iOS Dev Recipes
RSS FeedLearn the simctl command line utility by example
The simctl command controls iOS simulator instances. It can be run via xcrun simctl to ensure the version of the tool used matches your currently active Xcode version.
For a full listing of what simctl can do, simply run: xcrun simctl to see the built-in help.
Remove un-needed simulators
Delete simulators that are no longer usable.
xcrun simctl delete unavailableRecord a video from a simulator
xcrun simctl io booted recordVideo --type=h264 ~/your-file.movAlternative: Pipe to another program or server socket
xcrun simctl io booted recordVideo --type=fmp4 - | otherProgramA URL may be specified instead of a file to establish a server socket. The syntax for accepted URLs is: "[tcp|udp]://[ipv4|ipv6]:
" Valid examples are: "tcp://127.0.0.1:9152" and "udp://[::1]:8152".
Options:
| Option | Values |
|---|---|
| --type | 'h264', 'mp4' or 'fmp4' |
| --display | which display |
| --mask | ignored will record full-screen rectangle video on iPhone Xblack will render a black mask over the video |
Take a screenshot of a simulator
xcrun simctl io booted screenshot --type=jpeg ~/your-file.jpg| Option | Values |
|---|---|
| --type | 'png', 'jpg', 'bmp', 'gif' |
| --display | which display |
| --mask | ignored will record full-screen rectangle video on iPhone Xblack will render a black mask over the video |
List devices and/or runtimes
List All:
xcrun simctl list --jsonList Devices:
xcrun simctl list devices --jsonList Device Types:
xcrun simctl list devicetypes --jsonList Simulator Runtimes:
xcrun simctl list runtimes --jsonList Paired Devices:
xcrun simctl list pairs --jsonFor more tips/tricks, see the Listing Devices article
| Option | Values |
|---|---|
| --json or -j | produce JSON output |
Opening a URL on a simulator
xcrun simctl openurl booted 'https://google.com'xcrun simctl openurl booted 'myapp://custom'Locate an app bundle, app data, or app group data
The .app container:
xcrun simctl get_app_container booted com.yourco.appnameOther containers:
xcrun simctl get_app_container booted com.yourco.appname <container>| Option | Values |
|---|---|
| container | (see below) |
| Container Option | Container |
|---|---|
| app | The .app bundle (default) |
| data | The application's data container |
| groups | The App Group containers |
| (group identifier) | A specific App Group container |
Adding media to a simulator
Add photos, videos and live photos to the simulator
Add one photo
xcrun simctl addmedia booted ~/Photos/iphone-sample-photos/sample-1.jpgOr add a mix of many items
xcrun simctl addmedia booted ~/sample-1.jpg \
~/sample-2.jpg \
~/sample-3.mp4Managing preferences on-device using defaults
Get a list of all available preference domains:
xcrun simctl spawn booted defaults domainsRead the defaults for a specific app:
xcrun simctl spawn booted defaults read com.apple.springboardSet a default value for a specific app:
xcrun simctl spawn booted defaults write \
com.socool.my-app apiBaseURL -string "https://beta.example.com/api/v3/"