[Bug]: Storybook React Native Web - Issue with Testing addons installation

[jonniebigodes]

Describe the bug

When a user attempts to install Storybook and selects the React Native Web framework, the installation process offers the option to choose either the minimal development option or the recommended option that includes testing tools (e.g., Vitest addon, A11y, etc.).
However, when the user selects the recommended option, the installation process fails to complete successfully in adding the necessary dependencies for the testing option, leaving the user with a broken Storybook installation with references to the testing addons that were not properly installed.

Reproduction link

N/A

Reproduction steps

1. Create a new Expo project with npx create-expo-app@latest
2. Run npx storybook@latest init and select the React Native Web option
3. Select the recommended option for development, docs, and testing features
4. Observe that the installation process fails to complete successfully with errors related to the testing addons

npx storybook@latest init

T  Initializing Storybook
|
•  Adding Storybook version 10.2.7 to your project
|
o  We've detected a React Native project. Install:
|  React Native Web: Storybook on web for docs, test, and sharing
|
o  Framework detected: react-native-web-vite
|
o  What configuration should we install?
|  Recommended: Component development, docs, and testing features.
|
•  Storybook collects completely anonymous usage telemetry. We use it to shape
|  Storybook's roadmap and prioritize features. You can learn more, including how
|  to opt out, at https://storybook.js.org/telemetry
|
*  Storybook configuration generated
|
|  - Configuring ESLint plugin
|  - Configuring main.ts
|  - Configuring preview.ts
|  - Adding Storybook command to package.json
|  - Copying framework templates
|
*  Dependencies added to package.json
|
|  Adding devDependencies:
|  - storybook@^10.2.7
|  - @storybook/react-native-web-vite@^10.2.7
|  - @chromatic-com/storybook@^5.0.1
|  - @storybook/addon-vitest@^10.2.7
|  - @storybook/addon-a11y@^10.2.7
|  - @storybook/addon-docs@^10.2.7
|  - vite@^7.3.1
|  - eslint-plugin-storybook@^10.2.7
|  - vitest
|  - playwright
|  - @vitest/browser-playwright
|  - @vitest/coverage-v8
|
o  Dependencies installed
|
x  Failed to configure addons
|
|  Configuring @chromatic-com/storybook...
|  @chromatic-com/storybook configured
|
|  Configuring @storybook/addon-vitest...
|  Creating a Vitest setup file for Storybook:
|  C:/Users/my-user/projects/testing-storybook-rn/.storybook/vitest.setup.ts
|
|  Creating a Vitest config file:
|  C:/Users/my-user/projects/testing-storybook-rn/vitest.config.ts
|  Setting up a11y addon for @storybook/addon-vitest
|  Command failed with exit code 127: yarn.cmd exec "storybook@10.2.7" automigrate addon-a11y-addon-test --loglevel silent --yes --skip-doctor --package-manager yarn2 --skip-install
|  Could not automatically set up @storybook/addon-a11y for @storybook/addon-vitest.
|  Please refer to the documentation to complete the setup manually:
|  https://storybook.js.org/docs/writing-tests/accessibility-testing#integration-with-vitest-addon
|  Done, but with errors!
|  @storybook/addon-vitest was installed successfully, but there were some errors during the setup process. Please refer to the documentation to complete the setup manually and check the errors above:
|  https://storybook.js.org/docs/next/writing-tests/integrations/vitest-addon#manual-setup-advanced
|  Configuring @storybook/addon-a11y...
|  Configuring @storybook/addon-docs...
|  @storybook/addon-docs configured
|
|
|  ✅ @chromatic-com/storybook
|  ❌ @storybook/addon-vitest
|  ❌ @storybook/addon-a11y
|  ✅ @storybook/addon-docs
|
|  Playwright browser binaries are necessary for @storybook/addon-vitest. The
|  download can take some time. If you don't want to wait, you can skip the
|  installation and run the following command manually later:
|  yarn exec playwright install chromium --with-deps
|
*  Do you want to install Playwright with Chromium now?
|  > Yes /   No

5. Start Storybook and notice that the A11y addon shows as failed to be configured/installed. However, it's present and functioning.

System

|
|
|  Storybook Environment Info:
|

|  System:
|  OS: Windows 11 10.0.26200
|  CPU: (16) x64 AMD Ryzen 7 7435HS
|  Binaries:
|  Node: 24.10.0 - C:\nvm4w\nodejs\node.EXE
|  Yarn: 4.12.0 - C:\Program Files (x86)\Yarn\bin\yarn.CMD <----- active
|  npm: 11.6.1 - C:\nvm4w\nodejs\npm.CMD
|  pnpm: 7.13.6 - C:\nvm4w\nodejs\pnpm.CMD
|  Browsers:
|  Chrome: 144.0.7559.133
|  Edge: Chromium (140.0.3485.54)
|  npmPackages:
|  @storybook/addon-a11y: ^10.2.7 => 10.2.7
|  @storybook/addon-docs: ^10.2.7 => 10.2.7
|  @storybook/addon-vitest: ^10.2.7 => 10.2.7
|  @storybook/react-native-web-vite: ^10.2.7 => 10.2.7
|  eslint-plugin-storybook: ^10.2.7 => 10.2.7
|  storybook: ^10.2.7 => 10.2.7

Additional context

No response

[dosubot]

This is a limitation in Storybook 10.2.7 on Windows/Yarn 4: the postinstall scripts for @storybook/addon-vitest and @storybook/addon-a11y can fail to run correctly, leaving the testing addons partially configured and requiring manual setup. This is caused by command execution and path handling issues in the postinstall scripts, especially when using Yarn 4 on Windows. Recent Storybook prereleases (10.3.0-alpha.5+) include fixes for this, but they are not yet in your version details.

You can complete the setup manually:

1. Ensure dependencies are installed
   Make sure you have @storybook/addon-vitest, @storybook/addon-a11y, vitest, vite, and playwright installed.

2. Create or update .storybook/vitest.setup.ts
   Import your framework’s setProjectAnnotations, your preview file, and the a11y addon’s preview annotations. Example for React Native Web (adjust imports if needed):

   import { setProjectAnnotations } from '@storybook/react-native-web-vite';
   import * as projectAnnotations from './preview';
   import * as a11yAnnotations from '@storybook/addon-a11y/preview';
   
   setProjectAnnotations([projectAnnotations, a11yAnnotations]);

3. Update your Vitest config
   In vitest.config.ts, ensure you use the Storybook Vitest plugin and reference the setup file. Example:

   import { defineConfig, mergeConfig } from 'vitest/config';
   import { playwright } from '@vitest/browser-playwright';
   import { storybookTest } from '@storybook/addon-vitest/vitest-plugin';
   import path from 'node:path';
   import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
   import viteConfig from './vite.config';
   
   const dirname = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
   
   export default mergeConfig(
     viteConfig,
     defineConfig({
       test: {
         projects: [
           {
             extends: true,
             plugins: [
               storybookTest({
                 configDir: path.join(dirname, '.storybook'),
                 storybookScript: 'yarn storybook --no-open',
               }),
             ],
             test: {
               name: 'storybook',
               browser: {
                 enabled: true,
                 provider: playwright({}),
                 headless: true,
                 instances: [{ browser: 'chromium' }],
               },
               setupFiles: ['./.storybook/vitest.setup.ts'],
             },
           },
         ],
       },
     })
   );

4. Install Playwright browser binaries
   If you skipped this during setup, run:

   yarn exec playwright install chromium --with-deps
   

   or the npm equivalent.

5. (Optional) Configure a11y test behavior
   To fail CI on accessibility violations, set this in your .storybook/preview.ts:

   export const parameters = {
     a11y: {
       test: 'error',
     },
   };

For more details, see the manual setup guide for the Vitest addon and a11y integration.

Recent Storybook prereleases improve Windows/Yarn 4 compatibility for these scripts. If you want to avoid manual steps in the future, keep an eye on upcoming stable releases and consider upgrading when available changelog.

If you run into further issues, please share a minimal reproduction repo or more details about your setup.

To reply, just mention @dosu.

---

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[jonniebigodes]

@dosu the instructions are not accurate since:

• Vitest config was added
• storybook/vitest.setup.ts was also added
• The pr that you mentioned is not relevant to this

[dosubot]

Thanks for the correction—you're right, the init process does generate both the Vitest config and .storybook/vitest.setup.ts. The root cause of the "Failed to configure addons" error is an environment-specific limitation: on Windows with Yarn 4, the postinstall scripts for testing addons sometimes fail due to how command arguments are handled, especially when --skip-install is involved and binaries aren't present in node_modules (details).

If the a11y addon is present in your main.ts and you see .storybook/vitest.setup.ts, the only remaining manual step for full a11y/Vitest integration is to ensure your setup file explicitly imports the a11y preview annotations and includes them in setProjectAnnotations. For example:

import { setProjectAnnotations } from '@storybook/react-native-web-vite';
import * as projectAnnotations from './preview';
import * as a11yAnnotations from '@storybook/addon-a11y/preview';

setProjectAnnotations([projectAnnotations, a11yAnnotations]);

This step is required because the postinstall script can't reliably update the setup file in all environments (reference). If that's already in place, the error message is cosmetic and doesn't indicate a broken setup.

Let me know if you need a checklist or want to review the generated files for completeness.

To reply, just mention @dosu.

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