Rodney CLI v0.4.0 Launches Advanced Browser Automation Features for Developers

Rodney CLI v0.4.0 Launches Advanced Browser Automation Features for Developers

The open-source command-line tool Rodney, developed by software engineer Simon Willison, has released version 0.4.0 with a suite of significant enhancements designed to streamline browser automation, testing, and debugging workflows. This update, announced on February 10, 2026, marks a pivotal evolution in the tool’s capabilities, transforming it from a basic automation utility into a robust framework for end-to-end web application testing.

Among the most notable additions is the new rodney assert command, which allows developers to execute JavaScript expressions directly within the browser context and validate their outcomes as part of shell scripts. This feature enables teams to write comprehensive, repeatable tests that verify page content, DOM structure, and client-side logic without relying on external frameworks. For instance, a test can now confirm that document.title matches an expected value or that a specific number of paragraph elements are present — all within a single, portable script. As demonstrated in the official README, this functionality integrates seamlessly with bash error handling, making it ideal for CI/CD pipelines.

Another critical improvement is the introduction of directory-scoped sessions via the --local and --global flags. This allows users to isolate browser states per project, preventing configuration conflicts across multiple automation tasks. Combined with the new RODNEY_HOME environment variable, developers can now customize where session data, cookies, and cache are stored — a vital feature for teams managing multiple environments or compliance-sensitive workflows.

Enhanced debugging capabilities have also been added. The rodney connect PORT command enables developers to attach to an already-running Chrome instance, facilitating real-time inspection of live sessions without restarting the browser. This is particularly useful for diagnosing intermittent issues in staging environments. Additionally, the reload --hard and clear-cache commands provide granular control over resource loading, ensuring tests run against clean, uncached states — a necessity for accurate performance and functionality validation.

Platform support has been significantly expanded. Version 0.4.0 now officially supports Windows, macOS, and Linux, with automated tests running on all three in GitHub Actions. Windows compatibility was achieved by avoiding the Setsid system call, thanks to contributions from developer adm1neca. The addition of the --insecure flag to bypass SSL certificate errors further enhances usability in development and internal testing environments where self-signed certificates are common.

Perhaps most importantly, the tool now distinguishes between exit codes: code 1 is reserved exclusively for test assertion failures, while code 2 indicates system or execution errors. This semantic separation allows CI systems to differentiate between application bugs and infrastructure failures, improving alerting and triage workflows.

Contributions from the open-source community have been instrumental in this release, with key features added by Antonio Cuni, Peter Fraenkel, Senko Rašić, and Jakub Zgoliński. The tool’s growing adoption reflects a broader industry trend toward lightweight, scriptable automation tools that reduce dependency on heavy Selenium or Cypress installations.

While the name "Rodney" may evoke associations with the late American comedian Rodney Dangerfield — known for his catchphrase "I don’t get no respect" — this tool is anything but overlooked. In the world of web testing, Rodney v0.4.0 is earning the respect it deserves.

For more details, visit the official GitHub release page.