Tui Tester

Name: Tui Tester
Author: google-gemini

google-gemini/gemini-cli

84 installs
106k repo stars
Updated August 5, 2026
google-gemini/gemini-cli

tui-tester is an agent skill for testing Gemini CLI TUI behavior and visuals using agent-tui terminal automation.

About

The tui-tester skill verifies Gemini CLI behavioral and visual changes through terminal automation using the agent-tui skill as its tooling layer. Core responsibilities include confirming expected terminal interactions, validating TUI rendering across terminal sizes, and running regression tests on interactive workflows. Critical protocol mandates activating agent-tui first, starting a tmux-shielded daemon on macOS when sessions fail, and using session_id from agent-tui run for all follow-up commands rather than child pids. Environment setup runs npm run build before local tests, sets GEMINI_CLI_TRUST_WORKSPACE true to bypass trust modals, and isolates config with GEMINI_CLI_HOME to avoid personal settings interference. The canonical loop is action, wait, screenshot, verify, next action with exactly one atomic command per turn and no pipelining. Error recovery retakes screenshots on wait timeouts and restarts the daemon when os error 61 appears. Use when testing Gemini CLI TUI changes, validating visual output, or demonstrating terminal regression automation for the CLI project.

Requires activating agent-tui before any TUI testing work.
macOS tmux daemon workaround prevents Connection refused errors.
Uses session_id from agent-tui run for all subsequent commands.
Builds Gemini CLI and sets trust and home env vars before tests.
Enforces atomic action, wait, screenshot, verify testing loop.

Tui Tester by the numbers

84 all-time installs (skills.sh)
Ranked #1,058 of 2,153 Testing & QA skills by installs in the Skillselion catalog
Data as of Aug 5, 2026 (Skillselion catalog sync)

At a glance

tui-tester capabilities & compatibility

Capabilities: agent tui activation and daemon startup protocol · gemini cli build and trust env configuration · session based atomic command testing loop · screenshot backed visual validation · daemon recovery for connection refused errors
Use cases: testing · orchestration
Platforms: macOS · Linux

npx skills add https://github.com/google-gemini/gemini-cli --skill tui-tester

Add your badge

Show developers this skill is listed on Skillselion. Paste this into your README.

[![Listed on Skillselion](https://skillselion.com/badge/skills/google-gemini/gemini-cli/tui-tester.svg)](https://skillselion.com/skills/google-gemini/gemini-cli/tui-tester)

Installs	84
repo stars	★ 106k
Last updated	August 5, 2026
Repository	google-gemini/gemini-cli ↗

How do I regression test Gemini CLI terminal UI changes with reliable automation?

Test Gemini CLI TUI behavior and visual output using agent-tui terminal automation with strict session protocols.

Who is it for?

Gemini CLI contributors automating TUI regression and visual validation on macOS or Linux.

Skip if: Skip for direct main-agent TUI use without tui_tester, Windows hosts, or web browser testing.

When should I use this skill?

User tests Gemini CLI TUI behavior, visual output, or asks to verify terminal interaction changes.

What you get

Verified TUI interactions and visuals with stable agent-tui sessions and screenshot-backed assertions.

Files

SKILL.mdMarkdownGitHub ↗

TUI Tester Skill

This skill provides the operational manual for verifying Gemini CLI behavioral changes and visual output using terminal automation.

Core Responsibilities

Verify Behavior: Confirm that code changes result in the expected terminal interactions.
Visual Validation: Ensure the TUI renders correctly across different terminal sizes and states.
Regression Testing: Use automation to prevent breaking existing interactive workflows.

Critical Protocol

When performing TUI testing, you must adhere to these strict rules:

1. Initialization

YOUR ABSOLUTE FIRST ACTION MUST BE: Activate the agent-tui skill. This provides the underlying tools needed for terminal automation.

2. Environment Setup (macOS / Parallel Safe)

Ensure the global daemon is running and the live preview is open:

if ! agent-tui sessions >/dev/null 2>&1; then
  tmux kill-session -t agent-tui 2>/dev/null || true
  agent-tui daemon stop 2>/dev/null || true
  rm -f /tmp/agent-tui*
  tmux new-session -d -s agent-tui 'agent-tui daemon start --foreground > /tmp/agent-tui-daemon.log 2>&1'
  sleep 1
fi
agent-tui live start --open

3. Session Management

Session IDs: Always use the session_id returned by agent-tui run for subsequent interactions.
Atomic Execution: Execute exactly one command per turn. Do not pipeline actions.
The Loop: Action -> Wait -> Screenshot -> Verify -> Next Action.

4. Gemini CLI Specifics

Build First: Always run npm run build or npm run build:all before testing local changes.
Bypass Trust: Set GEMINI_CLI_TRUST_WORKSPACE=true to avoid focus-stealing modals.
Isolate Config: Use GEMINI_CLI_HOME to prevent interference with your personal settings.

Workflow Example

# Start the CLI
env GEMINI_CLI_TRUST_WORKSPACE=true agent-tui run node packages/cli/dist/index.js

# Wait for the prompt
agent-tui wait "│" --assert

# Send a command
agent-tui type "/help"
agent-tui press Enter

# Verify output
agent-tui wait "Available Commands" --assert