Testing with `@reticlehq/test` — declarative, signal-bound specs

Driving Reticle interactively is reconnaissance. To turn it into a repeatable, CI-runnable suite, write declarative specs with @reticlehq/test. Specs bind to signals and testids — never DOM structure — so they inherit Reticle’s refactor-resistance.

import { reticleTest } from '@reticlehq/test';

reticleTest('add a task', async (t) => {
  await t.act('add-task', 'click');
  await t.expectElement({ testid: 'task-list' }, 'visible');
});

reticleTest('ai chat edit', async (t) => {
  await t.fill('chat-input', 'Make the hook punchier');
  await t.act('chat-send', 'click');
  await t.expectNet('POST', '/chat-script', 200);
  await t.expectSignal('chat:edit-applied', { sections: ['hook'] });
});

The test context `t`

A thin, typed façade over Reticle’s tools — it resolves testids → refs for you, so specs never touch refs or DOM:

Method	What it does
`t.act(testid, action, args?)`	perform an action on a testid’d element
`t.fill(testid, value)`	fill an input
`t.actAndWait(testid, action, until)`	act, then block until a predicate holds
`t.expectSignal(name, dataMatches?)`	assert an app signal fired (with optional data match)
`t.expectNet(method, urlContains, status?)`	assert a network call happened
`t.expectElement(query, state?)` / `t.expectText(contains)` / `t.expectAbsent(query)`	DOM assertions
`t.expectNoConsoleErrors()`	assert the flow produced no console errors
`t.state(storeOrRef)`	read a registered store / a component’s state
`t.clock.freeze() / advance(ms) / reset()`	deterministic time (toasts, debounces, auto-dismiss)
`t.expectInputModeReal()`	guard: pass under real input, else skip with a reason

Any failed matcher throws with the structured evidence (near-miss, failure reason) so the runner reports why.

Deterministic + honest

t.clock bakes reticle_clock into the spec, so time-gated UI (a 5s auto-dismiss, a 500ms hover dwell) is tested deterministically instead of racing real timers.
t.expectInputModeReal() — a hover/drag spec asserts native input is active; if it’s running synthetic (no CDP), the spec is skipped with a reason, never silently passing on a no-op. Enable real input headless with reticle drive (see usage §18).

Run a suite (headless, the same path CI uses)

bootSession launches a headless real-input browser at your app and gives the runner a programmatic tool invoker (no MCP/stdio):

import { reticleTest, bootSession, runSpecs, createTestContext } from '@reticlehq/test';

// … reticleTest(...) registrations above …

const booted = await bootSession({ driveUrl: 'http://localhost:4310', headless: true });
const { summary } = await runSpecs({
  invoke: booted.invoke,
  now: () => Date.now(),
  buildContext: (invoke) => createTestContext(invoke, { sessionId: 'my-app' }),
  print: (line) => process.stdout.write(line + '\n'),
});
await booted.close();
process.exit(summary.failed === 0 ? 0 : 1);

Each spec reports pass | fail (with evidence) | skip (with reason). For CI, emit JUnit:

import { toJUnitXml, writeJUnit } from '@reticlehq/test';

Flows become specs

.reticle/ flows (see Flows) can be executed directly as specs — replayed with their expect/success predicates and skipping dynamic (LLM-output) regions — so the recorded map and the suite can’t drift apart:

import { flowsAsSpecs } from '@reticlehq/test';
// register one reticleTest per flow under .reticle/flows/

Authoring tip: record → prune → commit

You don’t have to hand-write steps. Drive the flow once (or record it via the panel), let Reticle emit the program, trim it, and commit it as a spec — the regression test is a byproduct of testing, not separate work.

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Testing with `@reticlehq/test` — declarative, signal-bound specs

The test context `t`

Deterministic + honest

Run a suite (headless, the same path CI uses)

Flows become specs

Authoring tip: record → prune → commit

​Testing with @reticlehq/test — declarative, signal-bound specs

​The test context t

​Deterministic + honest

​Run a suite (headless, the same path CI uses)

​Flows become specs

​Authoring tip: record → prune → commit

Testing with `@reticlehq/test` — declarative, signal-bound specs

The test context `t`

Deterministic + honest

Run a suite (headless, the same path CI uses)

Flows become specs

Authoring tip: record → prune → commit