bdg - Browser Automation CLI

Quick Start

bdg https://example.com          # Start session (launches Chrome)
bdg dom screenshot /tmp/page.png # Take screenshot
bdg stop                         # End session

Session Management

bdg <url>                  # Start session (1920x1080, headless if no display)
bdg <url> --headless       # Force headless mode
bdg <url> --no-headless    # Force visible browser window
bdg status                 # Check session status
bdg peek                   # Preview data without stopping
bdg stop                   # Stop and save output
bdg cleanup --force        # Kill stale session
bdg cleanup --aggressive   # Kill all Chrome processes

Sessions run indefinitely by default (no timeout). With HMR/hot-reload dev servers, keep the session running:

bdg http://localhost:5173      # Start once
# ... make code changes, HMR updates the page ...
bdg dom screenshot /tmp/s.png  # Check anytime
bdg peek                       # Preview collected data
# No need to stop/restart - Chrome stays on the page

Screenshots

Always use bdg dom screenshot (raw CDP is blocked):

bdg dom screenshot /tmp/page.png                    # Full page
bdg dom screenshot /tmp/viewport.png --no-full-page # Viewport only
bdg dom screenshot /tmp/el.png --selector "#main"   # Element only
bdg dom screenshot /tmp/scroll.png --scroll "#target" # Scroll to element first

Form Interaction

# Discover forms
bdg dom form --brief              # Quick scan: field names, types, required

# Fill and interact
bdg dom fill "input[name='user']" "myuser"    # Fill by selector
bdg dom fill 0 "value"                         # Fill by index (from query)
bdg dom click "button.submit"                  # Click element
bdg dom submit "form" --wait-navigation        # Submit and wait for page load
bdg dom pressKey "input" Enter                 # Press Enter key

# Options
--no-wait          # Skip network stability wait
--wait-navigation  # Wait for page navigation (traditional forms)
--wait-network <ms> # Wait for network idle (SPA forms)
--index <n>        # Select nth element when multiple match

DOM Inspection

bdg dom query "selector"     # Find elements, returns [0], [1], [2]...
bdg dom get "selector"       # Get semantic a11y info (token-efficient)
bdg dom get "selector" --raw # Get full HTML
bdg dom eval "js expression" # Run JavaScript

CDP Access

Direct access to Chrome DevTools Protocol:

# Execute any CDP method
bdg cdp Runtime.evaluate --params '{"expression": "document.title", "returnByValue": true}'
bdg cdp Page.navigate --params '{"url": "https://example.com"}'
bdg cdp Page.reload --params '{"ignoreCache": true}'

# Discovery
bdg cdp --list                    # List all 53 domains
bdg cdp Network --list            # List methods in domain
bdg cdp Network.getCookies --describe  # Show method schema
bdg cdp --search cookie           # Search methods

Important: Always use returnByValue: true for Runtime.evaluate to get serialized values.

Common Patterns

Login Flow

bdg https://example.com/login
bdg dom form --brief
bdg dom fill "input[name='username']" "$USER"
bdg dom fill "input[name='password']" "$PASS"
bdg dom submit "button[type='submit']" --wait-navigation
bdg dom screenshot /tmp/result.png
bdg stop

Wait for Element

for i in {1..20}; do
  EXISTS=$(bdg cdp Runtime.evaluate --params '{
    "expression": "document.querySelector(\"#target\") !== null",
    "returnByValue": true
  }' | jq -r '.result.value')
  [ "$EXISTS" = "true" ] && break
  sleep 0.5
done

Extract Data

bdg cdp Runtime.evaluate --params '{
  "expression": "Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"a\")).map(a => ({text: a.textContent, href: a.href}))",
  "returnByValue": true
}' | jq '.result.value'

Exit Codes

Troubleshooting

bdg status --verbose      # Full diagnostics
bdg cleanup --force       # Kill stale session
bdg cleanup --aggressive  # Kill all Chrome processes

Chrome won't launch? Run bdg cleanup --aggressive then retry.

Session stuck? Run bdg cleanup --force to reset.

Custom Chrome Flags

Use --chrome-flags or BDG_CHROME_FLAGS for self-signed certificates, CORS, etc.:

# CLI option
bdg https://localhost:5173 --chrome-flags="--ignore-certificate-errors"

# Environment variable
BDG_CHROME_FLAGS="--ignore-certificate-errors" bdg https://localhost:5173

# Multiple flags
bdg https://example.com --chrome-flags="--ignore-certificate-errors --disable-web-security"

Common flags for development:

• --ignore-certificate-errors - Self-signed SSL certs
• --disable-web-security - CORS issues in development
• --allow-insecure-localhost - Insecure localhost
• --disable-features=IsolateOrigins,site-per-process - Cross-origin iframes

Verification Best Practices

Prefer DOM queries over screenshots for verification:

# GOOD: Fast, precise, scriptable
bdg cdp Runtime.evaluate --params '{
  "expression": "document.querySelector(\".error-message\")?.textContent",
  "returnByValue": true
}'

# GOOD: Check element exists
bdg dom query ".submit-btn"

# GOOD: Check text content
bdg cdp Runtime.evaluate --params '{
  "expression": "document.body.innerText.includes(\"Success\")",
  "returnByValue": true
}'

# AVOID: Screenshots for simple verification (slow, requires visual inspection)
bdg dom screenshot /tmp/check.png  # Only use when you need visual proof

When to use screenshots:

• Visual regression testing
• Capturing proof for user review
• Debugging layout issues
• When DOM structure is unknown

When to use DOM queries:

• Verifying text content appeared
• Checking element exists/visible
• Validating form state
• Counting elements
• Any programmatic assertion

When NOT to Use bdg

• Static HTML - Use curl + htmlq/pq
• API calls - Use curl + jq
• Simple HTTP - Use wget/curl

Use bdg when you need: JavaScript execution, dynamic content, browser APIs, screenshots, or network manipulation.