Debugging doesn't have to be a headache.
Kick simplifies inspection and control across Android, iOS and desktop with a unified, modular toolkit built on Compose Multiplatform. Replace scattered utilities with a single customizable solution embedded right into your app—no more juggling separate tools, no more command-line headaches.
Effortlessly manage logs, network traffic, SQLite databases, file systems and multiplatform settings directly from within your application. Enable only what you need, easily extend functionality with custom modules and keep your app lean and efficient.
Less complexity, faster development, total visibility. That's Kick.
- Cross-platform, unified toolkit — inspect and debug Android, iOS and desktop apps with one seamless solution built on Compose Multiplatform
- Fully modular — activate only what you need, or extend effortlessly with custom modules
- Embedded viewer — inspect logs, network traffic, SQLite databases, file systems and multiplatform settings directly from within your app
- Easy shortcuts — launch inspection tools quickly via shortcuts with a single click
- Simple integration — just initialize with
Kick.init
Kick is initialized once with a platform context and a list of modules. Add every module dependency in shared/build.gradle.kts and choose real or stub implementations using the isRelease flag:
val isRelease = /* your logic to determine release vs. debug */
kotlin {
listOf(
iosX64(),
iosArm64(),
iosSimulatorArm64()
).forEach {
it.binaries.framework {
baseName = "shared"
isStatic = true
export("ru.bartwell.kick:main-core:1.0.0")
if (isRelease) {
export("ru.bartwell.kick:main-runtime-stub:1.0.0")
} else {
export("ru.bartwell.kick:main-runtime:1.0.0")
}
}
}
sourceSets {
commonMain.dependencies {
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:main-core:1.0.0")
if (isRelease) {
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:main-runtime-stub:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:ktor3-stub:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:sqlite-runtime-stub:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:sqlite-sqldelight-adapter-stub:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:sqlite-room-adapter-stub:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:logging-stub:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:multiplatform-settings-stub:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:file-explorer-stub:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:layout-stub:1.0.0")
} else {
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:main-runtime:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:ktor3:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:sqlite-core:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:sqlite-runtime:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:sqlite-sqldelight-adapter:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:sqlite-room-adapter:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:logging:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:multiplatform-settings:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:file-explorer:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:layout:1.0.0")
}
}
}
}Note: stub modules provide no-op implementations instead of the full implementations so your release build stays lightweight.
Because many Android API calls require a Context, you need to wrap it using PlatformContext. Here is a sample of initialization:
// val context = androidContext.toPlatformContext() // For Android
// val context = getPlatformContext() // For iOS and desktop
// val context = platformContext() // In Compose
// let context: PlatformContext = PlatformContextKt.getPlatformContext() // For Swift
Kick.init(context) {
module(SqliteModule(SqlDelightWrapper(sqlDelightDriver)))
module(SqliteModule(RoomWrapper(roomDatabase)))
module(LoggingModule(context))
module(Ktor3Module(context))
module(MultiplatformSettingsModule(listOf("MySettings1" to settings1, "MySettings2" to settings2)))
module(FileExplorerModule())
module(LayoutModule(context))
}
Monitor HTTP traffic performed with Ktor3. Just install the provided plugin:
val client = HttpClient(getEngineFactory()) {
install(KickKtor3Plugin)
}
View and edit SQLite databases. Use one of the provided adapters (or both if you are really using Room and SqlDelight in one application) for your favorite library.
// SqlDelight
module(SqliteModule(SqlDelightWrapper(sqlDelightDriver)))
// Room
module(SqliteModule(RoomWrapper(roomDatabase)))
Gather and review log messages right from the viewer. Add logs with a simple call:
Kick.log(LogLevel.INFO, "message")You can also pipe existing Napier logs into Kick so you only configure logging only once:
Napier.base(object : Antilog() {
override fun performLog(priority: NapierLogLevel, tag: String?, throwable: Throwable?, message: String?) {
val level = when (priority) {
NapierLogLevel.VERBOSE -> LogLevel.VERBOSE
NapierLogLevel.DEBUG -> LogLevel.DEBUG
NapierLogLevel.INFO -> LogLevel.INFO
NapierLogLevel.WARNING -> LogLevel.WARNING
NapierLogLevel.ERROR -> LogLevel.ERROR
NapierLogLevel.ASSERT -> LogLevel.ASSERT
}
Kick.log(level, message)
}
})The log viewer supports two kinds of filtering:
- Message filter - click the filter icon to filter by a text query contained in the message.
- Label filter - when a label extractor is provided, the viewer shows label chips above the list. Clicking chips toggles selected labels. Multiple selected labels are combined with AND. Label chips reflect the current text filter, so you can combine both.
Provide a label extractor via the LoggingModule constructor. A ready‑to‑use BracketLabelExtractor is available; it extracts labels from square brackets like [UI], [Network] in the beginning or anywhere in the message:
import ru.bartwell.kick.module.logging.LoggingModule
import ru.bartwell.kick.module.logging.feature.table.util.BracketLabelExtractor
Kick.init(context) {
module(LoggingModule(context, BracketLabelExtractor()))
}You can also implement a custom extractor by providing your own LabelExtractor:
import ru.bartwell.kick.module.logging.feature.table.util.LabelExtractor
class HashLabelExtractor : LabelExtractor {
private val regex = Regex("#(\\w+)")
override fun extract(message: String?): Set<String> =
if (message.isNullOrEmpty()) emptySet()
else regex.findAll(message).map { it.groupValues[1] }.toSet()
}
Kick.init(context) {
module(LoggingModule(context, HashLabelExtractor()))
}If no extractor is provided, label chips are hidden and only text filtering is available.
Edit values stored with Multiplatform Settings. Register as many storages as you need and switch between them at runtime. Note: Multiplatform Settings doesn’t expose metadata about field types, so Kick can only display and edit values as plain text. When type information becomes available, it will be possible to implement type‑specific views — for example, a switch for Boolean or a numeric input for Int, Long, Double, or Float.
Create configuration options, such as an endpoint URL or debug flags, available during app runtime.
Provide a list of ControlPanelItem objects to ControlPanelModule. Each item is either an input (InputType) or an action (ActionType).
You can optionally group items by category to keep long lists organized. Categories are collapsible; items without a category are shown first and are always visible.
Inputs can optionally include an editor UI:
ControlPanelModule(
context = context,
items = listOf(
ControlPanelItem(
name = "featureEnabled",
type = InputType.Boolean(true),
category = "General",
),
ControlPanelItem(
name = "maxItems",
type = InputType.Int(DEFAULT_MAX_ITEMS),
editor = Editor.InputNumber(min = 1.0, max = 10.0),
category = "General",
),
ControlPanelItem(
name = "endpoint",
type = InputType.String("https://example.com"),
editor = Editor.InputString(singleLine = true),
category = "Network",
),
ControlPanelItem(
name = "list",
type = InputType.String("Item 2"),
editor = Editor.List(
listOf(
InputType.String("Item 1"),
InputType.String("Item 2"),
InputType.String("Item 3"),
)
),
category = "General",
),
ControlPanelItem(
name = "Refresh Cache",
type = ActionType.Button(id = "refresh_cache"),
category = "Actions",
),
)
)
Access these values anywhere using the convenient Kick.controlPanel.get*() methods:
Kick.controlPanel.getBoolean("featureEnabled")
Kick.controlPanel.getInt("maxItems")
Kick.controlPanel.getString("endpoint")
Kick.controlPanel.getString("list")
You can also add action buttons to trigger code in your app. Register an action listener and handle button IDs you defined in ControlPanelItem(type = ActionType.Button("id")):
Kick.controlPanel.onButtonClick { id ->
when (id) {
"refresh_cache" -> refreshCache()
// handle other actions
}
}
Browse the file system directly within the viewer—handy for quick checks of generated files or cached data.
Inspect the current screen’s UI hierarchy without touching code. See a tree of views and key details like bounds, visibility, text, etc.
Trigger it by shaking on Android and iOS or pressing ⌘⌥⇧K on macOS / Ctrl+Alt+Shift+K on Windows and Linux. Triggers work only while the module is enabled.
A small floating panel that shows live debug values over your app and updates in real time. You can drag it around or hide it at any moment. Ideal for tracking states or any quick metric while testing a scenario.
Enable the module and update values from anywhere:
Kick.init(context) {
module(OverlayModule(context))
}
// Update live values
Kick.overlay.set("fps", 42)
Kick.overlay.set("isWsConnected", true)You can also show/hide the panel programmatically if needed:
Kick.overlay.show() // show floating panel
Kick.overlay.hide() // hide itGroup values by categories and switch them in the Overlay settings screen (default category is "Default"). The floating window shows only the values of the currently selected category. The selection is persisted across app restarts.
// Write values into a specific category
Kick.overlay.set("fps", 42, "Performance")
Kick.overlay.set("isWsConnected", true, "Network")Overlay modules can populate categories automatically through OverlayProviders. By default OverlayModule registers the built-in PerformanceOverlayProvider, which exposes CPU and memory usage in the "Performance" category whenever the floating panel is visible.
Pass custom providers to OverlayModule to emit additional metrics:
Kick.init(context) {
module(
OverlayModule(
context = context,
providers = listOf(
PerformanceOverlayProvider(),
MyCustomOverlayProvider(), // implements OverlayProvider
),
),
)
}Implement OverlayProvider to decide when your provider should run, which categories it contributes to, and how it updates values via Kick.overlay.set inside the supplied coroutine scope.
You don't need to add all the available modules. Just include the ones you need. Here only logging and network inspection are enabled:
val isRelease = /* your logic to determine release vs. debug */
if (isRelease) {
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:logging-stub:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:ktor3-stub:1.0.0")
} else {
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:logging:1.0.0")
implementation("ru.bartwell.kick:ktor3:1.0.0")
}Kick.init(context) {
module(LoggingModule(context))
module(Ktor3Module(context))
}Call Kick.launch(context) whenever you want to open the viewer:
In Kotlin:
val context = platformContext()
Button(
onClick = { Kick.launch(context) },
content = { Text(text = "Kick") }
)In Swift:
Button("Kick") {
KickKt.shared.launch(context: PlatformContextKt.getPlatformContext())
}By default, Kick adds a shortcut to your app’s launcher icon (accessible via long-press). To disable it, pass enableShortcut = false during initialization:
Kick.init(context) {
enableShortcut = false
// modules...
}On iOS you need to configure your AppDelegate or UISceneDelegate as follows:
class AppDelegate: NSObject, UIApplicationDelegate {
func application(
_ application: UIApplication,
configurationForConnecting connectingSceneSession: UISceneSession,
options: UIScene.ConnectionOptions
) -> UISceneConfiguration {
return ShortcutActionHandler.shared.getConfiguration(session: connectingSceneSession)
}
}Desktop (Windows/macOS/Linux): when supported by the OS, Kick also adds a System Tray icon with the label "Inspect with Kick". Clicking the tray icon launches the viewer. The icon is removed automatically when the host app exits. This tray shortcut respects the same enableShortcut flag — set it to false to disable the icon.
Contributions are welcome! Feel free to open issues or submit pull requests with improvements and new modules.
Copyright 2025 Artem Bazhanov
Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
You may obtain a copy of the License at
http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
Kick is distributed under the Apache License, Version 2.0.
Happy debugging! If you have any questions or need further assistance, feel free to open an issue.