Start inspecting your app with Ansight

By the end of this quickstart, you can inspect your running development app, give your coding agent access to its exposed tools, and capture a flow to review later. Install the CLI, then choose an SDK integration or external capture for an iOS simulator or Android emulator.

The CLI and local development harness are free and source available under PolyForm Shield 1.0.0. No account or credit card is needed to capture and replay sessions, inspect their evidence, use device tools and app interact, annotate, export a ZIP, or run local tasks. Your existing coding agent can inspect and drive the app with those local tools. Plain-language UI test definitions can be written locally; handing a run to Ansight through app execute or a UI test requires sign-in. Cloud sharing, build uploads, and remote runners require a Startup or higher cloud plan. See pricing for the free local tools and cloud plans. New to Ansight? Read why one connected evidence trail matters first.

1. Install and check the CLI

On macOS or Linux:

curl -fsSL https://www.ansight.ai/install.sh | bash

On Windows PowerShell:

irm https://www.ansight.ai/install.ps1 | iex

Open a new terminal and confirm the CLI and required platform tools:

ansight --version
ansight doctor

The installer verifies the release checksum, adds ansight to your user PATH, and can install the eight-skill core agent set and configure the resident host. For later maintenance, see Update the CLI, Uninstall the CLI, and System Requirements and Dependencies.

When the resident host starts for the first time, its desktop notification can open the local player. The player shows a skippable Getting started guide covering SDK setup, your first capture and replay, and automation extraction. You can reopen the guide from the player navigation at any time.

2. Choose how to capture your app

Compare requirements and evidence in Capture Modes.

Without the SDK: simulator or emulator

For an installed iOS simulator or Android emulator app, start the resident host and add its bundle or package ID under Apps → Monitoring in the local player:

ansight host run --open

You can also register the monitor from another terminal:

ansight app watch add com.example.app
ansight app watch list --json

Launch the app to start recording. No device registration or pairing is needed. Continue with External App Monitoring for replay, files, UI execution, and workspace setup. This mode captures available screens, process telemetry, and native logs. Touch recording, instrumented network capture, and app-internal tools need the SDK.

With the SDK: app tools and richer evidence

The remaining steps describe SDK setup. Use this path for physical devices, app-provided tools, touch capture, and custom instrumentation.

Recommended: let your coding agent do it

Open the app repository in your coding agent and send:

Copyable prompt:

Use https://www.ansight.ai/skills/ansight-install.md to set up Ansight in this project and verify a connected development build.

The install skill detects the framework, uses the matching SDK guide, keeps Ansight behind the app’s developer-build guard, and verifies the integration. Review the resulting diff before committing it.

Manual setup

For a known app stack, give your coding agent the matching installation skill. Use the setup guide when you need the manual steps:

Platform	Recommended installation skill	Manual setup
.NET / .NET MAUI	.NET skill	.NET setup
iOS	iOS skill	iOS setup
Android	Android skill	Android setup
React Native	React Native skill	React Native setup
Expo	React Native skill	Expo development-build setup
Flutter	Flutter skill	Flutter setup
Capacitor	Capacitor skill	Capacitor setup

Use the all-in-one developer package unless you specifically need a smaller core-only integration. Keep package inclusion, initialization, enrollment UI, and remote tools limited to trusted development or QA builds.

3. Start the host and launch the app

Start the local host and leave it running:

ansight host run --open

Launch the app in its development configuration. Simulators, emulators, Mac Catalyst, and desktop apps find the host automatically through loopback. The app can also start first and connect when the host becomes available.

4. Verify the first live session

From another terminal, list connected sessions:

ansight session list --connected --json

Copy the returned session id and confirm that the app exposed its expected tool catalog:

ansight app tools <session-id> \
  --detail summary \
  --include-unavailable \
  --max-results 50 \
  --json

You are ready when the session is connected and the summary lists the tools exposed by that SDK integration, including any explicit denial state. If isTruncated is true, refine the catalog with --query, --feature, --category, or --id-prefix.

If the CLI installer added the Ansight core skill set to your coding agent, try:

Inspect the connected app with Ansight and describe the current screen.

Otherwise, give the agent the published skill explicitly:

Use https://www.ansight.ai/skills/agents/ansight-app-inspection.md to inspect the connected app and describe the current screen.

If the app does not connect

1. Confirm that ansight host run is still active.
2. Confirm that the app is using its development or QA build configuration.
3. Run ansight doctor and address required platform dependencies.
4. Reopen the platform setup guide and verify the startup location and build guard.
5. Check SDK diagnostics and retry ansight session list --connected --json.

Next steps

Connect a physical device

Expose the SDK’s pairing sheet from a developer-only screen in the app. With the host running, issue a one-use QR code in another terminal and scan it:

ansight pairing issue --qr

The scan registers the SDK’s app id and a random app-installation id stored in app-private storage. Later development launches reconnect automatically while that registration remains active.

Capture and replay a flow

Use the connected app normally, then close it and find the captured session:

ansight session list
ansight session serve <session-id> --open

The local replay contains the screenshots, touches, logs, telemetry, and other evidence captured by the selected SDK configuration. Continue with Session Replay and Session Replay and Review.

Open the local player or cloud portal

The resident host serves its player locally in your browser. Reopen it with ansight serve --open. Open the account portal at any time with:

ansight account

See the account and authentication reference for other sign-in methods. Local CLI and agent commands require no account. Sign in with ansight account login before sharing sessions, uploading builds or workspaces, or delegating jobs to Ansight Cloud. Cloud services apply their own organisation permissions and usage limits.

Add repeatable workspace automation

Create the source-controlled workspace with the app id shown by ansight app list:

ansight workspace init . --app-id <app-id>

Continue with Workspace Getting Started to add the first test.