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Mobile Automation — Frequently Asked Questions

What is Mobile Automation in QAEverest?

Mobile Automation lets you create, run, schedule, and manage automated test suites for native, hybrid, and web mobile apps on Android and iOS — powered by Appium under the hood. You can target a local device/emulator or run against real devices on a cloud device farm (BrowserStack, Sauce Labs, or LambdaTest), all from the same dashboard used for the rest of your automation suites.

How do I access Mobile Automation?

Navigate to Automation → Mobile Automation in the sidebar (/mobileautomation). The page is organized into four tabs:

  • Test Suites — create, run, and manage mobile test suites.
  • Test Data Management — maintain reusable test data records.
  • Automation Scheduler — schedule runs or trigger them via CI/CD webhooks.
  • Device Setup — configure the device, app binary, and Appium server used for runs.

What platforms and device farms are supported?

Both Android and iOS are supported. For where the tests actually run, you can choose:

  • Local device / emulator — driven by an Appium server running on your own machine.
  • BrowserStack — real devices in the cloud.
  • Sauce Labs — real devices in the cloud.
  • LambdaTest — real devices in the cloud.

When you connect a cloud farm successfully, QAEverest loads its live device catalog so you pick a Platform, Device Name, and OS Version from dropdowns instead of typing them by hand.

At a glance, Mobile Automation runs on real-device clouds like BrowserStack, Sauce Labs, and LambdaTest:

BrowserStackBrowserStack
Real-device cloud
Sauce Labs
Real-device cloud
LambdaTest
Real-device cloud

What tools power Mobile Automation under the hood?

Execution is built on Appium, using the uiautomator2 driver for Android and the xcuitest driver for iOS. For a local run, this relies on standard platform tooling — adb for Android and Xcode for iOS — being installed on your machine. Cloud farm runs skip all of that: your app is uploaded to the provider automatically at run time and no local Appium server is required.

What do I need before I can run a mobile test?

  • At least one Environment configured for Mobile Automation. If none exists, QAEverest shows an "Environment Settings Required" prompt when you try to create a suite or open Test Suites.
  • A saved Device Config under the Device Setup tab, with a successful Test Connection result.
  • Your app binary (APK / IPA / AAB) uploaded or referenced by URL.

How to Configure a Device for Testing

Step 1: Open Device Setup

  • Go to the Device Setup tab and click "⚙️ Configure Device / APK".

Step 2: Choose a Device Farm

  • Select Local device / emulator, BrowserStack, Sauce Labs, or LambdaTest. This choice determines what the rest of the form asks for.
  • For a cloud farm, enter your Username and Access Key. Each farm links directly to where those credentials live: BrowserStack under Account → Profile → Automate, Sauce Labs under User Settings, and LambdaTest under Profile → Account Settings.

Step 3: Select Platform, Device, and OS Version

  • Choose Android or iOS.
  • Pick the Device Name — from a live catalog dropdown once a cloud farm connects successfully, or typed manually otherwise. Manual entries for cloud farms must match the provider's exact catalog name (e.g. "Google Pixel 7", "iPhone 14").
  • Pick the OS Version for the selected device.

Step 4: Upload Your App

  • Click "Upload APK/IPA" and select your app file (.apk, .ipa, or .aab). It's uploaded once and the resulting URL is filled in automatically — or you can paste a GCS URL / local path directly instead.

Step 5: Set Up Appium (Local Devices Only)

  • Enter the Appium Server URL (defaults to http://localhost:4723) and click Check to verify it's reachable, or Start Appium to launch it. The built-in setup guide (ⓘ) walks through:
  • Install Node.js (18+), then Appium: npm install -g appium
  • Install the platform driver — Android: appium driver install uiautomator2, iOS: appium driver install xcuitest
  • Install the platform SDK tools (Android Studio or Xcode).
  • Confirm your device/emulator is visible: adb devices
  • Start the server: appium --port 4723

Cloud farm configurations skip this step entirely — the hub endpoint is resolved automatically.

Step 6: Test Connection and Save

  • Click Test Connection to validate your credentials, device, and app path. For cloud farms, a successful test also loads the live device catalog.
  • Once the connection succeeds, click Save Device Config. Save Device Config stays disabled until a Test Connection has passed.

What app file formats and sizes are supported?

APK, IPA, and AAB files are supported, up to 600 MB per upload.

How do I create and run a Mobile Test Suite?

From the Test Suites tab, click "Create Suite". QAEverest checks your plan and confirms a Mobile environment exists, then opens the suite builder where you can write test case steps directly or upload an existing test case file. Once saved, the suite runs against the device configuration you saved under Device Setup.

Managing Your Mobile Test Suites

  • Search — use the search bar to quickly find a suite.
  • Bulk actions — select multiple suites with checkboxes and delete them together.
  • Edit — click the pencil icon to update a suite's details.
  • Clone — duplicate an existing suite to modify as needed.
  • Run — click the play icon to execute a suite.
  • Download report — retrieve a detailed report of the run.
  • View logs — the eye icon opens execution logs for deeper analysis.
  • Delete — remove a suite permanently with the trash icon.

How does Test Data Management work for Mobile?

Test Data Management lets you define custom record types with your own fields and reuse them across test cases. It's environment-aware — records are tagged with badges like Dev, QA, Staging, or Production. Fields named things like app_path, apk, ipa, or aab automatically get an upload control so you can attach an app binary directly to a record, and fields that look like passwords, secrets, tokens, or PINs are masked.

Can I schedule Mobile test runs or trigger them from CI/CD?

Yes, from the Automation Scheduler tab. When creating a schedule, choose a Trigger Type:

  • Scheduled (cron) — run the suite hourly, daily, or weekly at a chosen time, or as a one-time run at a specific date and time.
  • Webhook (CI/CD) — get a unique URL under the "CI/CD Webhooks" tab; POST to it from GitHub Actions, Jenkins, GitLab CI, or any pipeline to trigger the suite.

Each run's status (pending, running, completed, or failed) is tracked, and the Run History tab shows results from every scheduled or webhook-triggered run.

What are common use cases for Mobile Automation?

  • Regression testing a mobile app across a matrix of Android and iOS devices.
  • Smoke-testing a new build on real cloud devices before release.
  • Running nightly or hourly scheduled suites to catch regressions early.
  • Gating a CI/CD pipeline with a webhook-triggered suite on every build.
  • Sharing reusable test data (accounts, app binaries, tokens) across environments.

Best practices for Mobile Automation

  • Re-run Test Connection any time you change the device farm, credentials, device, or Appium server — a prior successful test is invalidated automatically.
  • For cloud farms, use the provider's exact device catalog name rather than a free-text guess to avoid run failures.
  • Keep local Appium and its platform drivers (uiautomator2, xcuitest) up to date to match your target OS versions.
  • Organize test data by environment (Dev/QA/Staging/Production) so the same suite can run cleanly against different builds.
  • Use a Webhook trigger instead of a fixed schedule when you want mobile tests to run on every commit or deployment.

Troubleshooting

Why does "Test Connection" fail?
Double-check your device farm credentials, that the device name/OS version match the provider's catalog exactly, and that your app path is set. For a local setup, make sure the Appium server URL is correct and the server is actually running.

Why is my local Appium server "not reachable"?
Click Check next to the Appium Server URL to re-verify, or click Start Appium to launch it from the app. If it still fails, confirm Appium is installed (npm install -g appium) and that the port in the URL matches the port Appium is running on.

Why can't I pick a device from a dropdown?
Device, and OS version dropdowns are populated from a live catalog, which only loads after a successful Test Connection to a cloud farm. Until then — or for local setups — type the device name and OS version manually.

Why is "Save Device Config" disabled?
A successful Test Connection is required before saving. Also make sure the app path and device name are filled in, and — for cloud farms — that your username and access key are set.

Why does clicking "Create Suite" just show a prompt instead of opening the suite builder?
You need at least one environment configured for Mobile Automation first. If none exists, QAEverest shows an "Environment Settings Required" prompt instead — configure an environment, then click "Create Suite" again.

How can I report issues or provide feedback for Mobile Automation?

Use the bug report form at https://qaeverest.ai/HomeReportABug or email support@qaeverest.com. Please include the device farm, platform, and device/OS version you were testing against.

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