Module 6, Lesson 3: Testing the Scaffold Frontend (Web)
How do you test a mobile scaffold quickly? You run it in a web browser first. Ask Claude Code to walk you through it, let it install any missing web deps, then start the Expo server and open the app in a browser.
It is the fastest sanity check that the scaffold compiles, renders, and reaches your local API. Paste any errors straight back and let it fix them. The Product Path shows the prompts.
Why test a mobile scaffold on web first?
You test a mobile scaffold on web first because it is the fastest, lowest-friction way to confirm the app compiles, renders, and can talk to your local API, without the overhead of an emulator, simulator, or physical device.
Expo lets you target web from the same codebase, so running it in a browser catches missing dependencies and basic wiring errors early. Only once the web version loads and reaches the API cleanly do you move on to the heavier Android and iOS tests.
Before We Start
From previous lessons:
- Your API is running locally and confirmed working, health check and protected route both tested. Module 6, Lesson 2
- Your monorepo has two apps in it: the API and the mobile scaffold. Module 6, Lesson 1
- That confirmed API work is committed to your feature branch. Module 6, Lesson 2
Tools / setup you'll need:
- WebStorm, open to your project, with a terminal available
- Claude Code
- Expo, already scaffolded into your mobile app
By the end of this lesson, you'll:
- Have run your mobile scaffold in a web browser as a fast sanity check
- Have hit and fixed a couple of real errors by pasting them back to Claude Code
- Have confirmed your web frontend can actually reach your API
- Understand why web is the right first test, before touching Android or iOS