI transitioned. No sleep is needed between a tap and `element-tree`; the tap blocks until done. ```bash lim ios element-tree ``` Chain multiple actions with precise timing via `perform`: ```bash lim ios perform --action type=tap,x=100,y=200 --action "type=typeText,text=Hello World" lim ios perform --action type=wait,durationMs=1000 --action type=pressKey,key=enter lim ios perform --file ./actions.yaml ``` Run `lim ios perform --help` for the full action grammar. ## Screenshots and video Screenshot takes a **positional path** (not `-o`): ```bash lim ios screenshot screenshot.png lim ios screenshot screenshot.png --id ``` Use the element tree for functional assertions (element existence, labels, state changes) and screenshots only for visual properties. For anything involving motion (animations, gameplay, streaming UI), prefer video: ```bash lim ios record start # non-blocking lim ios record stop -o /tmp/recording.mp4 ``` For UI changes, include a demo video in the pull request so the user can see it. ## App container files List an app's data container before pulling a file so you use the exact path the app created. Keep the same `--bundle-id` and `--container-type` flags for list, pull, push, and delete: ```bash lim ios ls Documents --bundle-id com.example.app --container-type data lim ios pull-file Documents/recording.mov ./recording.mov \ --bundle-id com.example.app --container-type data lim ios push-file ./fixture.json Documents/fixture.json \ --bundle-id com.example.app --container-type data lim ios delete-file Documents/fixture.json \ --bundle-id com.example.app --container-type data ``` `lim ios ls` defaults to the staging-folder root. With `--bundle-id`, it defaults to the app bundle (`--container-type app`); use `data` for the app's writable `Documents`, `Library`, and `tmp` directories. Paths in `ls` output are relative to the selected root and can be copied directly into the other file commands. ## Simulate the camera with a video For camera-driven flows (QR-code scanning, document capture, video calls), play a local video file as the simulator's camera. The app sees the frames through its normal capture pipeline: ```bash lim ios camera play ./fixtures/qr-scan.mp4 # loops by default lim ios camera play ./fixtures/intro.mp4 --no-loop # play once, freeze on last frame lim ios camera clear # restore the default camera ``` Any AVFoundation-decodable file works (H.264/HEVC in `.mp4`/`.mov`). Use `--no-loop` when the app must observe the end of the clip exactly once (the feed freezes on the last frame rather than stalling). ## Clipboard Set or read the simulator clipboard. Apps paste it like text copied inside the simulator, so the edit menu's Paste shows no permission prompt. For example, to paste a one-time code into a login form: ```bash lim ios clipboard set "123456" # or pipe it: echo 123456 | lim ios clipboard set lim ios clipboard get ``` `lim ios simctl -- pbcopy booted` and `pbpaste booted` do the same. ## User defaults Read, write, or delete the simulator's user defaults with its `defaults` tool. Pass the arguments after `--`. Apps read defaults at launch, so relaunch the app under test after a change. For example, to switch the device language and region without UI automation: ```bash lim ios defaults -- write -g AppleLanguages -array fr-FR lim ios defaults -- write -g AppleLocale -string fr_FR lim ios defaults -- read -g AppleLanguages ``` `lim ios simctl -- spawn booted defaults ...` does the same. Only `read`, `write`, and `delete` are available. ## Darwin notifications Post a notification, or set and read a notification's state, inside the simulator with its `notifyutil` tool: ```bash lim ios notify post lim ios notify set lim ios notify get ``` For example, the simulator drives Face ID through these notifications. Enroll once, then answer each Face ID prompt with a match or a non-match (Touch ID devices use `fingerTouch` in place of `pearl`): ```bash lim ios notify set com.apple.BiometricKit.enrollmentChanged 1 lim ios notify post com.apple.BiometricKit.enrollmentChanged lim ios notify post com.apple.BiometricKit_Sim.pearl.match # the next scan succeeds lim ios notify post com.apple.BiometricKit_Sim.pearl.nomatch # the next scan fails ``` `lim ios simctl -- spawn booted notifyutil -p|-s|-g ...` does the same. ## Preview URL for humans Upload the `.ipa` file directly or targz archive of the `.app` folder to Limrun Asset Storage and return a preview URL for the user to open it and test the app manually in the browser. Here is how to upload it: ```bash export ASSET_NAME=myapp.tar.gz # can be any name lim asset push ${ASSET_NAME} echo "https://console.limrun.com/preview?asset=${ASSET_NAME}&platform=ios" ``` Once the command finishes, you can give the following URL to the user to click to open a simulator stream while the console installs this bundle. ``` https://console.limrun.com/preview?asset=${ASSET_NAME}&platform=ios ``` For nonsecret iOS app configuration, append repeatable URL-encoded `env=KEY=VALUE` parameters, for example `&env=FEATURE_FLAG%3D1&env=API_URL%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Fapi.example.com`. Use `URLSearchParams.append("env", "KEY=VALUE")` when constructing links. The app receives these variables on its first launch. Values are visible in the link and browser history. Add `openUrl` to open a URL or app deep link after launch, for example `&openUrl=myapp%3A%2F%2Fcheckout`. Use `URLSearchParams.set("openUrl", url)` to encode the full URL and its query string. This works with or without `env`; the stream stays visible while the app installs, launches, and opens the URL. An `Installing ` overlay shows installation progress and disappears when the preview is ready. ## Cleanup When the work is completed, you can delete the iOS simulator. ```bash lim ios delete ``` ## Gotchas - **Instance resolution can miss in a non-git dir.** See "Targeting the right instance" above; pass `--id` when in doubt. - **`element-tree` can be large.** Pipe through `grep` / `jq` to extract what you need rather than dumping the whole tree into context. - **`type` / `perform typeText` may not drive SwiftUI (or React Native) state.** Automated text injection sets the field's value through accessibility, which does **not** always fire a SwiftUI `@Binding` / `onChange` the way a real keystroke does. Symptom: the text appears in the field (and in `element-tree`), but reactive UI tied to it doesn't update (a send button stays disabled, a character counter doesn't move) and submit handlers see empty state. A real keyboard on the live stream works. When automating, drive submit through a tappable control (a button, a suggestion chip) rather than relying on text bound to reactive state, or have the app expose a test affordance. - **Toolbar / nav-bar items aren't tappable by id.** See "Interacting with the app" above: read the `AXFrame` from `element-tree` and tap by coordinate. - **Bundle ID discovery.** If you don't know the bundle ID, run `lim ios list-apps` after a successful install. - **Build errors are the build skill's job.** If the app isn't installing, the failure is upstream; go back to `limrun-xcode-bazel` / `limrun-xcode`.