iOS Simulator Skill

Build, test, and automate iOS applications using accessibility-driven navigation and structured data instead of pixel coordinates.

Quick Start

# 1. Check environment
bash scripts/sim_health_check.sh

# 2. Launch app
python scripts/app_launcher.py --launch com.example.app

# 3. Map screen to see elements
python scripts/screen_mapper.py

# 4. Tap button
python scripts/navigator.py --find-text "Login" --tap

# 5. Enter text
python scripts/navigator.py --find-type TextField --enter-text "[email protected]"

All scripts support --help for detailed options and --json for machine-readable output.

Navigation Strategy

Always prefer the accessibility tree over screenshots for navigation. The accessibility tree gives you element types, labels, frames, and tap targets — structured data that's cheaper and more reliable than image analysis.

Use this priority:

1. screen_mapper.py → structured element list (5-7 lines, ~10 tokens)
2. navigator.py --find-text/--find-type/--find-id → semantic interaction
3. Screenshots → only for visual verification, bug reports, or visual diff

Screenshots cost 1,600–6,300 tokens depending on size. The accessibility tree costs 10–50 tokens in default mode.

21 Production Scripts

Build & Development (2 scripts)

1. build_and_test.py - Build Xcode projects, run tests, parse results with progressive disclosure

• Build with live result streaming
• Parse errors and warnings from xcresult bundles
• Retrieve detailed build logs on demand
• Options: --project, --scheme, --clean, --test, --verbose, --json

1. log_monitor.py - Real-time log monitoring with intelligent filtering

• Stream logs or capture by duration
• Filter by severity (error/warning/info/debug)
• Deduplicate repeated messages
• Options: --app, --severity, --follow, --duration, --output, --json

Navigation & Interaction (5 scripts)

1. screen_mapper.py - Analyze current screen and list interactive elements

• Element type breakdown
• Interactive button list
• Text field status
• Options: --verbose, --hints, --json

1. navigator.py - Find and interact with elements semantically

• Find by text (fuzzy matching)
• Find by element type
• Find by accessibility ID
• Enter text or tap elements
• Options: --find-text, --find-type, --find-id, --tap, --enter-text, --json

1. gesture.py - Perform swipes, scrolls, pinches, and complex gestures

• Directional swipes (up/down/left/right)
• Multi-swipe scrolling
• Pinch zoom
• Long press
• Pull to refresh
• Options: --swipe, --scroll, --pinch, --long-press, --refresh, --json

1. keyboard.py - Text input and hardware button control

• Type text (fast or slow)
• Special keys (return, delete, tab, space, arrows)
• Hardware buttons (home, lock, volume, screenshot)
• Key combinations
• Options: --type, --key, --button, --slow, --clear, --dismiss, --json

1. app_launcher.py - App lifecycle management

• Launch apps by bundle ID
• Terminate apps
• Install/uninstall from .app bundles
• Deep link navigation
• List installed apps
• Check app state
• Options: --launch, --terminate, --install, --uninstall, --open-url, --list, --state, --json

Testing & Analysis (5 scripts)

1. accessibility_audit.py - Check WCAG compliance on current screen

• Critical issues (missing labels, empty buttons, no alt text)
• Warnings (missing hints, small touch targets)
• Info (missing IDs, deep nesting)
• Options: --verbose, --output, --json

1. visual_diff.py - Compare two screenshots for visual changes

• Pixel-by-pixel comparison
• Threshold-based pass/fail
• Generate diff images
• Options: --threshold, --output, --details, --json

1. test_recorder.py - Automatically document test execution

• Capture screenshots and accessibility trees per step
• Generate markdown reports with timing data
• Options: --test-name, --output, --verbose, --json

1. app_state_capture.py - Create comprehensive debugging snapshots

• Screenshot, UI hierarchy, app logs, device info
• Markdown summary for bug reports
• Options: --app-bundle-id, --output, --log-lines, --json

1. sim_health_check.sh - Verify environment is properly configured

• Check macOS, Xcode, simctl, IDB, Python
• List available and booted simulators
• Verify Python packages (Pillow)

Advanced Testing & Permissions (4 scripts)

1. clipboard.py - Manage simulator clipboard for paste testing

• Copy text to clipboard
• Test paste flows without manual entry
• Options: --copy, --test-name, --expected, --json

1. status_bar.py - Override simulator status bar appearance

• Presets: clean (9:41, 100% battery), testing (11:11, 50%), low-battery (20%), airplane (offline)
• Custom time, network, battery, WiFi settings
• Options: --preset, --time, --data-network, --battery-level, --clear, --json

1. push_notification.py - Send simulated push notifications

• Simple mode (title + body + badge)
• Custom JSON payloads
• Test notification handling and deep links
• Options: --bundle-id, --title, --body, --badge, --payload, --json

1. privacy_manager.py - Grant, revoke, and reset app permissions

• 13 supported services (camera, microphone, location, contacts, photos, calendar, health, etc.)
• Batch operations (comma-separated services)
• Audit trail with test scenario tracking
• Options: --bundle-id, --grant, --revoke, --reset, --list, --json

Device Lifecycle Management (5 scripts)

1. simctl_boot.py - Boot simulators with optional readiness verification

• Boot by UDID or device name
• Wait for device ready with timeout
• Batch boot operations (--all, --type)
• Performance timing
• Options: --udid, --name, --wait-ready, --timeout, --all, --type, --json

1. simctl_shutdown.py - Gracefully shutdown simulators

• Shutdown by UDID or device name
• Optional verification of shutdown completion
• Batch shutdown operations
• Options: --udid, --name, --verify, --timeout, --all, --type, --json

1. simctl_create.py - Create simulators dynamically

• Create by device type and iOS version
• List available device types and runtimes
• Custom device naming
• Returns UDID for CI/CD integration
• Options: --device, --runtime, --name, --list-devices, --list-runtimes, --json

1. simctl_delete.py - Permanently delete simulators

• Delete by UDID or device name
• Safety confirmation by default (skip with --yes)
• Batch delete operations
• Smart deletion (--old N to keep N per device type)
• Options: --udid, --name, --yes, --all, --type, --old, --json

1. simctl_erase.py - Factory reset simulators without deletion

• Preserve device UUID (faster than delete+create)
• Erase all, by type, or booted simulators
• Optional verification
• Options: --udid, --name, --verify, --timeout, --all, --type, --booted, --json

Common Patterns

Auto-UDID Detection: Most scripts auto-detect the booted simulator if --udid is not provided.

Device Name Resolution: Use device names (e.g., "iPhone 16 Pro") instead of UDIDs - scripts resolve automatically.

Batch Operations: Many scripts support --all for all simulators or --type iPhone for device type filtering.

Output Formats: Default is concise human-readable output. Use --json for machine-readable output in CI/CD.

Help: All scripts support --help for detailed options and examples.

Screenshot Sizing: Screenshots are resized to save tokens. Presets: full (3-4 tiles, ~5K tokens), half (1 tile, ~1.6K tokens, default), quarter (1 tile, ~800 tokens, less detail). Use quarter for quick visual checks, half for readable UI, full only when pixel-level detail matters. Scripts that capture screenshots (app_state_capture.py, test_recorder.py) default to half.

Typical Workflow

1. Verify environment: bash scripts/sim_health_check.sh
2. Launch app: python scripts/app_launcher.py --launch com.example.app
3. Analyze screen: python scripts/screen_mapper.py
4. Interact: python scripts/navigator.py --find-text "Button" --tap
5. Verify: python scripts/accessibility_audit.py
6. Debug if needed: python scripts/app_state_capture.py --app-bundle-id com.example.app

Requirements

• macOS 12+
• Xcode Command Line Tools
• Python 3
• IDB (optional, for interactive features)

Documentation

• SKILL.md (this file) - Script reference and quick start
• README.md - Installation and examples
• CLAUDE.md - Architecture and implementation details
• references/ - Deep documentation on specific topics
• examples/ - Complete automation workflows

Key Design Principles

Semantic Navigation: Find elements by meaning (text, type, ID) not pixel coordinates. Survives UI changes.

Token Efficiency: Concise default output (3-5 lines) with optional verbose and JSON modes for detailed results.

Accessibility-First: Built on standard accessibility APIs for reliability and compatibility.

Zero Configuration: Works immediately on any macOS with Xcode. No setup required.

Structured Data: Scripts output JSON or formatted text, not raw logs. Easy to parse and integrate.

Auto-Learning: Build system remembers your device preference. Configuration stored per-project.

Use these scripts directly or let Claude Code invoke them automatically when your request matches the skill description.