Workshop Setup, Making Sense of Mobile Automation with Appium and WebdriverIO

Before the workshop starts, make sure your machine is set up correctly. Depending on your download speed this takes 30-60 minutes, so do this before you arrive.

Important

The workshop is packed and we don't have time to troubleshoot installation issues on the day itself. Please make sure everything is set up and the check script passes before you arrive. If you get stuck, reach out in advance so we can help.

Note

Appium is not part of this setup guide. During the workshop we pull in the Appium server, drivers, and Appium Inspector together as project dependencies. You do not need to install Appium now.

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Requirements

Make sure your machine meets these minimum versions before starting. If something is missing or too old, the steps below walk you through installing or updating it.

Tool	Minimum version	How to check
Git	2.x	git --version
Node.js	22+ (even versions only: 22, 24, ...)	node --version
Visual Studio Code	Latest	code --version
Android Studio	Panda	Android Studio → About
Android SDK	API 35 (Android 15) or higher	Android Studio → SDK Manager
Xcode (macOS only)	26.4	xcodebuild -version
iOS Simulator (macOS only)	iOS 26.2 or higher	Xcode → Settings → Platforms

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What you'll install

Tool	Why we need it
Git	To clone this repository and run the check script
Node.js (via NVM)	WebdriverIO runs on Node.js
Visual Studio Code	The editor we use to write and run tests
Android Studio	Gives us the Android SDK and the emulator
Xcode (macOS only)	Gives us the iOS Simulator

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1. Git

Git is used to clone this repository to your machine.

See docs/git.md for full instructions.

Quick check: open a terminal and run:

git --version

If you see a version number (e.g. git version 2.x.x), you're good. If not, follow the guide above.

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2. Clone This Repository

Clone this repository to your machine so you can run the setup check script.

Open a terminal and run:

git clone https://github.com/webdriverio/setup-workshop-mobile-automation-with-appium.git
cd setup-workshop-mobile-automation-with-appium

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3. Node.js via NVM

NVM (Node Version Manager) installs and manages Node.js for you. It avoids permission issues and makes switching versions easy later.

macOS

See docs/nvm-mac.md for full instructions.

Quick steps:

curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.40.4/install.sh | bash

Close your terminal completely and open a new one, then:

nvm install --lts
nvm use --lts
node --version   # should print v22.x.x or v24.x.x

Linux

See docs/nvm-linux.md for full instructions.

Quick steps:

curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.40.4/install.sh | bash

Close your terminal completely and open a new one, then:

nvm install --lts
nvm use --lts
node --version   # should print v22.x.x or v24.x.x

Windows

See docs/nvm-windows.md for full instructions, including alternatives via winget and Chocolatey.

On Windows we use nvm-windows. Pick whichever installation method suits you:

Option A, installer:

1. Download nvm-setup.exe from the nvm-windows releases page.
2. Run it and keep all default options.

Option B, winget:

winget install CoreyButler.NVMforWindows

Option C, Chocolatey:

choco install nvm

After installing with any of the options above, open a new PowerShell window and run:

nvm install lts
nvm use lts
node --version   # should print v22.x.x or v24.x.x

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4. Visual Studio Code

VS Code is the editor we use to write and run our tests during the workshop.

See docs/vscode.md for full instructions including recommended extensions.

Quick steps:

1. Download from https://code.visualstudio.com and install.
2. Open a new terminal and verify:

   code --version

   If it says command not found, the check script (step 7) can fix this for you.

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5. Android Studio + Android Emulator

Android Studio gives us the Android SDK and lets us run a virtual phone (emulator) on your computer.

See docs/android-studio.md for full instructions.

Quick steps:

1. Download Android Studio from https://developer.android.com/studio and install.
2. Run the Setup Wizard inside Android Studio, choose Standard.
3. Set ANDROID_HOME and add platform-tools + emulator to your PATH (the check script can do this for you automatically).
4. Open Device Manager, create a Pixel 9 device with API 36, and start it.
5. Confirm with:

   adb devices
   # List of devices attached
   # emulator-5554   device

Starting an emulator from the terminal:

emulator -avd Pixel_9_API_36

Or use start-android-emulator for an interactive picker:

npx start-android-emulator

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6. Xcode + iOS Simulator (macOS only)

iOS automation requires Xcode, which is only available on macOS. If you're on Windows or Linux you'll focus on Android during the iOS parts of the workshop.

See docs/xcode-ios.md for full instructions.

Quick steps:

1. Install Xcode from the App Store (≈ 15 GB, download in advance!).
2. Accept the licence: sudo xcodebuild -license accept
3. Install platform tools: xcodebuild -runFirstLaunch
4. Open Xcode → Settings → Platforms and make sure an iOS runtime is installed.
5. Start a simulator from the terminal:

   xcrun simctl boot "iPhone 17 Pro"
   open -a Simulator

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7. Verify Your Setup

From inside the cloned folder, run:

npm run check

The script checks each tool and tells you exactly what is working and what isn't. It can also fix some things automatically when it prompts you with [y/N].

Fix anything marked with ✘ before the workshop. Warnings (⚠) are fine to leave.

Example of a passing check:

Git
  ✔  git version 2.47.1

Node.js
  ✔  node v22.14.0
  ✔  npm 10.9.2

Visual Studio Code
  ✔  Visual Studio Code 1.99.0

Java
  ✔  Java, openjdk version "17.0.10"

Android
  ✔  ANDROID_HOME = /Users/you/Library/Android/sdk
  ✔  adb, Android Debug Bridge version 1.0.41
  ✔  Android emulator found. Available AVDs:
       Pixel_9_API_36
  ⚠  No running Android devices or emulators (fine before the workshop)

iOS (macOS only)
  ✔  Xcode, /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer
  ✔  xcodebuild, Xcode 26.4
  ⚠  No iOS Simulator currently running (fine before the workshop)

──────────────────────────────────────────────────

All checks passed! Your machine is ready for the workshop.

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Troubleshooting

If you get stuck, each guide in the docs/ folder has a troubleshooting section at the bottom.

Problem	Where to look
Git not found	docs/git.md
nvm not found after install	docs/nvm-mac.md / docs/nvm-linux.md / docs/nvm-windows.md
code command not working	docs/vscode.md
adb not found	docs/android-studio.md
Emulator won't start	docs/android-studio.md
Xcode issues	docs/xcode-ios.md

Still stuck? Reach out before the workshop so we can sort it out in advance.

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What we install during the workshop

You do not need to install any of the following ahead of time:

• Appium server
• Appium drivers (uiautomator2 for Android, xcuitest for iOS)
• Appium Inspector
• The workshop project itself and its dependencies

We pull all of these in together during the workshop as project dependencies.