iOS Simulator Automation

Automate iOS Simulator interactions using AXe CLI for testing implemented features.

Philosophy

Implementation without verification is incomplete. After building a feature, use AXe to interact with the simulator and confirm the feature works as expected. This closes the loop between coding and testing.

Installation

brew install cameroncooke/axe/axe

Workflow: Verify Implementation

1. •Get simulator UDID: axe list-simulators
2. •Inspect UI: axe describe-ui --udid $UDID
3. •Interact with the feature you just built
4. •Capture result: axe screenshot --udid $UDID

Quick Reference

# List simulators
axe list-simulators

# Store UDID
UDID="YOUR-SIMULATOR-UDID"

# Inspect UI tree
axe describe-ui --udid $UDID
axe describe-ui --point 100,200 --udid $UDID

# Tap interactions
axe tap -x 100 -y 200 --udid $UDID
axe tap --label "Button Text" --udid $UDID
axe tap --id "elementId" --udid $UDID

# Text input
axe type 'Hello World!' --udid $UDID

# Swipe
axe swipe --start-x 100 --start-y 300 --end-x 300 --end-y 100 --udid $UDID

# Gesture presets
axe gesture scroll-up --udid $UDID
axe gesture scroll-down --udid $UDID
axe gesture swipe-from-left-edge --udid $UDID

# Hardware buttons
axe button home --udid $UDID
axe button lock --udid $UDID

# Screenshots
axe screenshot --udid $UDID
axe screenshot --output ~/Desktop/screen.png --udid $UDID

# Timing controls
axe tap -x 100 -y 200 --pre-delay 1.0 --post-delay 0.5 --udid $UDID

Best Practices

• •Prefer labels over coordinates for maintainable automation
• •Use timing controls (--pre-delay, --post-delay) for async operations
• •Check accessibility tree when elements aren't found
• •Use gesture presets instead of manual swipe coordinates
• •Take screenshots to verify visual state after interactions

Resources

• •See references/axe.md for full AXe command reference