generated: '2026-08-26'
method: searched
source: >-
  https://www.selenium.dev/documentation/selenium_manager/,
  https://www.selenium.dev/documentation/grid/configuration/cli_options/,
  https://www.selenium.dev/documentation/grid/getting_started/,
  https://www.npmjs.com/package/selenium-side-runner — all read 2026-08-26
provider: Selenium
providerId: selenium
description: >-
  Selenium ships three first-party command-line tools. They are not one CLI with subcommands: each is
  a separate binary with its own distribution channel, and only one of them (Selenium Manager) is
  bundled automatically with every language binding.
clis:
  - name: selenium-manager
    title: Selenium Manager
    official: true
    implementation: Rust
    docs: https://www.selenium.dev/documentation/selenium_manager/
    purpose: >-
      Automated driver and browser management. Resolves and downloads the correct driver
      (chromedriver, geckodriver, msedgedriver, IEDriverServer, safaridriver) and, when asked, the
      browser itself. Bundled with every Selenium release since 4.6 and invoked by the bindings by
      default — most users never call it directly.
    install:
      - method: bundled
        detail: Ships inside every Selenium binding release; nothing to install.
      - method: snapshot
        detail: Standalone builds are snapshotted at https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium_manager_artifacts
    configuration_precedence:
      - CLI arguments
      - se-config.toml in the Selenium cache (default ~/.cache/selenium)
      - SE_* environment variables
    flags:
      - flag: --browser <BROWSER>
        toml: browser
        env: SE_BROWSER
        values: [chrome, firefox, edge, iexplorer, safari, safaritp, webview2]
      - flag: --driver <DRIVER>
        toml: driver
        env: SE_DRIVER
        values: [chromedriver, geckodriver, msedgedriver, IEDriverServer, safaridriver]
      - flag: --browser-version <BROWSER_VERSION>
        toml: browser-version
        env: SE_BROWSER_VERSION
        detail: 'Major browser version (105, 106, ...). Also accepts beta, dev, canary/nightly, and esr (Firefox).'
      - flag: --driver-version <DRIVER_VERSION>
        toml: driver-version
        env: SE_DRIVER_VERSION
      - flag: --output <OUTPUT>
        toml: output
        env: SE_OUTPUT
        values: [LOGGER, JSON, SHELL, MIXED]
        default: LOGGER
        detail: >-
          The flag that matters for automation. JSON emits a custom JSON notation; MIXED sends
          INFO/WARN/DEBUG to stderr and minimal JSON to stdout, which is the machine-readable mode.
      - flag: --os <OS>
        toml: os
        env: SE_OS
        values: [windows, linux, macos]
      - flag: --arch <ARCH>
        toml: arch
        env: SE_ARCH
      - flag: --cache-path <CACHE_PATH>
        toml: cache-path
        env: SE_CACHE_PATH
        default: ~/.cache/selenium
        detail: 'Windows paths in the TOML file need doubled backslashes (C:\\custom\\cache).'
      - flag: --ttl <TTL>
        toml: ttl
        env: SE_TTL
        detail: Time-to-live for cached metadata.
      - flag: --grid [<GRID_VERSION>]
        detail: >-
          Discovers the latest Selenium Grid release and stores selenium-server.jar in the local
          cache; an optional argument pins the Grid version.
      - flag: --help
    known_limitations:
      - >-
        Requires outbound network access to remote endpoints such as Chrome for Testing; the docs
        call connectivity the primary failure mode.
      - Custom package managers, alternative architectures and browser dependencies are documented gaps.
    note: >-
      llms.txt tells code generators explicitly: "Selenium 4.6 and later include Selenium Manager...
      Do not set driver executable paths and do not use third-party driver managers."
  - name: selenium-server
    title: Selenium Grid / standalone server
    official: true
    implementation: Java
    docs: https://www.selenium.dev/documentation/grid/getting_started/
    distribution: GitHub release asset (selenium-server-<version>.jar), or `selenium-manager --grid`
    invocation: java -jar selenium-server.jar <role> [options]
    roles:
      - standalone
      - hub
      - node
      - distributor
      - router
      - sessions
      - sessionqueue
      - info
    key_flags:
      - {flag: --port, default: 4444, detail: Port to listen on.}
      - {flag: --host, detail: 'Server IP or hostname; usually determined automatically.'}
      - {flag: --bind-host, detail: Bind to the host address, or only use it to report the reachable URL.}
      - {flag: --sub-path, example: my_company/selenium_grid, detail: Sub-path to serve from when reverse-proxied.}
      - {flag: --username, detail: HTTP Basic user name — must be set together with --password.}
      - {flag: --password, detail: HTTP Basic password — must be set together with --username.}
      - {flag: --registration-secret, detail: Shared secret authenticating Node registration.}
      - {flag: --https-certificate, detail: Server certificate for HTTPS.}
      - {flag: --https-private-key, detail: Private key for HTTPS (PKCS8).}
      - {flag: --allow-cors, default: false, detail: Allow web-browser connections from any host.}
      - {flag: --session-timeout, default: 300, detail: Seconds of inactivity before a Node kills a session.}
      - {flag: --session-request-timeout, default: 300, detail: Seconds a queued session request may wait.}
      - {flag: --healthcheck-interval, default: 120, detail: Seconds between Node health checks.}
      - {flag: --max-threads, detail: 'Maximum listener threads; default is (available processors) * 3.'}
      - {flag: --reject-unsupported-caps, default: false, detail: Reject immediately when the Grid cannot support requested capabilities.}
    config_sections:
      [distributor, docker, kubernetes, events, logging, network, node, relay, router, server, sessionqueue, sessions]
    config_file: TOML
    docs_config: https://www.selenium.dev/documentation/grid/configuration/toml_options/
    subcommand_note: '`java -jar selenium-server.jar info security` prints the project security guidance.'
  - name: selenium-side-runner
    title: Selenium IDE CLI runner
    official: true
    implementation: JavaScript
    install: npm install -g selenium-side-runner
    package: https://www.npmjs.com/package/selenium-side-runner
    repository: https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium-ide
    purpose: Run Selenium IDE (.side) projects from the command line.
    version: 4.0.13
    published: '2024-11-22'
    note: >-
      Currency gap — last published 2024-11-22, more than 20 months behind the WebDriver bindings.
      Selenium IDE is a separate repo on a separate cadence.