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Reading the AutoMobile daemon log in CI

Use this when debugging JUnit / YAML plan runs that talk to the AutoMobile daemon (local checkout via AUTOMOBILE_DAEMON_LOCAL_PROJECT_PATH or bunx @kaeawc/auto-mobile). The daemon log is the highest-signal place to see [LaunchApp], CTRL_PROXY, ConnectionRefused, and other server-side errors.

Where the log file is

When the daemon is started through the normal --daemon start / restart flow, AutoMobile creates a unique directory under /tmp on the CI runner (the machine running Gradle), for example:

/tmp/auto-mobile-daemon-<random>/daemon.log

Daemon stdout and stderr are written to that file.

This is not the same path as the Unix socket:

  • Socket (stable): /tmp/auto-mobile-daemon-<uid>.sock (UID = user running the tests, e.g. id -u on Linux)
  • Log file (random subfolder): use find or the Logs: line below

How to see the exact path

On a successful daemon start, the parent process often prints to stderr a line like:

Logs: /tmp/auto-mobile-daemon-xxxxx/daemon.log

Search your CI job log for Logs: if Gradle or the wrapper surfaces stderr.

If that line is missing, locate the file with find (see below).

GitLab CI: print the log in the job output

Add an after_script (runs even when tests fail) so the log is visible in the job log:

after_script:
  - |
    echo "=== AutoMobile daemon.log (if any) ==="
    find /tmp -maxdepth 4 -name daemon.log -path '*auto-mobile-daemon*' 2>/dev/null | while read -r f; do
      echo "--- $f ---"
      tail -n 500 "$f" || true
    done

Adjust tail -n if you need more lines.

GitLab CI: save logs as a downloadable artifact

Useful when logs are large or you want to attach them to a ticket:

artifacts:
  when: always
  paths:
    - daemon-logs/
  expire_in: 3 days

after_script:
  - mkdir -p daemon-logs
  - |
    find /tmp -maxdepth 4 -name daemon.log -path '*auto-mobile-daemon*' -print 2>/dev/null | while read -r f; do
      cp "$f" "daemon-logs/$(basename "$(dirname "$f")").log" || true
    done

Download the job artifact and open the daemon-logs/*.log files.

GitHub Actions (same idea)

- name: AutoMobile daemon log
  if: always()
  run: |
    find /tmp -maxdepth 4 -name daemon.log -path '*auto-mobile-daemon*' 2>/dev/null | while read -r f; do
      echo "--- $f ---"
      tail -n 500 "$f" || true
    done

One-off on a shell session

If you have SSH or a debug shell on the same host that ran the daemon:

find /tmp -maxdepth 4 -name daemon.log -path '*auto-mobile-daemon*' 2>/dev/null
tail -n 200 /tmp/auto-mobile-daemon-XXXXXX/daemon.log

Gotchas

  • Same job only: The log exists on the runner that started the daemon. A later CI job does not see that /tmp unless you pass an artifact or a shared cache (unusual for logs).
  • Ephemeral runners: /tmp may be wiped between jobs—use when: always and after_script on the job that runs tests.
  • Enable more noise: JVM automobile.debug=true can help surface daemon-related paths and diagnostics in test output; see the JUnit runner README for system properties.