Onboarding

Getting Started

Use the CLI for a quick first pass. Use the desktop plus validation labs for the strongest v4 workflow.

01. Install the surface you need

If you want the fastest first run, install the CLI. If you want replay, AuthZ diff, race testing, browser pairing, and evidence workflows, use the desktop path.

bash
1pip install wshawk
2 
3# Optional browser runtime for evidence collection
4playwright install chromium

02. Run a quick compatibility scan

The compatibility scanner is still a useful way to sanity-check a WebSocket target before moving into deeper project-backed workflows.

bash
1wshawk ws://target.example/ws

Practical note

Treat scanner output as a starting point. The strongest v4 proof usually comes later from replay, cross-identity comparison, race testing, and evidence review.

03. Start the full v4 path from source

For the current release, the most complete workflow is still the source tree plus the desktop app.

bash
1git clone https://github.com/regaan/wshawk
2cd wshawk
3pip install -e .
4cd desktop
5npm install
6npm run smoke
7npm start

04. Use the local validation labs

The repo ships with three local validation labs so you can exercise the current replay, diff, race, and evidence flows before touching a real target.

bash
1./venv/bin/python validation/run_validation.py --list
2./venv/bin/python validation/run_validation.py

What to do first in the desktop

Follow the Lifecycle

Create a project, capture traffic, replay actions, then export evidence.

Run the Labs

Use the local benchmark apps to learn the real v4 workflow shape.