XTesterGetting Started
Learn how to open Launcher from Studio and use a robot application.
One robot, one window
XTester Launcher runs a trading robot on an exchange, in Paper mode (a virtual account) or LIVE (an exchange account), and shows its charts, position, orders, trades, statistics and journal.
Each strategy has its own launcher and its own window. A window always holds one robot: you cannot pick another robot or open a file in it. To run another strategy, start it from XTester Studio and a separate launcher opens for it.
The modes are described in Paper, Sandbox and Mainnet modes.
How a robot gets into the launcher
If you run the strategy in the launcher again while the robot is running, the launcher asks Restart the robot with the new version?: the robot stops (with the same choice of what to do with its orders and position as a normal stop), and the new version starts the usual way, with the mode confirmation and, for LIVE, all the checks again. Keep It as It Is changes nothing.
- Open the strategy in XTester Studio.
- Choose Run in Launcher.
- The launcher window opens with this robot and the start begins at once: first the launcher asks which mode to start in, and for LIVE it runs all the pre-start checks.
- Launcher commands
If the robot is starting or stopping at that moment, the new version waits: release it again once that is over.
A robot as its own application
A developer can release a robot as a separate application with its own name and icon. It opens the same launcher window, only with the robot's logo and name.
When such an application opens, it first checks the robot: the line Checking and preparing the robot… is on screen. If the computer lacks programs the robot needs, the launcher lists them and offers Install: it installs them itself and goes on with the start; the progress shows in a notification.
A window without a robot
A launcher opened without a robot has only the Start, Connections and Settings pages. The Start page says where robots come from and shows the keys: Connections Ctrl+5, Settings Ctrl+,, All commands Ctrl+Shift+P.
You can already add exchange accounts and Telegram here in advance, see Connections.
First Opening of a Received Robot
Obtain the complete package for your OS/architecture and extract it. Do not move only the executable out of its directory: application resources and the host are required.
- Extract the complete application for the correct target.
- Open it and wait for verification/preparation.
- Approve a specific dependency installation when needed.
- Check profile, mode and required connection.
- Open the journal and retain the exact cause on refusal.
Wait for preparation. Read any list of missing components before approving installation. Declining or a preparation failure leaves the robot unstarted; resolve the named cause before retrying.
Check robot name/version, saved profile and mode. LIVE requires a suitable account, its keys and ordinary checks. Paper needs no keys but still needs market data.
A strategy project opens in Studio. An empty Launcher is not a generic strategy picker: use the intended robot application or launch the intended project from Studio.
Documents on First Launch
If the package author requires acceptance, Launcher shows the seller details and texts before installing or preparing the robot runtime. Every pending required document has its own initially unchecked “I accept …” box. Accept and continue becomes available after all required boxes are checked.
- Open the received robot package.
- Read the seller details and every required document.
- Check each required acceptance box or decline.
- Continue through the normal preparation and mode flow.
- Use About Robot for subsequent viewing.
- Document
- Acknowledgement
- Continue
Read the texts and choose. Decline and exit, Escape and closing the dialog create no acceptance receipt; the robot is not prepared or started. Information-only documents do not require a box and do not prevent startup.
Acceptance is stored locally for the current OS user and package ID, including the seller, document id, title, version, text and UTC acceptance time. Receipts are not sent to the seller. A different OS user or a missing/corrupt receipt requires acceptance again.
Changing the saved seller details or a particular required document requires acceptance of that snapshot again. An application-version update, moving the folder or changing only an informational document does not reset acceptance for the same package ID.
After acceptance, the normal startup flow resumes, including runtime preparation, settings and checks for the selected mode. Acceptance of author documents and platform telemetry settings are separate decisions.
Seller details and documents remain readable offline through About Robot → Documents and Seller. Text is displayed literally, including Markdown markup. See About Robot for the path.