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The console

The console is DeviceDeck's own page for using devices by hand — open it at the address devicedeck prints (http://127.0.0.1:8787 on this Mac, or the network address from another machine).

The device list

Devices shows every simulator and emulator on the Mac, running ones first. Each card has the model and the name you gave it, the runtime, and whether it is running. Click a card — or its Use / Boot button — to open it; a stopped device boots first.

Apps lists the builds you passed with devicedeck --app: name, version, bundle id, the minimum OS and size (hover a card for its architectures, build date and file). Launch opens a running device of the build's platform and launches it, installing it first if the device does not have it. With no matching device running, the card says what to boot. Builds a folder held that cannot run on a simulator — a device build, say — are listed under the cards with the reason.

A device

The page shows the device's screen. It appears once the device is ready to use — video flowing, touch connected, and DeviceDeck's engine (which reads the UI) started — with each stage shown while it loads. If you started DeviceDeck with --app, the matching build is launched the first time you open a device.

Drive it with your mouse: click to tap, drag to swipe. Click the screen once, then type — keys go to the device, including Return and Backspace.

The left sidebar

  • Device — its name, runtime and id (Copy for tests), and End session, which stops DeviceDeck on this device and shuts it down.
  • App — pick a registered build and Launch it (a fresh start: its data is cleared first), or type a bundle id for Record and Inspect.
  • Settings — switch the device to Light or Dark mode, set its GPS location (type latitude, longitude or pick a place), grant or revoke a permission for the app named above without the system prompt (iOS closes the app when some permissions change), and open a deep link. While recording, a location is added to the flow as setLocation; the other settings change this session only.
  • Use it — the device page URL for your tests, and a ready-made prompt to paste into Claude Code.

Controls (right panel): Home, Switcher (the app switcher), Lock, Shot (a screenshot in a new tab), Inspect and Record.

Inspect outlines every element on screen. Hover one to see its id, role and text — exactly what a test selects it by (getByTestId, getByRole). Clicking an outline taps that element. The outlines follow the screen as it changes.

Record captures what you do as a Maestro flow — see Recording a flow.

One device, one driver

A device takes input from one place at a time, so two people or a person and a test cannot tap over each other.

  • Tabs in your browser hand over: the tab you are using drives the device; a tab in the background lets go, and clicking back into it takes the device back.
  • Take over — when someone else holds the device, the red card offers it: it disconnects them, and their page says so.

When the screen turns red

The console says what is wrong instead of failing quietly.

Message What it means What to do
Another client is driving this device A test, an agent or another browser holds it. The card names who. Stop that client, or Take over.
This device is open in another tab Another tab in your browser took it. Use it here, or click into this tab.
Another page took this device over Someone pressed Take over elsewhere. Take over to take it back.
This device's session was ended Someone pressed End session; the device is off. Device list, and boot it again.
DeviceDeck is not reachable The devicedeck server stopped. Start it again; the page reconnects on its own.
The device engine did not start / is not answering DeviceDeck cannot read the device's UI. Retry. If it keeps failing, the run's log folder says why.
The screen stream stopped Video from the device ended — often because it shut down. Reconnect.

Sharing with your team

devicedeck listens on your network, and its startup guide prints the address teammates open — see A shared device farm.

Logs

Every run writes a folder under ~/.devicedeck/logs (the path is printed at startup), with devicedeck.log, the device driver's runner.log, and one log per device. Attach it to an issue.