📱 MCP Server for iOS Simulator

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables LLMs to interact with iOS simulators through natural language commands.

ℹ️ Overview

This MCP server provides a bridge between Large Language Models (LLMs) and iOS simulators, offering comprehensive control through natural language commands. Here's what it can do:

For detailed usage, see the Installation guide and Supported Commands sections. You can use this server either through direct MCP integration or as a standalone library.

Check out the Architecture section to understand how the components work together to enable natural language control of iOS simulators.

🎮 Simulator Control

• Create and manage simulator sessions
• Boot, shutdown, and monitor simulator states
• List available and running simulators
• Focus simulator windows

📱 Application Management

• Install and manage iOS applications
• Launch, terminate, and uninstall apps
• Monitor app states and verify installations
• Handle app permissions and configurations

🖱️ UI Interaction & Testing

• Interact with the simulator UI
• Execute tap, swipe, and button press actions
• Input text and key sequences
• Access accessibility elements for UI testing
• Record videos of UI interactions

🛠️ Development & Debugging

• Capture screenshots and system logs
• Debug applications in real-time
• Monitor and analyze crash logs
• Install dynamic libraries and manage app data

⚡ Advanced Features

• Additional functionality includes:
  • Location simulation
  • Media injection
  • URL scheme handling
  • Contact database management
  • Keychain operations

For detailed usage, see the Installation guide and Supported Commands sections. You can use this server either through direct MCP integration or as a standalone library.

Check out the Architecture section to understand how the components work together to enable natural language control of iOS simulators.

📋 Requirements

• macOS: Required for iOS simulator support
• Node.js: v20.0.0 or higher
• Homebrew: Required for installing dependencies
• XCode: With iOS simulators installed

🚀 Installation

The easiest way to install this server is through Cline:

1. Simply ask Cline:

Add this mcp to cline https://github.com/InditexTech/mcp-server-simulator-ios-idb

2. Cline will handle the installation process automatically, including dependency management and configuration.

Alternatively, you can install it manually:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/InditexTech/mcp-server-simulator-ios-idb.git
cd mcp-server-simulator-ios-idb

# Create and activate Python virtual environment
python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Unix/macOS

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build the project
npm run build

# Start the project
npm start

# Run tests
npm test

The installation process will automatically:

1. Check if you're running macOS

2. Install idb-companion via Homebrew

3. Install fb-idb via pip in the virtual environment

Note: Make sure to keep the virtual environment activated while using the server. If you close your terminal and come back later, you'll need to reactivate the virtual environment with the `source venv/bin/activate` command before running `npm start`.

🔌 MCP Integration

To use this server with Claude or other LLM assistants:

1. Add the server to your MCP settings in Claude Desktop:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ios-simulator": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/mcp-server-simulator-ios-idb/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

2. The LLM can now use natural language commands to control iOS simulators:

create a simulator session with iPhone 14
install app /path/to/my-app.ipa
launch app com.example.myapp
tap at 100, 200
take a screenshot

📚 Usage as a Library

You can also use this package as a library in your own projects:

🔰 Basic Usage

import { createMCPServer } from 'mcp-server-simulator-ios-idb';

async function main() {
  // Create an instance of the MCP server
  const { orchestrator } = createMCPServer();
  
  // Process natural language commands
  
  // Create a simulator session
  const sessionResult = await orchestrator.processInstruction('create session');
  console.log(`Session created: ${sessionResult.data}`);
  
  // Interact with the simulator
  await orchestrator.processInstruction('tap at 100, 200');
  
  // Capture a screenshot
  const screenshotResult = await orchestrator.processInstruction('take screenshot');
  console.log(`Screenshot saved at: ${screenshotResult.data}`);
}

main().catch(console.error);

🚀 Advanced Usage

You can also use the individual components directly:

import { 
  IDBManager, 
  NLParser, 
  MCPOrchestrator,
  ParserToOrchestrator,
  OrchestratorToIDB
} from 'mcp-server-simulator-ios-idb';

// Create instances
const idbManager = new IDBManager();
const parser = new NLParser();
const orchestrator = new MCPOrchestrator(parser, idbManager);

// Use the components directly
const sessionId = await idbManager.createSimulatorSession({
  deviceName: 'iPhone 12',
  platformVersion: '15.0'
});

await idbManager.tap(sessionId, 100, 200);

🏗️ Project Structure

mcp-server-simulator-ios-idb/
├── src/                      # Source code
│   ├── adapters/             # Adapter components
│   ├── idb/                  # IDB manager implementation
│   ├── mcp/                  # MCP server implementation
│   ├── orchestrator/         # Command orchestrator
│   ├── parser/              # Natural language parser
│   └── index.ts             # Main entry point
├── types/                   # TypeScript type definitions
├── scripts/                 # Installation scripts
├── package.json            # Project configuration
└── tsconfig.json          # TypeScript configuration

🎯 Supported Commands

The NLParser supports the following natural language commands:

🎮 Simulator Management

📱 App Management

🖱️ UI Interaction

♿ Accessibility

📸 Capture and Logs

🐛 Debug

💥 Crash Logs

🔧 Additional Commands

The interface supports all commands available in the idb CLI tool, providing a comprehensive set of operations for iOS simulator automation.

🔍 Architecture

The server consists of three main components:

1. IDBManager: Low-level component that interacts directly with iOS simulators through idb.

2. NLParser: Component that interprets natural language instructions and converts them into structured commands.

3. MCPOrchestrator: Central component that coordinates interactions between the parser and the IDBManager.

These components are connected through adapters:

• ParserToOrchestrator: Converts parser results into orchestrator commands.
• OrchestratorToIDB: Translates orchestrator commands into IDBManager calls.

🔌 MCP Integration

To use this server with the Model Context Protocol:

1. Add the server to your MCP settings:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ios-simulator": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/mcp-server-simulator-ios-idb/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

2. Connect to the server in your LLM application:

const result = await useMcpTool({
  serverName: "ios-simulator",
  toolName: "process-instruction",
  arguments: {
    instruction: "create simulator session"
  }
});

🙏 Acknowledgments

This project would not be possible without facebook/idb, which provides the underlying iOS simulator control capabilities. We extend our sincere gratitude to the Facebook/Meta team and all contributors to the idb project for creating and maintaining such a powerful and reliable tool.

📄 License

This tool is available as open source under the terms of the Apache-2.0.