Simon Willison has officially released Rodney v0.4.0, a significant update to his command-line interface (CLI) tool designed for browser automation. This latest version transforms Rodney from a simple automation utility into a robust testing framework by introducing the `rodney assert` command. This feature allows developers to execute JavaScript-based tests directly from the shell, enabling precise validation of web application states—such as checking if a specific title exists or if a paragraph count is correct—within standard automation scripts.

Beyond testing capabilities, the update addresses several developer experience requirements, such as directory-scoped sessions through new `--local` and `--global` flags. This allows for isolated browser environments depending on the project directory, effectively preventing state leakage between different automation tasks. Additionally, the tool now supports custom state directories via the `RODNEY_HOME` environment variable and includes an `--insecure` flag to bypass certificate errors during local development, which is particularly useful when testing on internal or staging servers.

For those needing to observe or debug their automation in real-time, the `rodney start --show` option makes the browser window visible, while `rodney connect` allows the tool to hook into an already-running Chrome instance. The inclusion of Windows support and expanded automated testing across Linux, macOS, and Windows ensures that Rodney remains a versatile choice for developers across various operating systems. By simplifying complex browser interactions into readable shell commands, Rodney bridges the gap between manual scripting and full-scale automated testing.

Simon Willison has officially released Rodney v0.4.0, a significant update to his command-line interface (CLI) tool designed for browser automation. This latest version transforms Rodney from a simple automation utility into a robust testing framework by introducing the `rodney assert` command. This feature allows developers to execute JavaScript-based tests directly from the shell, enabling precise validation of web application states—such as checking if a specific title exists or if a paragraph count is correct—within standard automation scripts.

Beyond testing capabilities, the update addresses several developer experience requirements, such as directory-scoped sessions through new `--local` and `--global` flags. This allows for isolated browser environments depending on the project directory, effectively preventing state leakage between different automation tasks. Additionally, the tool now supports custom state directories via the `RODNEY_HOME` environment variable and includes an `--insecure` flag to bypass certificate errors during local development, which is particularly useful when testing on internal or staging servers.

For those needing to observe or debug their automation in real-time, the `rodney start --show` option makes the browser window visible, while `rodney connect` allows the tool to hook into an already-running Chrome instance. The inclusion of Windows support and expanded automated testing across Linux, macOS, and Windows ensures that Rodney remains a versatile choice for developers across various operating systems. By simplifying complex browser interactions into readable shell commands, Rodney bridges the gap between manual scripting and full-scale automated testing.