calabash-ios and monotouch problem

[Ryan Boucher]

Hiya,

brief

I can compile calabash-ios into a monotouch project; the server appears to start twice (!?) and cucumber can't connect to it.

I'd like to know of what else I can try to get these two playing nicely together.

full story

I'm trying to get calabash-ios working monotouch (i've got it the android side working fine). The trick with monotouch is that it auto-generates new xcodeproj whenever it needs to. This means that the calabash-ios gen stage can't be done reliably.

So I went down the manual installation path. I copied the calabash.framework folder into the root path of the project and updated the monotouch project options to include the following arguments: -gcc_flags "-force_load /Users/rboucher/projects/HelloMono/MonoForIPhone/calabash.framework/calabash -framework CFNetwork -framework CoreGraphics -lstdc++". I had to add the CoreGraphics framework to as it wouldn't build without it. This now builds and when I start the app (in the monodevelop IDE) I get the following in the output.

2012-09-20 09:13:08.294 MonoForIPhone[16188:c07] Creating the server: <LPHTTPServer: 0x9c13160>

2012-09-20 09:13:08.295 MonoForIPhone[16188:c07] simroot: /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Platforms/iPhoneSimulator.platform/Developer/SDKs/iPhoneSimulator5.1.sdk

2012-09-20 09:13:08.296 MonoForIPhone[16188:c07] Started LPHTTP server on port 37265

2012-09-20 09:13:08.457 MonoForIPhone[16188:2007] Creating the server: <LPHTTPServer: 0x9c56ba0>

2012-09-20 09:13:08.458 MonoForIPhone[16188:2007] simroot: /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Platforms/iPhoneSimulator.platform/Developer/SDKs/iPhoneSimulator5.1.sdk

2012-09-20 09:13:08.459 MonoForIPhone[16188:2007] Error starting LPHTTP Server: Error Domain=NSPOSIXErrorDomain Code=48 "Address already in use" UserInfo=0x9e57450 {NSLocalizedFailureReason=Error in bind() function, NSLocalizedDescription=Address already in use}

I find the server starting twice a potential smell. If I close the simulator and run cucumber from commandline. The simulator is started with the correct app but never establishes a connection. Here is the output.

Feature: Login feature

  Scenario: Default     # features/my_first.feature:3

Ping http://localhost:37265/...

Ping http://localhost:37265/...

Ping http://localhost:37265/...

Ping http://localhost:37265/...

#<Timeout::Error: Timeout::Error>

Ping http://localhost:37265/...

I can bundle this all onto github if anyone wants/needs to take a look at it, the app is nothing more than a single page that contains a button and a label.

Thanks,

Ryan

[Krukow]

Hi Ryan,

Thanks for the detailed report. I'd really like to fully support mono touch as it matches the goals of Calabash very well (cross-platform development+test).

I don't know what happens in the compiler and runtime in mono, but the fact that the HTTP server is starting twice is an indication that the C++ static initializer is running twice which is unsound - could mono be the source of this, or is it more likely the way you setup your project?

https://github.com/calabash/calabash-ios-server/blob/master/calabash/Classes/FranklyServer/LPI.mm

Alternatively you could try and compile a custom version of Calabash Server which doesn't use the C++ static initializer above. Just to make it work you could start the server manually.

You're also welcome to put the reference project in github. But I don't know when I will have time to look at it.

- Karl

[Ryan Boucher]

Thanks Karl.

I've asked the MonoTouch peeps their thoughts (pending post approval). I'll wait to hear from them before I try forking calabash as my objective-c skills aren't great. I dropped my code here: https://github.com/distributedlife/mono_android_ios_calabash. 

Thanks again and I'll let you know what the mono peeps suggest and if I manage to get it all playing nicely.

[appsr]

Hi,

I am also using Xamarin studio for Monotouch and using Calabash IOS for testing. I did forceload the Calabash framework, but I do not see the test server starting when I run it in the simulator.

  <MtouchExtraArgs>-gcc_flags "-framework CFNetwork -framework CoreGraphics -force_load $(ProjectDir)/calabash.framework/calabash -lstdc++"</MtouchExtraArgs>

Is there any other setup that I have to do other than downloading Calabash framework in the project directory and configuring this? I see from the output window that test server didnt start and also when launching the console and doing query says the error could not connect.