simulator-utils

Simulator Utilities

Quick reference for iOS Simulator commands. Use these patterns whenever working with simulators.

Screenshot with Auto-Resize (REQUIRED)

ALWAYS use this pattern when taking screenshots to avoid API errors:

# Single command: screenshot + resize
xcrun simctl io booted screenshot /path/to/screenshot.png && sips --resampleHeightWidthMax 1800 /path/to/screenshot.png

Why Resize?

• iPhone 17 simulator screenshots exceed 2000px
• Claude API rejects images >2000px in multi-image requests
• sips --resampleHeightWidthMax 1800 keeps images under limit

Resize Existing Screenshots

# Single file
sips --resampleHeightWidthMax 1800 /path/to/screenshot.png

# Multiple files
sips --resampleHeightWidthMax 1800 /path/to/*.png

# Batch resize all PNGs in directory
for f in /path/to/dir/*.png; do sips --resampleHeightWidthMax 1800 "$f"; done

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Common Simulator Commands

Device Management

# List available simulators
xcrun simctl list devices available

# Boot specific device (prefer iPhone 17)
xcrun simctl boot "iPhone 17"

# Shutdown simulator
xcrun simctl shutdown booted

# Erase simulator (fresh state)
xcrun simctl erase "iPhone 17"

# Check booted device
xcrun simctl list devices | grep Booted

App Operations

# Install app
xcrun simctl install booted /path/to/App.app

# Launch app
xcrun simctl launch booted com.bundle.identifier

# Terminate app
xcrun simctl terminate booted com.bundle.identifier

# Uninstall app
xcrun simctl uninstall booted com.bundle.identifier

Screenshots

# Basic screenshot (NOT recommended - use resize pattern above)
xcrun simctl io booted screenshot /path/to/screenshot.png

# Screenshot with resize (RECOMMENDED)
xcrun simctl io booted screenshot /path/to/screenshot.png && sips --resampleHeightWidthMax 1800 /path/to/screenshot.png

# Screenshot to clipboard
xcrun simctl io booted screenshot - | pbcopy

Video Recording

# Start recording
xcrun simctl io booted recordVideo /path/to/video.mov

# Stop recording: Ctrl+C