Specify and start devices
Start Android and iOS virtual devices, list connected hardware, and target a specific device.
When several simulators, emulators, or devices are available, a run needs to know which one to target. In Astra Scout you choose the device in the app instead of passing flags on a command line.
Choose a device
- Click the device picker in the middle of the toolbar. It reads Select a device until you choose one.
- Pick an iOS Simulator, an iOS device, an Android emulator, or an Android device from the list.
Astra Scout lists the devices it can see. A device must be booted (simulators and emulators) or connected and authorized (devices) before a flow can run on it. For setup steps, see Devices and Supported platforms.
INFO
The device picker is the only way to target a device in Astra Scout. There is no --device flag, and there is no device named for the web: Astra Scout has no web test backend yet.
Find a device identifier
You rarely need the raw identifier, because the picker shows a readable name. If you need it for your own tooling, the platform tools list the same devices:
adb devicesxcrun simctl list devices bootedOne flow, one device
A run uses the single device that is selected when you start it. Astra Scout does not shard a suite across several devices (the Maestro --shard-all and --shard-split options), so the shard variables are fixed: MAESTRO_SHARD_ID is 1 and MAESTRO_SHARD_INDEX is 0. See Parameters and constants.
WARNING
Do not rely on shard-based screenshot names, such as LoginScreen-shard_${MAESTRO_SHARD_INDEX}.png, to keep files apart across devices. Give each takeScreenshot a name that is unique within the flow instead.