Install

Requirements

• macOS (Apple silicon or Intel)
• Xcode 15 or later, with command-line tools installed (xcode-select --install)
• Python 3.10+

SimDrive drives the iOS Simulator via simctl and (optionally) paired physical devices via WebDriverAgent. Linux and Windows are not supported — the underlying tools are macOS-only.

Install

pip install simdrive

Verify:

simdrive version
simdrive doctor          # walks every dependency, prints a green/red table

doctor is your first stop whenever something looks off — it surfaces missing Xcode, broken simulator runtimes, stale simctl caches, and WDA bootstrap issues without spinning up a real session.

Start a trial

simdrive trial start --email you@example.com

The trial is 14 days, all Pro features, fully offline. The license is Ed25519-signed and machine-locked — it works in CI sandboxes, on flights, and on developer laptops that can’t reach the network. There is no phone-home check after activation.

After 14 days, paid licenses unlock the full surface:

simdrive auth <your-license-key>

See Licensing — Paid for what to do if your key is lost or you move to a new machine.

Wire SimDrive into your MCP client

SimDrive runs as an MCP server. Add it once, your agent gets all 32 tools.

Claude Code

Add to .claude/mcp.json (project-scoped) or ~/.claude/mcp.json (global):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "simdrive": { "command": "simdrive" }
  }
}

Or use the CLI:

claude code mcp add simdrive simdrive

Restart Claude Code. Type /mcp to confirm simdrive is listed and connected.

Claude Desktop

Edit ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "simdrive": { "command": "simdrive" }
  }
}

Quit and relaunch Claude Desktop.

Cursor

Edit ~/.cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "simdrive": { "command": "simdrive" }
  }
}

Restart Cursor.

Smoke test

In your MCP client, ask:

Use simdrive to start a session against the default simulator, observe the home screen, and stop the session.

You should see your agent call session_start, observe, and session_end in that order. If it does — you’re wired in.

Next

Reproduce your first bug

60-second loop: ticket → repro → recording attached to PR.

Understand the MCP model

Why SimDrive is MCP-native and what that buys you.