diff --git a/cli/__snapshots__/cli_spec.js b/cli/__snapshots__/cli_spec.js
index 6b32ae654418..010f3fdd84d5 100644
--- a/cli/__snapshots__/cli_spec.js
+++ b/cli/__snapshots__/cli_spec.js
@@ -46,14 +46,14 @@ exports['cli help command shows help 1'] = `
     run [options]      Runs Cypress tests from the CLI without the GUI
     open [options]     Opens Cypress in the interactive GUI.
     install [options]  Installs the Cypress executable matching this package's version
-    verify             Verifies that Cypress is installed correctly and executable
+    verify [options]   Verifies that Cypress is installed correctly and executable
     cache [options]    Manages the Cypress binary cache
   -------
   stderr:
   -------
-  
+
   -------
-  
+
 `
 
 exports['cli help command shows help for --help 1'] = `
@@ -79,14 +79,14 @@ exports['cli help command shows help for --help 1'] = `
     run [options]      Runs Cypress tests from the CLI without the GUI
     open [options]     Opens Cypress in the interactive GUI.
     install [options]  Installs the Cypress executable matching this package's version
-    verify             Verifies that Cypress is installed correctly and executable
+    verify [options]   Verifies that Cypress is installed correctly and executable
     cache [options]    Manages the Cypress binary cache
   -------
   stderr:
   -------
-  
+
   -------
-  
+
 `
 
 exports['cli help command shows help for -h 1'] = `
@@ -112,14 +112,14 @@ exports['cli help command shows help for -h 1'] = `
     run [options]      Runs Cypress tests from the CLI without the GUI
     open [options]     Opens Cypress in the interactive GUI.
     install [options]  Installs the Cypress executable matching this package's version
-    verify             Verifies that Cypress is installed correctly and executable
+    verify [options]   Verifies that Cypress is installed correctly and executable
     cache [options]    Manages the Cypress binary cache
   -------
   stderr:
   -------
-  
+
   -------
-  
+
 `
 
 exports['cli unknown command shows usage and exits 1'] = `
@@ -151,9 +151,9 @@ exports['cli unknown command shows usage and exits 1'] = `
   -------
   stderr:
   -------
-  
+
   -------
-  
+
 `
 
 exports['cli unknown option shows help for cache command - no sub-command 1'] = `
@@ -179,9 +179,9 @@ exports['cli unknown option shows help for cache command - no sub-command 1'] =
   -------
   stderr:
   -------
-  
+
   -------
-  
+
 `
 
 exports['cli unknown option shows help for cache command - unknown option --foo 1'] = `
@@ -209,9 +209,9 @@ exports['cli unknown option shows help for cache command - unknown option --foo
   -------
   stderr:
   -------
-  
+
   -------
-  
+
 `
 
 exports['cli unknown option shows help for cache command - unknown sub-command foo 1'] = `
@@ -239,9 +239,9 @@ exports['cli unknown option shows help for cache command - unknown sub-command f
   -------
   stderr:
   -------
-  
+
   -------
-  
+
 `
 
 exports['cli version and binary version 1'] = `
@@ -289,9 +289,9 @@ exports['shows help for open --foo 1'] = `
   -------
   stderr:
   -------
-  
+
   -------
-  
+
 `
 
 exports['shows help for run --foo 1'] = `
@@ -332,7 +332,7 @@ exports['shows help for run --foo 1'] = `
   -------
   stderr:
   -------
-  
+
   -------
-  
+
 `
diff --git a/cli/__snapshots__/errors_spec.js b/cli/__snapshots__/errors_spec.js
index 9eba5ebf2d44..c3891648fdb6 100644
--- a/cli/__snapshots__/errors_spec.js
+++ b/cli/__snapshots__/errors_spec.js
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ exports['errors individual has the following errors 1'] = [
   "failedDownload",
   "failedUnzip",
   "invalidCacheDirectory",
-  "invalidDisplayError",
+  "invalidSmokeTestDisplayError",
   "missingApp",
   "missingDependency",
   "missingXvfb",
@@ -45,19 +45,11 @@ exports['errors individual has the following errors 1'] = [
 ]
 
 exports['invalid display error'] = `
-Cypress failed to start.
+Cypress verification failed.
 
-First, we have tried to start Cypress using your DISPLAY settings
-but encountered the following problem:
+Cypress failed to start after spawning a new XVFB server.
 
-----------
-
-prev message
-
-----------
-
-Then we started our own XVFB and tried to start Cypress again, but
-got the following error:
+The error logs we received were:
 
 ----------
 
diff --git a/cli/__snapshots__/verify_spec.js b/cli/__snapshots__/verify_spec.js
index fd02db1e68d1..ded2295d591c 100644
--- a/cli/__snapshots__/verify_spec.js
+++ b/cli/__snapshots__/verify_spec.js
@@ -159,7 +159,7 @@ Error: Cypress verification timed out.
 
 This command failed with the following output:
 
-/cache/Cypress/1.2.3/Cypress.app/Contents/MacOS/Cypress --smoke-test --ping=222 --enable-logging
+/cache/Cypress/1.2.3/Cypress.app/Contents/MacOS/Cypress --smoke-test --ping=222
 
 ----------
 
@@ -181,7 +181,7 @@ Error: Cypress verification failed.
 
 This command failed with the following output:
 
-/cache/Cypress/1.2.3/Cypress.app/Contents/MacOS/Cypress --smoke-test --ping=222 --enable-logging
+/cache/Cypress/1.2.3/Cypress.app/Contents/MacOS/Cypress --smoke-test --ping=222
 
 ----------
 
@@ -203,7 +203,7 @@ Error: Cypress verification failed.
 
 This command failed with the following output:
 
-/cache/Cypress/1.2.3/Cypress.app/Contents/MacOS/Cypress --smoke-test --ping=222 --enable-logging
+/cache/Cypress/1.2.3/Cypress.app/Contents/MacOS/Cypress --smoke-test --ping=222
 
 ----------
 
@@ -364,19 +364,15 @@ It looks like this is your first time using Cypress: 1.2.3
 
  ✖  Verifying Cypress can run /cache/Cypress/1.2.3/Cypress.app
 STRIPPED
-Error: Your system is missing the dependency: XVFB
+Error: XVFB exited with a non zero exit code.
 
-Install XVFB and run Cypress again.
+There was a problem spawning Xvfb.
 
-Read our documentation on dependencies for more information:
-
-https://on.cypress.io/required-dependencies
-
-If you are using Docker, we provide containers with all required dependencies installed.
+This is likely a problem with your system, permissions, or installation of Xvfb.
 
 ----------
 
-Caught error trying to run XVFB: "test without xvfb"
+Error: test without xvfb
 
 ----------
 
@@ -386,23 +382,15 @@ Cypress Version: 1.2.3
 `
 
 exports['tried to verify twice, on the first try got the DISPLAY error'] = `
-Cypress failed to start.
+Cypress verification failed.
 
-First, we have tried to start Cypress using your DISPLAY settings
-but encountered the following problem:
+Cypress failed to start after spawning a new XVFB server.
 
-----------
-
-[some noise here] Gtk: cannot open display: 987
-and maybe a few other lines here with weird indent
-
-----------
-
-Then we started our own XVFB and tried to start Cypress again, but
-got the following error:
+The error logs we received were:
 
 ----------
 
+[some noise here] Gtk: cannot open display: 987
 some other error
 again with
 some weird indent
diff --git a/cli/lib/cli.js b/cli/lib/cli.js
index d18ac01f2b52..cecc0172565b 100644
--- a/cli/lib/cli.js
+++ b/cli/lib/cli.js
@@ -228,6 +228,7 @@ module.exports = {
     .command('verify')
     .usage('[options]')
     .description('Verifies that Cypress is installed correctly and executable')
+    .option('--dev', text('dev'), coerceFalse)
     .action((opts) => {
       const defaultOpts = { force: true, welcomeMessage: false }
       const parsedOpts = parseOpts(opts)
diff --git a/cli/lib/errors.js b/cli/lib/errors.js
index 9146ead7c14d..4e7e5a95ed69 100644
--- a/cli/lib/errors.js
+++ b/cli/lib/errors.js
@@ -108,21 +108,14 @@ const smokeTestFailure = (smokeTestCommand, timedOut) => {
   }
 }
 
-const invalidDisplayError = {
-  description: 'Cypress failed to start.',
-  solution  (msg, prevMessage) {
+const invalidSmokeTestDisplayError = {
+  code: 'INVALID_SMOKE_TEST_DISPLAY_ERROR',
+  description: 'Cypress verification failed.',
+  solution  (msg) {
     return stripIndent`
-      First, we have tried to start Cypress using your DISPLAY settings
-      but encountered the following problem:
-
-      ${hr}
+      Cypress failed to start after spawning a new XVFB server.
 
-      ${prevMessage}
-
-      ${hr}
-
-      Then we started our own XVFB and tried to start Cypress again, but
-      got the following error:
+      The error logs we received were:
 
       ${hr}
 
@@ -301,17 +294,23 @@ function formErrorText (info, msg, prevMessage) {
   })
 }
 
-const raise = (text) => {
-  const err = new Error(text)
+const raise = (info) => {
+  return (text) => {
+    const err = new Error(text)
+
+    if (info.code) {
+      err.code = info.code
+    }
 
-  err.known = true
-  throw err
+    err.known = true
+    throw err
+  }
 }
 
 const throwFormErrorText = (info) => {
   return (msg, prevMessage) => {
     return formErrorText(info, msg, prevMessage)
-    .then(raise)
+    .then(raise(info))
   }
 }
 
@@ -326,7 +325,7 @@ module.exports = {
     missingApp,
     notInstalledCI,
     missingDependency,
-    invalidDisplayError,
+    invalidSmokeTestDisplayError,
     versionMismatch,
     binaryNotExecutable,
     unexpected,
diff --git a/cli/lib/exec/spawn.js b/cli/lib/exec/spawn.js
index 08e6e04e7ee5..7451cf628507 100644
--- a/cli/lib/exec/spawn.js
+++ b/cli/lib/exec/spawn.js
@@ -1,29 +1,39 @@
 const _ = require('lodash')
-const la = require('lazy-ass')
-const is = require('check-more-types')
 const os = require('os')
 const cp = require('child_process')
 const path = require('path')
 const Promise = require('bluebird')
 const debug = require('debug')('cypress:cli')
-const { stripIndent } = require('common-tags')
+const debugElectron = require('debug')('cypress:electron')
 
 const util = require('../util')
 const state = require('../tasks/state')
 const xvfb = require('./xvfb')
-const logger = require('../logger')
-const logSymbols = require('log-symbols')
 const { throwFormErrorText, errors } = require('../errors')
 
 const isXlibOrLibudevRe = /^(?:Xlib|libudev)/
 const isHighSierraWarningRe = /\*\*\* WARNING/
 
+const GARBAGE_WARNINGS = [isXlibOrLibudevRe, isHighSierraWarningRe]
+
+const isGarbageLineWarning = (str) => {
+  return _.some(GARBAGE_WARNINGS, (re) => {
+    return re.test(str)
+  })
+}
+
 function isPlatform (platform) {
   return os.platform() === platform
 }
 
 function needsStderrPiped (needsXvfb) {
-  return isPlatform('darwin') || (needsXvfb && isPlatform('linux'))
+  return _.some([
+    isPlatform('darwin'),
+
+    (needsXvfb && isPlatform('linux')),
+
+    util.isPossibleLinuxWithIncorrectDisplay(),
+  ])
 }
 
 function needsEverythingPipedDirectly () {
@@ -48,18 +58,6 @@ function getStdio (needsXvfb) {
   return 'inherit'
 }
 
-/**
- * Returns true if DISPLAY is set for Linux platform
- * and the application exits really quickly.
- */
-const isPotentialDisplayProblem = (platform, display, code, elapsedMs) => {
-  la(is.unemptyString(platform), 'missing platform', platform)
-  la(is.number(code), 'expected exit code to be a number', code)
-  la(elapsedMs >= 0, 'elapsed ms should be >= 0', elapsedMs)
-
-  return platform === 'linux' && display && code === 1 && elapsedMs < 1000
-}
-
 module.exports = {
   start (args, options = {}) {
     const needsXvfb = xvfb.isNeeded()
@@ -75,13 +73,19 @@ module.exports = {
     args = [].concat(args, '--cwd', process.cwd())
 
     _.defaults(options, {
+      dev: false,
       env: process.env,
       detached: false,
       stdio: getStdio(needsXvfb),
     })
 
-    const spawn = () => {
+    const spawn = (overrides = {}) => {
       return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
+        _.defaults(overrides, {
+          onStderrData: false,
+          electronLogging: false,
+        })
+
         if (options.dev) {
           // if we're in dev then reset
           // the launch cmd to be 'npm run dev'
@@ -91,32 +95,37 @@ module.exports = {
           )
         }
 
-        const overrides = util.getEnvOverrides()
+        const { onStderrData, electronLogging } = overrides
+        const envOverrides = util.getEnvOverrides()
+        const electronArgs = _.clone(args)
         const node11WindowsFix = isPlatform('win32')
 
-        debug('spawning Cypress with executable: %s', executable)
-        debug('spawn forcing env overrides %o', overrides)
-        debug('spawn args %o %o', args, _.omit(options, 'env'))
-
         // strip dev out of child process options
-        options = _.omit(options, 'dev')
-        options = _.omit(options, 'binaryFolder')
+        let stdioOptions = _.pick(options, 'env', 'detached', 'stdio')
 
         // figure out if we're going to be force enabling or disabling colors.
         // also figure out whether we should force stdout and stderr into thinking
         // it is a tty as opposed to a pipe.
-        options.env = _.extend({}, options.env, overrides)
+        stdioOptions.env = _.extend({}, stdioOptions.env, envOverrides)
+
         if (node11WindowsFix) {
-          options = _.extend({}, options, { windowsHide: false })
+          stdioOptions = _.extend({}, stdioOptions, { windowsHide: false })
+        }
+
+        if (electronLogging) {
+          stdioOptions.env.ELECTRON_ENABLE_LOGGING = true
         }
 
-        if (os.platform() === 'linux' && process.env.DISPLAY) {
+        if (util.isPossibleLinuxWithIncorrectDisplay()) {
           // make sure we use the latest DISPLAY variable if any
           debug('passing DISPLAY', process.env.DISPLAY)
-          options.env.DISPLAY = process.env.DISPLAY
+          stdioOptions.env.DISPLAY = process.env.DISPLAY
         }
 
-        const child = cp.spawn(executable, args, options)
+        debug('spawning Cypress with executable: %s', executable)
+        debug('spawn args %o %o', electronArgs, _.omit(stdioOptions, 'env'))
+
+        const child = cp.spawn(executable, electronArgs, stdioOptions)
 
         child.on('close', resolve)
         child.on('error', reject)
@@ -131,10 +140,13 @@ module.exports = {
             const str = data.toString()
 
             // bail if this is warning line garbage
-            if (
-              isXlibOrLibudevRe.test(str) ||
-              isHighSierraWarningRe.test(str)
-            ) {
+            if (isGarbageLineWarning(str)) {
+              return
+            }
+
+            // if we have a callback and this explictly returns
+            // false then bail
+            if (onStderrData && onStderrData(str) === false) {
               return
             }
 
@@ -156,7 +168,7 @@ module.exports = {
           throw err
         })
 
-        if (options.detached) {
+        if (stdioOptions.detached) {
           child.unref()
         }
       })
@@ -165,47 +177,41 @@ module.exports = {
     const spawnInXvfb = () => {
       return xvfb
       .start()
-      .then(() => {
-        // call userFriendlySpawn ourselves
-        // to prevent result of previous promise
-        // from becoming a parameter to userFriendlySpawn
-        debug('spawning Cypress after starting XVFB')
-
-        return userFriendlySpawn()
-      })
+      .then(userFriendlySpawn)
       .finally(xvfb.stop)
     }
 
-    const userFriendlySpawn = (shouldRetryOnDisplayProblem) => {
-      debug('spawning, should retry on display problem?', Boolean(shouldRetryOnDisplayProblem))
-      if (os.platform() === 'linux') {
-        debug('DISPLAY is %s', process.env.DISPLAY)
-      }
-
-      const electronStarted = Number(new Date())
+    const userFriendlySpawn = (linuxWithDisplayEnv) => {
+      debug('spawning, should retry on display problem?', Boolean(linuxWithDisplayEnv))
 
-      return spawn()
-      .then((code) => {
-        const electronFinished = Number(new Date())
-        const elapsed = electronFinished - electronStarted
-
-        debug('electron open returned %d after %d ms', code, elapsed)
+      let brokenGtkDisplay
 
-        if (shouldRetryOnDisplayProblem &&
-          isPotentialDisplayProblem(os.platform(), process.env.DISPLAY, code, elapsed)) {
-          debug('Cypress thinks there is a potential display or OS problem')
-          debug('retrying the command with our XVFB')
+      const overrides = {}
 
-          // if we get this error, we are on Linux and DISPLAY is set
-          logger.warn(`${stripIndent`
-
-            ${logSymbols.warning} Warning: Cypress process has finished very quickly with an error,
-            which might be related to a potential problem with how the DISPLAY is configured.
+      if (linuxWithDisplayEnv) {
+        _.extend(overrides, {
+          electronLogging: true,
+          onStderrData (str) {
+            // if we receive a broken pipe anywhere
+            // then we know that's why cypress exited early
+            if (util.isBrokenGtkDisplay(str)) {
+              brokenGtkDisplay = true
+            }
 
-            DISPLAY was set to "${process.env.DISPLAY}"
+            // we should attempt to always slurp up
+            // the stderr logs unless we've explicitly
+            // enabled the electron debug logging
+            if (!debugElectron.enabled) {
+              return false
+            }
+          },
+        })
+      }
 
-            We will attempt to spin our XVFB server and run Cypress again.
-          `}\n`)
+      return spawn(overrides)
+      .then((code) => {
+        if (code !== 0 && brokenGtkDisplay) {
+          util.logBrokenGtkDisplayWarning()
 
           return spawnInXvfb()
         }
@@ -219,10 +225,11 @@ module.exports = {
       return spawnInXvfb()
     }
 
-    // if we have problems spawning Cypress, maybe user DISPLAY setting is incorrect
-    // in that case retry with our own XVFB
-    const shouldRetryOnDisplayProblem = os.platform() === 'linux'
+    // if we are on linux and there's already a DISPLAY
+    // set, then we may need to rerun cypress after
+    // spawning our own XVFB server
+    const linuxWithDisplayEnv = util.isPossibleLinuxWithIncorrectDisplay()
 
-    return userFriendlySpawn(shouldRetryOnDisplayProblem)
+    return userFriendlySpawn(linuxWithDisplayEnv)
   },
 }
diff --git a/cli/lib/exec/xvfb.js b/cli/lib/exec/xvfb.js
index 2959718d4b55..6e750bc27cba 100644
--- a/cli/lib/exec/xvfb.js
+++ b/cli/lib/exec/xvfb.js
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 const os = require('os')
 const Promise = require('bluebird')
 const Xvfb = require('@cypress/xvfb')
-const R = require('ramda')
 const { stripIndent } = require('common-tags')
 const debug = require('debug')('cypress:cli')
 const debugXvfb = require('debug')('cypress:xvfb')
@@ -26,6 +25,7 @@ module.exports = {
     debug('Starting XVFB')
 
     return xvfb.startAsync()
+    .return(null)
     .catch({ nonZeroExitCode: true }, throwFormErrorText(errors.nonZeroExitCodeXvfb))
     .catch((err) => {
       if (err.known) {
@@ -40,6 +40,10 @@ module.exports = {
     debug('Stopping XVFB')
 
     return xvfb.stopAsync()
+    .return(null)
+    .catch(() => {
+      // noop
+    })
   },
 
   isNeeded () {
@@ -75,7 +79,7 @@ module.exports = {
   // async method, resolved with Boolean
   verify () {
     return xvfb.startAsync()
-    .then(R.T)
+    .return(true)
     .catch((err) => {
       debug('Could not verify xvfb: %s', err.message)
 
diff --git a/cli/lib/tasks/verify.js b/cli/lib/tasks/verify.js
index b53411a1ee30..4052c22fccdc 100644
--- a/cli/lib/tasks/verify.js
+++ b/cli/lib/tasks/verify.js
@@ -3,9 +3,10 @@ const chalk = require('chalk')
 const Listr = require('listr')
 const debug = require('debug')('cypress:cli')
 const verbose = require('@cypress/listr-verbose-renderer')
-const { stripIndent, stripIndents } = require('common-tags')
+const { stripIndent } = require('common-tags')
 const Promise = require('bluebird')
 const logSymbols = require('log-symbols')
+const path = require('path')
 
 const { throwFormErrorText, errors } = require('../errors')
 const util = require('../util')
@@ -37,18 +38,9 @@ const checkExecutable = (binaryDir) => {
 }
 
 const runSmokeTest = (binaryDir, options) => {
-  debug('running smoke test')
-  const cypressExecPath = state.getPathToExecutable(binaryDir)
+  let executable = state.getPathToExecutable(binaryDir)
 
-  debug('using Cypress executable %s', cypressExecPath)
-
-  const onXvfbError = (err) => {
-    debug('caught xvfb error %s', err.message)
-
-    return throwFormErrorText(errors.missingXvfb)(`Caught error trying to run XVFB: "${err.message}"`)
-  }
-
-  const onSmokeTestError = (smokeTestCommand, runningWithOurXvfb, prevDisplayError) => {
+  const onSmokeTestError = (smokeTestCommand, linuxWithDisplayEnv) => {
     return (err) => {
       debug('Smoke test failed:', err)
 
@@ -59,43 +51,17 @@ const runSmokeTest = (binaryDir, options) => {
       if (err.timedOut) {
         debug('error timedOut is true')
 
-        return throwFormErrorText(errors.smokeTestFailure(smokeTestCommand, true))(errMessage)
+        return throwFormErrorText(
+          errors.smokeTestFailure(smokeTestCommand, true)
+        )(errMessage)
       }
 
-      if (!runningWithOurXvfb && !prevDisplayError && util.isDisplayError(errMessage)) {
-        // running without our XVFB
-        // for the very first time
-        // and we hit invalid display error
-        debug('Smoke test hit Linux display problem: %s', errMessage)
-
-        logger.warn(`${stripIndents`
-
-          ${logSymbols.warning} Warning: we have caught a display problem:
-
-          ${stripIndents(errMessage)}
+      if (linuxWithDisplayEnv && util.isBrokenGtkDisplay(errMessage)) {
+        util.logBrokenGtkDisplayWarning()
 
-          We will attempt to spin our XVFB server and verify again.
-        `}\n`)
-
-        const err = new Error(errMessage)
-
-        err.displayError = true
-        err.platform = 'linux'
-        throw err
-      }
-
-      if (prevDisplayError) {
-        debug('this was our 2nd attempt at verifying')
-        debug('first we tried with user-given DISPLAY')
-        debug('now we have tried spinning our own XVFB')
-        debug('and yet it still has failed with')
-        debug(errMessage)
-
-        return throwFormErrorText(errors.invalidDisplayError)(errMessage, prevDisplayError.message)
+        return throwFormErrorText(errors.invalidSmokeTestDisplayError)(errMessage)
       }
 
-      debug('throwing missing dependency error')
-
       return throwFormErrorText(errors.missingDependency)(errMessage)
     }
   }
@@ -108,21 +74,32 @@ const runSmokeTest = (binaryDir, options) => {
    * Spawn Cypress running smoke test to check if all operating system
    * dependencies are good.
    */
-  const spawn = (runningWithOurXvfb, prevDisplayError) => {
+  const spawn = (linuxWithDisplayEnv) => {
     const random = _.random(0, 1000)
-    const args = ['--smoke-test', `--ping=${random}`, '--enable-logging']
-    const smokeTestCommand = `${cypressExecPath} ${args.join(' ')}`
+    const args = ['--smoke-test', `--ping=${random}`]
 
+    process.env.ELECTRON_ENABLE_LOGGING = true
+
+    if (options.dev) {
+      executable = 'node'
+      args.unshift(
+        path.resolve(__dirname, '..', '..', '..', 'scripts', 'start.js')
+      )
+    }
+
+    const smokeTestCommand = `${executable} ${args.join(' ')}`
+
+    debug('running smoke test')
+    debug('using Cypress executable %s', executable)
     debug('smoke test command:', smokeTestCommand)
 
     return Promise.resolve(util.exec(
-      cypressExecPath,
+      executable,
       args,
       { timeout: options.smokeTestTimeout }
     ))
-    .catch(onSmokeTestError(smokeTestCommand, runningWithOurXvfb, prevDisplayError))
+    .catch(onSmokeTestError(smokeTestCommand, linuxWithDisplayEnv))
     .then((result) => {
-
       // TODO: when execa > 1.1 is released
       // change this to `result.all` for both stderr and stdout
       const smokeTestReturned = result.stdout
@@ -137,27 +114,34 @@ const runSmokeTest = (binaryDir, options) => {
     })
   }
 
-  const spinXvfbAndVerify = (prevDisplayError) => {
-    return xvfb.start()
-    .catch(onXvfbError)
-    .then(spawn.bind(null, true, prevDisplayError))
-    .finally(() => {
-      return xvfb.stop()
-      .catch(onXvfbError)
+  const spawnInXvfb = (linuxWithDisplayEnv) => {
+    return xvfb
+    .start()
+    .then(() => {
+      return spawn(linuxWithDisplayEnv)
+    })
+    .finally(xvfb.stop)
+  }
+
+  const userFriendlySpawn = (linuxWithDisplayEnv) => {
+    debug('spawning, should retry on display problem?', Boolean(linuxWithDisplayEnv))
+
+    return spawn(linuxWithDisplayEnv)
+    .catch({ code: 'INVALID_SMOKE_TEST_DISPLAY_ERROR' }, () => {
+      return spawnInXvfb(linuxWithDisplayEnv)
     })
   }
 
   if (needsXvfb) {
-    return spinXvfbAndVerify()
+    return spawnInXvfb()
   }
 
-  return spawn()
-  .catch({ displayError: true, platform: 'linux' }, (e) => {
-    debug('there was a display error')
-    debug('will try spinning our own XVFB and verify Cypress')
+  // if we are on linux and there's already a DISPLAY
+  // set, then we may need to rerun cypress after
+  // spawning our own XVFB server
+  const linuxWithDisplayEnv = util.isPossibleLinuxWithIncorrectDisplay()
 
-    return spinXvfbAndVerify(e)
-  })
+  return userFriendlySpawn(linuxWithDisplayEnv)
 }
 
 function testBinary (version, binaryDir, options) {
@@ -248,11 +232,16 @@ const start = (options = {}) => {
   let binaryDir = state.getBinaryDir(packageVersion)
 
   _.defaults(options, {
+    dev: false,
     force: false,
     welcomeMessage: true,
     smokeTestTimeout: 10000,
   })
 
+  if (options.dev) {
+    return runSmokeTest('', options)
+  }
+
   const parseBinaryEnvVar = () => {
     const envBinaryPath = util.getEnv('CYPRESS_RUN_BINARY')
 
diff --git a/cli/lib/util.js b/cli/lib/util.js
index 88fdf5358ec5..4296b39587c8 100644
--- a/cli/lib/util.js
+++ b/cli/lib/util.js
@@ -11,7 +11,9 @@ const getos = require('getos')
 const chalk = require('chalk')
 const Promise = require('bluebird')
 const cachedir = require('cachedir')
+const logSymbols = require('log-symbols')
 const executable = require('executable')
+const { stripIndent } = require('common-tags')
 const supportsColor = require('supports-color')
 const isInstalledGlobally = require('is-installed-globally')
 const pkg = require(path.join(__dirname, '..', 'package.json'))
@@ -22,6 +24,8 @@ const issuesUrl = 'https://github.com/cypress-io/cypress/issues'
 
 const getosAsync = Promise.promisify(getos)
 
+const isBrokenGtkDisplayRe = /Gtk: cannot open display/
+
 const stringify = (val) => {
   return _.isObject(val) ? JSON.stringify(val) : val
 }
@@ -38,6 +42,38 @@ const isLinux = () => {
   return os.platform() === 'linux'
 }
 
+/**
+   * If the DISPLAY variable is set incorrectly, when trying to spawn
+   * Cypress executable we get an error like this:
+  ```
+  [1005:0509/184205.663837:WARNING:browser_main_loop.cc(258)] Gtk: cannot open display: 99
+  ```
+   */
+const isBrokenGtkDisplay = (str) => {
+  return isBrokenGtkDisplayRe.test(str)
+}
+
+const isPossibleLinuxWithIncorrectDisplay = () => {
+  return isLinux() && process.env.DISPLAY
+}
+
+const logBrokenGtkDisplayWarning = () => {
+  debug('Cypress exited due to a broken gtk display because of a potential invalid DISPLAY env... retrying after starting XVFB')
+
+  // if we get this error, we are on Linux and DISPLAY is set
+  logger.warn(stripIndent`
+
+    ${logSymbols.warning} Warning: Cypress failed to start.
+
+    This is likely due to a misconfigured DISPLAY environment variable.
+
+    DISPLAY was set to: "${process.env.DISPLAY}"
+
+    Cypress will attempt to fix the problem and rerun.
+  `)
+  logger.warn()
+}
+
 function stdoutLineMatches (expectedLine, stdout) {
   const lines = stdout.split('\n').map(R.trim)
   const lineMatches = R.equals(expectedLine)
@@ -260,6 +296,12 @@ const util = {
 
   issuesUrl,
 
+  isBrokenGtkDisplay,
+
+  logBrokenGtkDisplayWarning,
+
+  isPossibleLinuxWithIncorrectDisplay,
+
   getGitHubIssueUrl (number) {
     la(is.positive(number), 'github issue should be a positive number', number)
     la(_.isInteger(number), 'github issue should be an integer', number)
@@ -267,16 +309,6 @@ const util = {
     return `${issuesUrl}/${number}`
   },
 
-  /**
-   * If the DISPLAY variable is set incorrectly, when trying to spawn
-   * Cypress executable we get an error like this:
-  ```
-  [1005:0509/184205.663837:WARNING:browser_main_loop.cc(258)] Gtk: cannot open display: 99
-  ```
-   */
-  isDisplayError (errorMessage) {
-    return isLinux() && errorMessage.includes('cannot open display:')
-  },
 }
 
 module.exports = util
diff --git a/cli/test/lib/errors_spec.js b/cli/test/lib/errors_spec.js
index 741b5d423ac8..4310da3a2f84 100644
--- a/cli/test/lib/errors_spec.js
+++ b/cli/test/lib/errors_spec.js
@@ -67,7 +67,7 @@ describe('errors', function () {
     })
 
     it('forms full text for invalid display error', () => {
-      return formErrorText(errors.invalidDisplayError, 'current message', 'prev message')
+      return formErrorText(errors.invalidSmokeTestDisplayError, 'current message', 'prev message')
       .then((text) => {
         snapshot('invalid display error', text)
       })
diff --git a/cli/test/lib/exec/spawn_spec.js b/cli/test/lib/exec/spawn_spec.js
index e83e68161706..9cfeb8068945 100644
--- a/cli/test/lib/exec/spawn_spec.js
+++ b/cli/test/lib/exec/spawn_spec.js
@@ -57,7 +57,8 @@ describe('lib/exec/spawn', function () {
           '--cwd',
           cwd,
         ], {
-          foo: 'bar',
+          detached: false,
+          stdio: ['inherit', 'inherit', 'pipe'],
         })
       })
     })
@@ -75,7 +76,8 @@ describe('lib/exec/spawn', function () {
           '--cwd',
           cwd,
         ], {
-          foo: 'bar',
+          detached: false,
+          stdio: ['inherit', 'inherit', 'pipe'],
         })
       })
     })
@@ -138,6 +140,12 @@ describe('lib/exec/spawn', function () {
         this.spawnedProcess.on.withArgs('close').onFirstCall().yieldsAsync(1)
         this.spawnedProcess.on.withArgs('close').onSecondCall().yieldsAsync(0)
 
+        const buf1 = '[some noise here] Gtk: cannot open display: 987'
+
+        this.spawnedProcess.stderr.on
+        .withArgs('data')
+        .yields(buf1)
+
         os.platform.returns('linux')
 
         return spawn.start('--foo')
diff --git a/cli/test/lib/tasks/verify_spec.js b/cli/test/lib/tasks/verify_spec.js
index 193ee78c68d4..8df629664f74 100644
--- a/cli/test/lib/tasks/verify_spec.js
+++ b/cli/test/lib/tasks/verify_spec.js
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ const { stripIndent } = require('common-tags')
 
 const { mockSpawn } = require('spawn-mock')
 const mockfs = require('mock-fs')
+const mockedEnv = require('mocked-env')
 
 const fs = require(`${lib}/fs`)
 const util = require(`${lib}/util`)
@@ -56,7 +57,7 @@ context('lib/tasks/verify', () => {
     sinon.stub(_, 'random').returns('222')
 
     util.exec
-    .withArgs(executablePath, ['--smoke-test', '--ping=222', '--enable-logging'])
+    .withArgs(executablePath, ['--smoke-test', '--ping=222'])
     .resolves(spawnedProcess)
   })
 
@@ -285,7 +286,13 @@ context('lib/tasks/verify', () => {
   })
 
   describe('smoke test retries on bad display with our XVFB', () => {
+    let restore
+
     beforeEach(() => {
+      restore = mockedEnv({
+        DISPLAY: 'test-display',
+      })
+
       createfs({
         alreadyVerified: false,
         executable: mockfs.file({ mode: 0777 }),
@@ -296,14 +303,16 @@ context('lib/tasks/verify', () => {
       sinon.spy(logger, 'warn')
     })
 
+    afterEach(() => {
+      restore()
+    })
+
     it('successfully retries with our XVFB on Linux', () => {
       // initially we think the user has everything set
       xvfb.isNeeded.returns(false)
+      sinon.stub(util, 'isPossibleLinuxWithIncorrectDisplay').returns(true)
 
       sinon.stub(util, 'exec').callsFake(() => {
-        // using .callsFake to set platform to Linux
-        // to allow retry logic to work
-        os.platform.returns('linux')
         const firstSpawnError = new Error('')
 
         // this message contains typical Gtk error shown if X11 is incorrect
@@ -325,7 +334,9 @@ context('lib/tasks/verify', () => {
       return verify.start().then(() => {
         expect(util.exec).to.have.been.calledTwice
         // user should have been warned
-        expect(logger.warn).to.have.been.calledOnce
+        expect(logger.warn).to.have.been.calledWithMatch(
+          'This is likely due to a misconfigured DISPLAY environment variable.'
+        )
       })
     })
 
@@ -333,10 +344,12 @@ context('lib/tasks/verify', () => {
       // initially we think the user has everything set
       xvfb.isNeeded.returns(false)
 
+      sinon.stub(util, 'isPossibleLinuxWithIncorrectDisplay').returns(true)
+
       sinon.stub(util, 'exec').callsFake(() => {
+        os.platform.returns('linux')
         expect(xvfb.start).to.not.have.been.called
 
-        os.platform.returns('linux')
         const firstSpawnError = new Error('')
 
         // this message contains typical Gtk error shown if X11 is incorrect
@@ -349,10 +362,12 @@ context('lib/tasks/verify', () => {
 
         // the second time it runs, it fails for some other reason
         const secondMessage = stripIndent`
+          [some noise here] Gtk: cannot open display: 987
           some other error
             again with
               some weird indent
         `
+
         util.exec.withArgs(executablePath).rejects(new Error(secondMessage))
 
         return Promise.reject(firstSpawnError)
@@ -360,14 +375,15 @@ context('lib/tasks/verify', () => {
 
       return verify.start().then(() => {
         throw new Error('Should have failed')
-      }, (e) => {
+      })
+      .catch((e) => {
         expect(util.exec).to.have.been.calledTwice
         // second time around we should have called XVFB
         expect(xvfb.start).to.have.been.calledOnce
         expect(xvfb.stop).to.have.been.calledOnce
 
         // user should have been warned
-        expect(logger.warn).to.have.been.calledOnce
+        expect(logger.warn).to.have.been.calledWithMatch('DISPLAY was set to: "test-display"')
 
         snapshot('tried to verify twice, on the first try got the DISPLAY error', e.message)
       })
@@ -511,6 +527,7 @@ context('lib/tasks/verify', () => {
   describe('on linux', () => {
     beforeEach(() => {
       xvfb.isNeeded.returns(true)
+
       createfs({
         alreadyVerified: false,
         executable: mockfs.file({ mode: 0777 }),
@@ -533,10 +550,17 @@ context('lib/tasks/verify', () => {
     it('logs error and exits when starting xvfb fails', () => {
       const err = new Error('test without xvfb')
 
+      xvfb.start.restore()
+
+      err.nonZeroExitCode = true
       err.stack = 'xvfb? no dice'
-      xvfb.start.rejects(err)
+      sinon.stub(xvfb._xvfb, 'startAsync').rejects(err)
 
-      return verify.start().catch((err) => {
+      return verify.start()
+      .then(() => {
+        throw new Error('should have thrown')
+      })
+      .catch((err) => {
         expect(xvfb.stop).to.be.calledOnce
 
         logger.error(err)
@@ -590,7 +614,7 @@ context('lib/tasks/verify', () => {
         customDir: '/real/custom',
       })
       util.exec
-      .withArgs(realEnvBinaryPath, ['--smoke-test', '--ping=222', '--enable-logging'])
+      .withArgs(realEnvBinaryPath, ['--smoke-test', '--ping=222'])
       .resolves(spawnedProcess)
 
       return verify.start().then(() => {
@@ -598,7 +622,8 @@ context('lib/tasks/verify', () => {
         snapshot('valid CYPRESS_RUN_BINARY 1', normalize(stdout.toString()))
       })
     })
-    ;['darwin', 'linux', 'win32'].forEach((platform) => {
+
+    _.each(['darwin', 'linux', 'win32'], (platform) => {
       return it('can log error to user', () => {
         process.env.CYPRESS_RUN_BINARY = '/custom/'
         os.platform.returns(platform)
diff --git a/cli/test/lib/util_spec.js b/cli/test/lib/util_spec.js
index 0070944265d2..210655babd2e 100644
--- a/cli/test/lib/util_spec.js
+++ b/cli/test/lib/util_spec.js
@@ -15,13 +15,14 @@ describe('util', () => {
     sinon.stub(logger, 'error')
   })
 
-  context('.isDisplayError', () => {
+  context('.isBrokenGtkDisplay', () => {
     it('detects only GTK message', () => {
       os.platform.returns('linux')
       const text = '[some noise here] Gtk: cannot open display: 99'
-      expect(util.isDisplayError(text)).to.be.true
+
+      expect(util.isBrokenGtkDisplay(text)).to.be.true
       // and not for the other messages
-      expect(util.isDisplayError('display was set incorrectly')).to.be.false
+      expect(util.isBrokenGtkDisplay('display was set incorrectly')).to.be.false
     })
   })
 
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index b9bc1a873230..2986f766565b 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 {
   "name": "cypress",
   "productName": "Cypress",
-  "version": "3.2.0",
+  "version": "3.3.0",
   "description": "Cypress.io end to end testing tool",
   "private": true,
   "engines": {
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@
     "start": "node ./cli/bin/cypress open --dev --global",
     "cypress:open": "node ./cli/bin/cypress open --dev --global",
     "cypress:run": "node ./cli/bin/cypress run --dev",
+    "cypress:verify": "node ./cli/bin/cypress verify --dev",
     "cypress:open:debug": "node ./scripts/debug.js cypress:open",
     "cypress:run:debug": "node ./scripts/debug.js cypress:run",
     "dev": "node ./scripts/start.js",
@@ -122,7 +123,7 @@
     "gulp-typescript": "3.2.4",
     "hasha": "5.0.0",
     "human-interval": "0.1.6",
-    "husky": "0.14.3",
+    "husky": "2.3.0",
     "inquirer": "3.3.0",
     "inquirer-confirm": "2.0.3",
     "js-codemod": "cpojer/js-codemod#29dafed",
diff --git a/packages/driver/src/cy/commands/querying.coffee b/packages/driver/src/cy/commands/querying.coffee
index 9136de24676f..d999f385244f 100644
--- a/packages/driver/src/cy/commands/querying.coffee
+++ b/packages/driver/src/cy/commands/querying.coffee
@@ -126,9 +126,16 @@ module.exports = (Commands, Cypress, cy, state, config) ->
 
         options._log.set(obj)
 
-      ## we always want to strip everything after the first '.'
-      ## since we support alias propertys like '1' or 'all'
-      if aliasObj = cy.getAlias(selector.split(".")[0])
+      ## We want to strip everything after the last '.'
+      ## only when it is potentially a number or 'all'
+      if _.indexOf(selector, ".") == -1 ||
+      selector.slice(1) in _.keys(cy.state("aliases"))
+        toSelect = selector
+      else
+         allParts = _.split(selector, '.')
+         toSelect = _.join(_.dropRight(allParts, 1), '.')
+
+      if aliasObj = cy.getAlias(toSelect)
         {subject, alias, command} = aliasObj
 
         return do resolveAlias = ->
@@ -176,7 +183,11 @@ module.exports = (Commands, Cypress, cy, state, config) ->
 
             ## if this is a route command
             when command.get("name") is "route"
-              alias = _.compact([alias, selector.split(".")[1]]).join(".")
+              if !(_.indexOf(selector, ".") == -1 ||
+              selector.slice(1) in _.keys(cy.state("aliases")))
+                allParts = _.split(selector, ".")
+                index = _.last(allParts)
+                alias = _.join([alias, index], ".")
               requests = cy.getRequestsByAlias(alias) ? null
               log(requests, "route")
               return requests
@@ -206,7 +217,7 @@ module.exports = (Commands, Cypress, cy, state, config) ->
         try
           $el = cy.$$(selector, options.withinSubject)
         catch e
-          e.onFail = -> options._log.error(e)
+          e.onFail = -> if options.log is false then e else options._log.error(e)
           throw e
 
         ## if that didnt find anything and we have a within subject
diff --git a/packages/driver/src/cy/commands/waiting.coffee b/packages/driver/src/cy/commands/waiting.coffee
index c2eb47718b5e..bc15c6a4e176 100644
--- a/packages/driver/src/cy/commands/waiting.coffee
+++ b/packages/driver/src/cy/commands/waiting.coffee
@@ -66,9 +66,15 @@ module.exports = (Commands, Cypress, cy, state, config) ->
       , options
 
     waitForXhr = (str, options) ->
-      ## we always want to strip everything after the first '.'
+      ## we always want to strip everything after the last '.'
       ## since we support alias property 'request'
-      [str, str2] = str.split(".")
+      if _.indexOf(str, ".") == -1 ||
+      str.slice(1) in _.keys(cy.state("aliases"))
+        [str, str2] = [str, null]
+      else
+        # potentially request, response or index
+        allParts = _.split(str, '.')
+        [str, str2] = [_.join(_.dropRight(allParts, 1), '.'), _.last(allParts)]
 
       if not aliasObj = cy.getAlias(str, "wait", log)
         cy.aliasNotFoundFor(str, "wait", log)
@@ -79,7 +85,7 @@ module.exports = (Commands, Cypress, cy, state, config) ->
       {alias, command} = aliasObj
 
       str = _.compact([alias, str2]).join(".")
-
+ 
       type = cy.getXhrTypeByAlias(str)
 
       [ index, num ] = getNumRequests(state, alias)
diff --git a/packages/driver/src/cy/xhrs.coffee b/packages/driver/src/cy/xhrs.coffee
index 6b3c375bcde3..48011b87bb59 100644
--- a/packages/driver/src/cy/xhrs.coffee
+++ b/packages/driver/src/cy/xhrs.coffee
@@ -24,7 +24,11 @@ xhrNotWaitedOnByIndex = (state, alias, index, prop) ->
 create = (state) ->
   return {
     getIndexedXhrByAlias: (alias, index) ->
-      [str, prop] = alias.split(".")
+      if _.indexOf(alias, ".") == -1
+        [str, prop] = [alias, null]
+      else
+        allParts = _.split(alias, '.')
+        [str, prop] = [_.join(_.dropRight(allParts, 1), '.'), _.last(allParts)]
 
       if prop
         if prop is "request"
@@ -38,7 +42,12 @@ create = (state) ->
       xhrNotWaitedOnByIndex(state, str, index, "responses")
 
     getRequestsByAlias: (alias) ->
-      [alias, prop] = alias.split(".")
+      if _.indexOf(alias, ".") == -1 || alias in _.keys(cy.state("aliases"))
+        [alias, prop] = [alias, null]
+      else
+        # potentially valid prop
+        allParts = _.split(alias, '.')
+        [alias, prop] = [_.join(_.dropRight(allParts, 1), '.'), _.last(allParts)]
 
       if prop and not validAliasApiRe.test(prop)
         $utils.throwErrByPath "get.alias_invalid", {
diff --git a/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/agents_spec.coffee b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/agents_spec.coffee
index 2f2f87b1e2bd..2bd78d910c5b 100644
--- a/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/agents_spec.coffee
+++ b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/agents_spec.coffee
@@ -201,59 +201,115 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/agents", ->
               expect(@consoleProps["  1.2 matching arguments"]).to.eql(["foo", "baz"])
 
     describe ".as", ->
-      beforeEach ->
-        @logs = []
-        cy.on "log:added", (attrs, log) =>
-          @logs.push(log)
+      context "without dots", ->
+        beforeEach ->
+          @logs = []
+          cy.on "log:added", (attrs, log) =>
+            @logs.push(log)
 
-        @stub = cy.stub().as("myStub")
+          @stub = cy.stub().as("myStub")
 
-      it "returns stub", ->
-        expect(@stub).to.have.property("callCount")
+        it "returns stub", ->
+          expect(@stub).to.have.property("callCount")
 
-      it "updates instrument log with alias", ->
-        expect(@logs[0].get("alias")).to.eq("myStub")
-        expect(@logs[0].get("aliasType")).to.eq("agent")
+        it "updates instrument log with alias", ->
+          expect(@logs[0].get("alias")).to.eq("myStub")
+          expect(@logs[0].get("aliasType")).to.eq("agent")
 
-      it "includes alias in invocation log", ->
-        @stub()
-        expect(@logs[1].get("alias")).to.eql(["myStub"])
-        expect(@logs[1].get("aliasType")).to.eq("agent")
+        it "includes alias in invocation log", ->
+          @stub()
+          expect(@logs[1].get("alias")).to.eql(["myStub"])
+          expect(@logs[1].get("aliasType")).to.eq("agent")
 
-      it "includes alias in console props", ->
-        @stub()
-        consoleProps = @logs[1].get("consoleProps")()
-        expect(consoleProps["Alias"]).to.eql("myStub")
+        it "includes alias in console props", ->
+          @stub()
+          consoleProps = @logs[1].get("consoleProps")()
+          expect(consoleProps["Alias"]).to.eql("myStub")
+
+        it "updates the displayName of the agent", ->
+          expect(@myStub.displayName).to.eq("myStub")
+
+        it "stores the lookup as an alias", ->
+          expect(cy.state("aliases").myStub).to.be.defined
+
+        it "stores the agent as the subject", ->
+          expect(cy.state("aliases").myStub.subject).to.eq(@stub)
+
+        it "assigns subject to runnable ctx", ->
+          expect(@myStub).to.eq(@stub)
+
+        it "retries until assertions pass", ->
+          cy.on "command:retry", _.after 2, =>
+            @myStub("foo")
+          
+          cy.get("@myStub").should("be.calledWith", "foo")
+
+        describe "errors", ->
+          _.each [null, undefined, {}, [], 123], (value) =>
+            it "throws when passed: #{value}", ->
+              expect(=> cy.stub().as(value)).to.throw("cy.as() can only accept a string.")
+
+          it "throws on blank string", ->
+            expect(=> cy.stub().as("")).to.throw("cy.as() cannot be passed an empty string.")
+
+          _.each ["test", "runnable", "timeout", "slow", "skip", "inspect"], (blacklist) ->
+            it "throws on a blacklisted word: #{blacklist}", ->
+              expect(=> cy.stub().as(blacklist)).to.throw("cy.as() cannot be aliased as: '#{blacklist}'. This word is reserved.")
+      
+      context "with dots", ->
+        beforeEach ->
+          @logs = []
+          cy.on "log:added", (attrs, log) =>
+            @logs.push(log)
+
+          @stub = cy.stub().as("my.stub")
+
+        it "returns stub", ->
+          expect(@stub).to.have.property("callCount")
+
+        it "updates instrument log with alias", ->
+          expect(@logs[0].get("alias")).to.eq("my.stub")
+          expect(@logs[0].get("aliasType")).to.eq("agent")
+
+        it "includes alias in invocation log", ->
+          @stub()
+          expect(@logs[1].get("alias")).to.eql(["my.stub"])
+          expect(@logs[1].get("aliasType")).to.eq("agent")
+
+        it "includes alias in console props", ->
+          @stub()
+          consoleProps = @logs[1].get("consoleProps")()
+          expect(consoleProps["Alias"]).to.eql("my.stub")
 
-      it "updates the displayName of the agent", ->
-        expect(@myStub.displayName).to.eq("myStub")
+        it "updates the displayName of the agent", ->
+          expect(@["my.stub"].displayName).to.eq("my.stub")
 
-      it "stores the lookup as an alias", ->
-        expect(cy.state("aliases").myStub).to.be.defined
+        it "stores the lookup as an alias", ->
+          expect(cy.state("aliases")["my.stub"]).to.be.defined
 
-      it "stores the agent as the subject", ->
-        expect(cy.state("aliases").myStub.subject).to.eq(@stub)
+        it "stores the agent as the subject", ->
+          expect(cy.state("aliases")["my.stub"].subject).to.eq(@stub)
 
-      it "assigns subject to runnable ctx", ->
-        expect(@myStub).to.eq(@stub)
+        it "assigns subject to runnable ctx", ->
+          expect(@["my.stub"]).to.eq(@stub)
 
-      it "retries until assertions pass", ->
-        cy.on "command:retry", _.after 2, =>
-          @myStub("foo")
-        
-        cy.get("@myStub").should("be.calledWith", "foo")
+        it "retries until assertions pass", ->
+          cy.on "command:retry", _.after 2, =>
+            @["my.stub"]("foo")
+          
+          cy.get("@my.stub").should("be.calledWith", "foo")
 
-      describe "errors", ->
-        _.each [null, undefined, {}, [], 123], (value) =>
-          it "throws when passed: #{value}", ->
-            expect(=> cy.stub().as(value)).to.throw("cy.as() can only accept a string.")
+        describe "errors", ->
+          _.each [null, undefined, {}, [], 123], (value) =>
+            it "throws when passed: #{value}", ->
+              expect(=> cy.stub().as(value)).to.throw("cy.as() can only accept a string.")
 
-        it "throws on blank string", ->
-          expect(=> cy.stub().as("")).to.throw("cy.as() cannot be passed an empty string.")
+          it "throws on blank string", ->
+            expect(=> cy.stub().as("")).to.throw("cy.as() cannot be passed an empty string.")
 
-        _.each ["test", "runnable", "timeout", "slow", "skip", "inspect"], (blacklist) ->
-          it "throws on a blacklisted word: #{blacklist}", ->
-            expect(=> cy.stub().as(blacklist)).to.throw("cy.as() cannot be aliased as: '#{blacklist}'. This word is reserved.")
+          _.each ["test", "runnable", "timeout", "slow", "skip", "inspect"], (blacklist) ->
+            it "throws on a blacklisted word: #{blacklist}", ->
+              expect(=> cy.stub().as(blacklist)).to.throw("cy.as() cannot be aliased as: '#{blacklist}'. This word is reserved.")
 
     describe "logging", ->
       beforeEach ->
@@ -468,4 +524,4 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/agents", ->
       expect(@agents.spy).to.be.a("function")
       expect(@agents.spy().callCount).to.be.a("number")
       expect(@agents.stub).to.be.a("function")
-      expect(@agents.stub().returns).to.be.a("function")
+      expect(@agents.stub().returns).to.be.a("function")
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/aliasing_spec.coffee b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/aliasing_spec.coffee
index 59a28cfe3806..8e4b2fb84c29 100644
--- a/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/aliasing_spec.coffee
+++ b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/aliasing_spec.coffee
@@ -51,6 +51,20 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/aliasing", ->
 
       cy.get("@obj").should("deep.eq", { foo: "bar" })
 
+    it "allows dot in alias names", ->
+      cy.get("body").as("body.foo").then ->
+        expect(cy.get('@body.foo')).to.be.defined
+        expect(cy.state("aliases")['body.foo']).to.be.defined
+
+    it "recognizes dot and non dot with same alias names", ->
+      cy.get("body").as("body").then ->
+        expect(cy.get('@body')).to.be.defined
+        expect(cy.state("aliases")['body']).to.be.defined
+      cy.contains("foo").as("body.foo").then ->
+        expect(cy.get('@body.foo')).to.be.defined
+        expect(cy.get('@body.foo')).to.not.eq(cy.get('@body'))
+        expect(cy.state("aliases")['body.foo']).to.be.defined
+
     context "DOM subjects", ->
       it "assigns the remote jquery instance", ->
         obj = {}
@@ -75,6 +89,10 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/aliasing", ->
           .noop({}).as("baz").then (obj) ->
             expect(@baz).to.eq obj
 
+      it "assigns subject with dot to runnable ctx", ->
+        cy.noop({}).as("bar.baz").then (obj) ->
+          expect(@["bar.baz"]).to.eq obj
+
       describe "nested hooks", ->
         afterEach ->
           if not @bar
@@ -130,6 +148,13 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/aliasing", ->
 
         cy.get("div:first").as("@myAlias")
 
+      it "throws on alias starting with @ char and dots", (done) ->
+        cy.on "fail", (err) ->
+          expect(err.message).to.eq "'@my.alias' cannot be named starting with the '@' symbol. Try renaming the alias to 'my.alias', or something else that does not start with the '@' symbol."
+          done()
+
+        cy.get("div:first").as("@my.alias")
+
       it "does not throw on alias with @ char in non-starting position", () ->
         cy.get("div:first").as("my@Alias")
         cy.get("@my@Alias")
@@ -157,7 +182,6 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/aliasing", ->
           lastLog = @lastLog
 
           expect(lastLog.get("aliasType")).to.eq "primitive"
-
       it "sets aliasType to 'dom'", ->
         cy.get("body").find("button:first").click().as("button").then ->
           lastLog = @lastLog
@@ -198,11 +222,6 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/aliasing", ->
             expect(@logs[1].get("name")).to.eq("route")
             expect(@logs[1].get("alias")).to.eq("getFoo")
 
-      # it "does not alias previous logs when no matching chainerId", ->
-      #   cy
-      #     .get("div:first")
-      #     .noop({}).as("foo").then ->
-
   context "#replayCommandsFrom", ->
     describe "subject in document", ->
       it "returns if subject is still in the document", ->
@@ -349,7 +368,7 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/aliasing", ->
           .get("body").as("b")
           .get("input:first").as("firstInput")
           .get("@lastDiv")
-
+      
       it "throws when alias is missing '@' but matches an available alias", (done) ->
         cy.on "fail", (err) ->
           expect(err.message).to.eq "Invalid alias: 'getAny'.\nYou forgot the '@'. It should be written as: '@getAny'."
@@ -358,4 +377,4 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/aliasing", ->
         cy
           .server()
           .route("*", {}).as("getAny")
-          .wait("getAny").then ->
+          .wait("getAny").then ->
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/querying_spec.coffee b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/querying_spec.coffee
index 84f08e912745..0d782519cfdc 100644
--- a/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/querying_spec.coffee
+++ b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/querying_spec.coffee
@@ -732,18 +732,17 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/querying", ->
           expect(@lastLog.get("$el").get(0)).not.to.be.ok
 
       it "logs route aliases", ->
-        cy
-          .visit("http://localhost:3500/fixtures/jquery.html")
-          .server()
-          .route(/users/, {}).as("getUsers")
-          .window().then { timeout: 2000 }, (win) ->
-            win.$.get("/users")
-          .get("@getUsers").then ->
-            expect(@lastLog.pick("message", "referencesAlias", "aliasType")).to.deep.eq {
-              message: "@getUsers"
-              referencesAlias: {name: "getUsers"}
-              aliasType: "route"
-            }
+        cy.visit("http://localhost:3500/fixtures/jquery.html")
+        cy.server()
+        cy.route(/users/, {}).as("get.users")
+        cy.window().then { timeout: 2000 }, (win) ->
+          win.$.get("/users")
+        cy.get("@get.users").then ->
+          expect(@lastLog.pick("message", "referencesAlias", "aliasType")).to.deep.eq {
+            message: "@get.users"
+            referencesAlias: {name: "get.users"}
+            aliasType: "route"
+          }
 
       it "logs primitive aliases", (done) ->
         cy.on "log:added", (attrs, log) ->
@@ -885,6 +884,15 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/querying", ->
             .get("@getUsers").then (xhr) ->
               expect(xhr.url).to.include "/users"
 
+        it "handles dots in alias name", ->
+          cy.server()
+          cy.route(/users/, {}).as("get.users")
+          cy.visit("http://localhost:3500/fixtures/jquery.html")
+          cy.window().then { timeout: 2000 }, (win) ->
+            win.$.get("/users")
+          cy.get("@get.users").then (xhr) ->
+            expect(xhr.url).to.include "/users"
+
         it "returns null if no xhr is found", ->
           cy
             .server()
@@ -908,6 +916,20 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/querying", ->
               expect(xhrs[0].url).to.include "/users?num=1"
               expect(xhrs[1].url).to.include "/users?num=2"
 
+        it "returns an array of xhrs when dots in alias name", ->
+          cy.visit("http://localhost:3500/fixtures/jquery.html")
+          cy.server()
+          cy.route(/users/, {}).as("get.users")
+          cy.window().then { timeout: 2000 }, (win) ->
+            Promise.all([
+              win.$.get("/users", {num: 1})
+              win.$.get("/users", {num: 2})
+            ])
+          cy.get("@get.users.all").then (xhrs) ->
+            expect(xhrs).to.be.an("array")
+            expect(xhrs[0].url).to.include "/users?num=1"
+            expect(xhrs[1].url).to.include "/users?num=2"
+
         it "returns the 1st xhr", ->
           cy
             .visit("http://localhost:3500/fixtures/jquery.html")
@@ -934,6 +956,18 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/querying", ->
             .get("@getUsers.2").then (xhr2) ->
               expect(xhr2.url).to.include "/users?num=2"
 
+        it "returns the 2nd xhr when dots in alias", ->
+          cy.visit("http://localhost:3500/fixtures/jquery.html")
+          cy.server()
+          cy.route(/users/, {}).as("get.users")
+          cy.window().then { timeout: 2000 }, (win) ->
+            Promise.all([
+              win.$.get("/users", {num: 1})
+              win.$.get("/users", {num: 2})
+            ])
+          cy.get("@get.users.2").then (xhr2) ->
+            expect(xhr2.url).to.include "/users?num=2"
+
         it "returns the 3rd xhr as null", ->
           cy
             .server()
@@ -1627,4 +1661,4 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/querying", ->
         cy.on "command:retry", _.after 2, ->
           Cypress.stop()
 
-        cy.contains(/^does not contain asdfasdf at all$/)
+        cy.contains(/^does not contain asdfasdf at all$/)
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/waiting_spec.coffee b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/waiting_spec.coffee
index 7f14aaad37e1..5fadf4edfed6 100644
--- a/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/waiting_spec.coffee
+++ b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/waiting_spec.coffee
@@ -379,7 +379,7 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/waiting", ->
           Cypress.config("requestTimeout", 200)
 
           cy.on "fail", (err) ->
-            expect(err.message).to.include "cy.wait() timed out waiting 200ms for the 3rd request to the route: 'getUsers'. No request ever occurred."
+            expect(err.message).to.include "cy.wait() timed out waiting 200ms for the 3rd request to the route: 'get.users'. No request ever occurred."
             done()
 
           cy.on "command:retry", =>
@@ -390,10 +390,9 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/waiting", ->
             win = cy.state("window")
             win.$.get("/users", {num: response})
 
-          cy
-            .server()
-            .route(/users/, resp).as("getUsers")
-            .wait(["@getUsers", "@getUsers", "@getUsers"])
+          cy.server()
+          cy.route(/users/, resp).as("get.users")
+          cy.wait(["@get.users", "@get.users", "@get.users"])
 
         it "throws waiting for the 2nd response", (done) ->
           resp = {foo: "foo"}
@@ -517,15 +516,14 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/waiting", ->
             _.defer => win.$.get("/timeout?ms=2002")
 
           cy.on "fail", (err) ->
-            expect(err.message).to.include "cy.wait() timed out waiting 500ms for the 1st request to the route: 'getThree'. No request ever occurred."
+            expect(err.message).to.include "cy.wait() timed out waiting 500ms for the 1st request to the route: 'get.three'. No request ever occurred."
             done()
 
-          cy
-            .server()
-            .route("/timeout?ms=2001").as("getOne")
-            .route("/timeout?ms=2002").as("getTwo")
-            .route(/three/, {}).as("getThree")
-            .wait(["@getOne", "@getTwo", "@getThree"])
+          cy.server()
+          cy.route("/timeout?ms=2001").as("getOne")
+          cy.route("/timeout?ms=2002").as("getTwo")
+          cy.route(/three/, {}).as("get.three")
+          cy.wait(["@getOne", "@getTwo", "@get.three"])
 
         it "throws when waiting on the 3rd response on array of aliases", (done) ->
           Cypress.config("requestTimeout", 200)
@@ -570,17 +568,16 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/waiting", ->
         resp1 = {foo: "foo"}
         resp2 = {bar: "bar"}
 
-        cy
-          .server()
-          .route(/users/, resp1).as("getUsers")
-          .route(/posts/, resp2).as("getPosts")
-          .window().then (win) ->
-            win.$.get("/users")
-            win.$.get("/posts")
-            null
-          .wait(["@getUsers", "@getPosts"]).spread (xhr1, xhr2) ->
-            expect(xhr1.responseBody).to.deep.eq resp1
-            expect(xhr2.responseBody).to.deep.eq resp2
+        cy.server()
+        cy.route(/users/, resp1).as("getUsers")
+        cy.route(/posts/, resp2).as("get.posts")
+        cy.window().then (win) ->
+          win.$.get("/users")
+          win.$.get("/posts")
+          null
+        cy.wait(["@getUsers", "@get.posts"]).spread (xhr1, xhr2) ->
+          expect(xhr1.responseBody).to.deep.eq resp1
+          expect(xhr2.responseBody).to.deep.eq resp2
 
     describe "multiple separate alias waits", ->
       before ->
@@ -918,4 +915,4 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/waiting", ->
       #           Command: "wait"
       #           "Waited For": _.str.clean(fn.toString())
       #           Retried: "3 times"
-      #         }
+      #         }
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/xhr_spec.coffee b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/xhr_spec.coffee
index 87501f75bdc1..497fec854fe9 100644
--- a/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/xhr_spec.coffee
+++ b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/commands/xhr_spec.coffee
@@ -188,7 +188,7 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/xhr", ->
 
         cy
           .server()
-          .route({url: /timeout/}).as("getTimeout")
+          .route({url: /timeout/}).as("get.timeout")
           .window().then (win) ->
             xhr = new win.XMLHttpRequest
             xhr.open("GET", "/timeout?ms=100")
@@ -198,7 +198,7 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/xhr", ->
             xhr.onload = ->
               onloaded = true
             null
-          .wait("@getTimeout").then (xhr) ->
+          .wait("@get.timeout").then (xhr) ->
             expect(onloaded).to.be.true
             expect(onreadystatechanged).to.be.true
             expect(xhr.status).to.eq(200)
@@ -2076,4 +2076,4 @@ describe "src/cy/commands/xhr", ->
       #     .window().then (win) ->
       #       win.$.get("/foo")
       #       null
-      #     .respond()
+      #     .respond()
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/issues/3847_spec.js b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/issues/3847_spec.js
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..2f68fda57ce8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/driver/test/cypress/integration/issues/3847_spec.js
@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+// https://github.com/cypress-io/cypress/issues/3847
+describe('issue 3847', () => {
+  // global variable
+  let queryKey = '\'input\''
+
+  // like Sizzle throw error
+  let error = new Error(`Syntax error, unrecognized expression: ${queryKey}`)
+
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    cy.visit('/fixtures/dom.html')
+  })
+
+  it('options default { log: true } should be work without Unhandled rejection', (done) => {
+    cy.on('fail', (err) => {
+      expect(err.message).to.eql(error.message)
+      expect(err.name).to.eql(error.name)
+      done()
+
+      return false
+    })
+
+    // get 'input'
+    cy.get(queryKey)
+  })
+
+  // Unhandled rejection TypeError: Cannot read property 'error' of undefined
+  it('options { log: false } will not throw Unhandled rejection', (done) => {
+
+    // error should seem like { log: true }
+    cy.on('fail', (err) => {
+      expect(err.message).to.eql(error.message)
+      expect(err.name).to.eql(error.name)
+      expect(err.message).not.to.match(/Unhandled\srejection\sTypeError/)
+      done()
+
+      return false
+    })
+
+    // get 'input'
+    cy.get(queryKey, { log: false })
+  })
+})
diff --git a/packages/electron/lib/electron.coffee b/packages/electron/lib/electron.coffee
index 7fd3b2d6d7f2..c8476a29ec19 100644
--- a/packages/electron/lib/electron.coffee
+++ b/packages/electron/lib/electron.coffee
@@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ module.exports = {
       debug("spawning %s with args", execPath, argv)
 
       if debug.enabled
-        # let's see everything Electron spits back
+        ## enable the internal chromium logger
         argv.push("--enable-logging")
 
       cp.spawn(execPath, argv, {stdio: "inherit"})
diff --git a/packages/server/__snapshots__/7_record_spec.coffee.js b/packages/server/__snapshots__/7_record_spec.coffee.js
index b0ad0f250a2c..3473b3e1c2c9 100644
--- a/packages/server/__snapshots__/7_record_spec.coffee.js
+++ b/packages/server/__snapshots__/7_record_spec.coffee.js
@@ -1537,7 +1537,107 @@ StatusCodeError: 402
 
 `
 
-exports['e2e record api interaction warnings create run warnings grace period - over limit warns when over private test recordings 1'] = `
+
+exports['e2e record api interaction errors create run 402 - free plan exceeds monthly tests errors and exits when on free plan and over recorded tests limit 1'] = `
+You've exceeded the limit of test recordings under your free plan this month. The limit is 500 test recordings.
+
+To continue recording tests this month you must upgrade your account. Please visit your billing to upgrade to another billing plan.
+
+https://on.cypress.io/dashboard/organizations/org-id-1234/billing
+
+`
+
+exports['e2e record api interaction errors create run 402 - grouping feature not available in plan errors and exits when attempting parallel run when not available in plan 1'] = `
+Grouping is not included under your current billing plan.
+
+To run your tests with groups, please visit your billing and upgrade to another plan with grouping.
+
+https://on.cypress.io/dashboard/organizations/org-id-1234/billing
+
+`
+
+
+exports['e2e record api interaction warnings create run warnings grace period - grouping feature warns when using parallel feature 1'] = `
+Grouping is not included under your free plan.
+
+Your plan is now in a grace period, which means your tests will still run with groups until 2999-12-31. Please upgrade your plan to continue running your tests with groups in the future.
+
+https://on.cypress.io/dashboard/organizations/org-id-1234/billing
+
+====================================================================================================
+
+  (Run Starting)
+
+  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
+  │ Cypress:    1.2.3                                                                              │
+  │ Browser:    FooBrowser 88                                                                      │
+  │ Specs:      1 found (record_pass_spec.coffee)                                                  │
+  │ Searched:   cypress/integration/record_pass*                                                   │
+  │ Params:     Group: false, Parallel: false                                                      │
+  │ Run URL:    https://dashboard.cypress.io/#/projects/cjvoj7/runs/12                             │
+  └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
+
+
+────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+                                                                                                    
+  Running: record_pass_spec.coffee...                                                      (1 of 1) 
+  Estimated: 8 seconds
+
+
+  record pass
+    ✓ passes
+    - is pending
+
+
+  1 passing
+  1 pending
+
+
+  (Results)
+
+  ┌───────────────────────────────────────┐
+  │ Tests:        2                       │
+  │ Passing:      1                       │
+  │ Failing:      0                       │
+  │ Pending:      1                       │
+  │ Skipped:      0                       │
+  │ Screenshots:  1                       │
+  │ Video:        true                    │
+  │ Duration:     X seconds               │
+  │ Estimated:    8 seconds               │
+  │ Spec Ran:     record_pass_spec.coffee │
+  └───────────────────────────────────────┘
+
+
+  (Screenshots)
+
+  - /foo/bar/.projects/e2e/cypress/screenshots/record_pass_spec.coffee/yay it passes.png (202x1002)
+
+
+  (Uploading Results)
+
+  - Done Uploading (1/1) /foo/bar/.projects/e2e/cypress/screenshots/record_pass_spec.coffee/yay it passes.png
+
+====================================================================================================
+
+  (Run Finished)
+
+
+      Spec                                                Tests  Passing  Failing  Pending  Skipped 
+  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
+  │ ✔ record_pass_spec.coffee                   XX:XX        2        1        -        1        - │
+  └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
+    All specs passed!                           XX:XX        2        1        -        1        -  
+
+
+───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+                                                                                                       
+  Recorded Run: https://dashboard.cypress.io/#/projects/cjvoj7/runs/12                                 
+
+
+`
+
+exports['e2e record api interaction warnings create run warnings grace period - over private tests limit warns when over private test recordings 1'] = `
 You've exceeded the limit of private test recordings under your free plan this month. The limit is 500 private test recordings.
 
 Your plan is now in a grace period, which means your tests will still be recorded until 2999-12-31. Please upgrade your plan to continue recording tests on the Cypress Dashboard in the future.
@@ -1617,10 +1717,10 @@ https://on.cypress.io/dashboard/organizations/org-id-1234/billing
 
 `
 
-exports['e2e record api interaction warnings create run warnings grace period - parallel feature warns when using parallel feature 1'] = `
-Parallelization is not included under your free plan.
+exports['e2e record api interaction warnings create run warnings grace period - over tests limit warns when over test recordings 1'] = `
+You've exceeded the limit of test recordings under your free plan this month. The limit is 500 test recordings.
 
-Your plan is now in a grace period, which means your tests will still run in parallel until 2999-12-31. Please upgrade your plan to continue running your tests in parallel in the future.
+Your plan is now in a grace period, which means your tests will still be recorded until 2999-12-31. Please upgrade your plan to continue recording tests on the Cypress Dashboard in the future.
 
 https://on.cypress.io/dashboard/organizations/org-id-1234/billing
 
@@ -1697,10 +1797,10 @@ https://on.cypress.io/dashboard/organizations/org-id-1234/billing
 
 `
 
-exports['e2e record api interaction warnings create run warnings paid plan - over limit warns when over private test recordings 1'] = `
-You've exceeded the limit of private test recordings under your current billing plan this month. The limit is 500 private test recordings.
+exports['e2e record api interaction warnings create run warnings grace period - parallel feature warns when using parallel feature 1'] = `
+Parallelization is not included under your free plan.
 
-To upgrade your account, please visit your billing to upgrade to another billing plan.
+Your plan is now in a grace period, which means your tests will still run in parallel until 2999-12-31. Please upgrade your plan to continue running your tests in parallel in the future.
 
 https://on.cypress.io/dashboard/organizations/org-id-1234/billing
 
@@ -1777,19 +1877,90 @@ https://on.cypress.io/dashboard/organizations/org-id-1234/billing
 
 `
 
-exports['e2e record api interaction errors create run 402 - grouping feature not available in plan errors and exits when attempting parallel run when not available in plan 1'] = `
-Grouping is not included under your current billing plan.
+exports['e2e record api interaction warnings create run warnings paid plan - over private tests limit warns when over private test recordings 1'] = `
+You've exceeded the limit of private test recordings under your current billing plan this month. The limit is 500 private test recordings.
 
-To run your tests with groups, please visit your billing and upgrade to another plan with grouping.
+To upgrade your account, please visit your billing to upgrade to another billing plan.
 
 https://on.cypress.io/dashboard/organizations/org-id-1234/billing
 
+====================================================================================================
+
+  (Run Starting)
+
+  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
+  │ Cypress:    1.2.3                                                                              │
+  │ Browser:    FooBrowser 88                                                                      │
+  │ Specs:      1 found (record_pass_spec.coffee)                                                  │
+  │ Searched:   cypress/integration/record_pass*                                                   │
+  │ Params:     Group: false, Parallel: false                                                      │
+  │ Run URL:    https://dashboard.cypress.io/#/projects/cjvoj7/runs/12                             │
+  └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
+
+
+────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+                                                                                                    
+  Running: record_pass_spec.coffee...                                                      (1 of 1) 
+  Estimated: 8 seconds
+
+
+  record pass
+    ✓ passes
+    - is pending
+
+
+  1 passing
+  1 pending
+
+
+  (Results)
+
+  ┌───────────────────────────────────────┐
+  │ Tests:        2                       │
+  │ Passing:      1                       │
+  │ Failing:      0                       │
+  │ Pending:      1                       │
+  │ Skipped:      0                       │
+  │ Screenshots:  1                       │
+  │ Video:        true                    │
+  │ Duration:     X seconds               │
+  │ Estimated:    8 seconds               │
+  │ Spec Ran:     record_pass_spec.coffee │
+  └───────────────────────────────────────┘
+
+
+  (Screenshots)
+
+  - /foo/bar/.projects/e2e/cypress/screenshots/record_pass_spec.coffee/yay it passes.png (202x1002)
+
+
+  (Uploading Results)
+
+  - Done Uploading (1/1) /foo/bar/.projects/e2e/cypress/screenshots/record_pass_spec.coffee/yay it passes.png
+
+====================================================================================================
+
+  (Run Finished)
+
+
+      Spec                                                Tests  Passing  Failing  Pending  Skipped 
+  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
+  │ ✔ record_pass_spec.coffee                   XX:XX        2        1        -        1        - │
+  └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
+    All specs passed!                           XX:XX        2        1        -        1        -  
+
+
+───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+                                                                                                       
+  Recorded Run: https://dashboard.cypress.io/#/projects/cjvoj7/runs/12                                 
+
+
 `
 
-exports['e2e record api interaction warnings create run warnings grace period - grouping feature warns when using parallel feature 1'] = `
-Grouping is not included under your free plan.
+exports['e2e record api interaction warnings create run warnings paid plan - over tests limit warns when over test recordings 1'] = `
+You've exceeded the limit of test recordings under your current billing plan this month. The limit is 500 test recordings.
 
-Your plan is now in a grace period, which means your tests will still run with groups until 2999-12-31. Please upgrade your plan to continue running your tests with groups in the future.
+To upgrade your account, please visit your billing to upgrade to another billing plan.
 
 https://on.cypress.io/dashboard/organizations/org-id-1234/billing
 
diff --git a/packages/server/lib/cypress.coffee b/packages/server/lib/cypress.coffee
index d9a5ab7e7d9b..95f9c5d3a37a 100644
--- a/packages/server/lib/cypress.coffee
+++ b/packages/server/lib/cypress.coffee
@@ -60,6 +60,10 @@ module.exports = {
             ## juggle up the totalFailed since our outer
             ## promise is expecting this object structure
             debug("electron finished with", code)
+
+            if mode is "smokeTest"
+              return resolve(code)
+
             resolve({totalFailed: code})
 
           args = require("./util/args").toArray(options)
@@ -179,10 +183,16 @@ module.exports = {
         .catch(exitErr)
 
       when "smokeTest"
-        require("./modes/smoke_test")(options)
-        .then (pong) ->
-          console.log(pong)
-        .then(exit0)
+        @runElectron(mode, options)
+        .then (pong) =>
+          if not @isCurrentlyRunningElectron()
+            return pong
+
+          if pong is options.ping
+            return 0
+
+          return 1
+        .then(exit)
         .catch(exitErr)
 
       when "returnPkg"
diff --git a/packages/server/lib/errors.coffee b/packages/server/lib/errors.coffee
index 78c34e16cad4..a125bfac5408 100644
--- a/packages/server/lib/errors.coffee
+++ b/packages/server/lib/errors.coffee
@@ -690,7 +690,7 @@ getMsgByType = (type, arg1 = {}, arg2) ->
       """
     when "FREE_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_PRIVATE_TESTS"
       """
-      You've exceeded the limit of private test recordings under your free plan this month. #{arg1.usedMessage}
+      You've exceeded the limit of private test recordings under your free plan this month. #{arg1.usedTestsMessage}
 
       To continue recording tests this month you must upgrade your account. Please visit your billing to upgrade to another billing plan.
 
@@ -698,7 +698,7 @@ getMsgByType = (type, arg1 = {}, arg2) ->
       """
     when "FREE_PLAN_IN_GRACE_PERIOD_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_PRIVATE_TESTS"
       """
-      You've exceeded the limit of private test recordings under your free plan this month. #{arg1.usedMessage}
+      You've exceeded the limit of private test recordings under your free plan this month. #{arg1.usedTestsMessage}
 
       Your plan is now in a grace period, which means your tests will still be recorded until #{arg1.gracePeriodMessage}. Please upgrade your plan to continue recording tests on the Cypress Dashboard in the future.
 
@@ -706,7 +706,31 @@ getMsgByType = (type, arg1 = {}, arg2) ->
       """
     when "PAID_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_PRIVATE_TESTS"
       """
-      You've exceeded the limit of private test recordings under your current billing plan this month. #{arg1.usedMessage}
+      You've exceeded the limit of private test recordings under your current billing plan this month. #{arg1.usedTestsMessage}
+
+      To upgrade your account, please visit your billing to upgrade to another billing plan.
+
+      #{arg1.link}
+      """
+    when "FREE_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS"
+      """
+      You've exceeded the limit of test recordings under your free plan this month. #{arg1.usedTestsMessage}
+
+      To continue recording tests this month you must upgrade your account. Please visit your billing to upgrade to another billing plan.
+
+      #{arg1.link}
+      """
+    when "FREE_PLAN_IN_GRACE_PERIOD_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS"
+      """
+      You've exceeded the limit of test recordings under your free plan this month. #{arg1.usedTestsMessage}
+
+      Your plan is now in a grace period, which means your tests will still be recorded until #{arg1.gracePeriodMessage}. Please upgrade your plan to continue recording tests on the Cypress Dashboard in the future.
+
+      #{arg1.link}
+      """
+    when "PAID_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS"
+      """
+      You've exceeded the limit of test recordings under your current billing plan this month. #{arg1.usedTestsMessage}
 
       To upgrade your account, please visit your billing to upgrade to another billing plan.
 
diff --git a/packages/server/lib/modes/index.coffee b/packages/server/lib/modes/index.coffee
index 1d03a9ab7e74..ffef482abfa3 100644
--- a/packages/server/lib/modes/index.coffee
+++ b/packages/server/lib/modes/index.coffee
@@ -6,3 +6,5 @@ module.exports = (mode, options) ->
       require("./run").run(options)
     when "interactive"
       require("./interactive").run(options)
+    when "smokeTest"
+      require("./smoke_test").run(options)
diff --git a/packages/server/lib/modes/record.coffee b/packages/server/lib/modes/record.coffee
index b43269d61b6a..b2f93bbf5baa 100644
--- a/packages/server/lib/modes/record.coffee
+++ b/packages/server/lib/modes/record.coffee
@@ -231,9 +231,9 @@ getCommitFromGitOrCi = (git) ->
     defaultBranch: null
   })
 
-usedMessage = (limit) ->
+usedTestsMessage = (limit, phrase) ->
   if _.isFinite(limit)
-    "The limit is #{chalk.blue(limit)} private test recordings."
+    "The limit is #{chalk.blue(limit)} #{phrase} recordings."
   else
     ""
 
@@ -307,7 +307,13 @@ createRun = (options = {}) ->
       switch warning.code
         when "FREE_PLAN_IN_GRACE_PERIOD_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_PRIVATE_TESTS"
           errors.warning("FREE_PLAN_IN_GRACE_PERIOD_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_PRIVATE_TESTS", {
-            usedMessage: usedMessage(warning.limit)
+            usedTestsMessage: usedTestsMessage(warning.limit, "private test")
+            gracePeriodMessage: gracePeriodMessage(warning.gracePeriodEnds)
+            link: billingLink(warning.orgId)
+          })
+        when "FREE_PLAN_IN_GRACE_PERIOD_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS"
+          errors.warning("FREE_PLAN_IN_GRACE_PERIOD_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS", {
+            usedTestsMessage: usedTestsMessage(warning.limit, "test")
             gracePeriodMessage: gracePeriodMessage(warning.gracePeriodEnds)
             link: billingLink(warning.orgId)
           })
@@ -318,7 +324,12 @@ createRun = (options = {}) ->
           })
         when "PAID_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_PRIVATE_TESTS"
           errors.warning("PAID_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_PRIVATE_TESTS", {
-            usedMessage: usedMessage(warning.limit)
+            usedTestsMessage: usedTestsMessage(warning.limit, "private test")
+            link: billingLink(warning.orgId)
+          })
+        when "PAID_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS"
+          errors.warning("PAID_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS", {
+            usedTestsMessage: usedTestsMessage(warning.limit, "test")
             link: billingLink(warning.orgId)
           })
         when "PLAN_IN_GRACE_PERIOD_RUN_GROUPING_FEATURE_USED"
@@ -345,7 +356,12 @@ createRun = (options = {}) ->
         switch code
           when "FREE_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_PRIVATE_TESTS"
             errors.throw("FREE_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_PRIVATE_TESTS", {
-              usedMessage: usedMessage(limit)
+              usedTestsMessage: usedTestsMessage(limit, "private test")
+              link: billingLink(orgId)
+            })
+          when "FREE_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS"
+            errors.throw("FREE_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS", {
+              usedTestsMessage: usedTestsMessage(limit, "test")
               link: billingLink(orgId)
             })
           when "PARALLEL_FEATURE_NOT_AVAILABLE_IN_PLAN"
diff --git a/packages/server/lib/modes/smoke_test.coffee b/packages/server/lib/modes/smoke_test.coffee
index 62ff5c05a6d1..a3bf00cb0ccb 100644
--- a/packages/server/lib/modes/smoke_test.coffee
+++ b/packages/server/lib/modes/smoke_test.coffee
@@ -1,2 +1,6 @@
-module.exports = (options) ->
-  Promise.resolve(options.pong)
\ No newline at end of file
+module.exports = {
+  run: (options) ->
+    console.log(options.pong)
+
+    return options.pong
+}
diff --git a/packages/server/lib/util/ci_provider.js b/packages/server/lib/util/ci_provider.js
index 6cae50460550..ccb23a692076 100644
--- a/packages/server/lib/util/ci_provider.js
+++ b/packages/server/lib/util/ci_provider.js
@@ -282,7 +282,12 @@ const _providerCommitParams = function () {
   return {
     appveyor: {
       sha: env.APPVEYOR_REPO_COMMIT,
-      branch: env.APPVEYOR_REPO_BRANCH,
+      // since APPVEYOR_REPO_BRANCH will be the target branch on a PR
+      // we need to use PULL_REQUEST_HEAD_REPO_BRANCH if it exists.
+      // e.g. if you have a PR: develop <- my-feature-branch
+      // my-feature-branch is APPVEYOR_PULL_REQUEST_HEAD_REPO_BRANCH
+      // develop           is APPVEYOR_REPO_BRANCH
+      branch: env.APPVEYOR_PULL_REQUEST_HEAD_REPO_BRANCH || env.APPVEYOR_REPO_BRANCH,
       message: join('\n', env.APPVEYOR_REPO_COMMIT_MESSAGE, env.APPVEYOR_REPO_COMMIT_MESSAGE_EXTENDED),
       authorName: env.APPVEYOR_REPO_COMMIT_AUTHOR,
       authorEmail: env.APPVEYOR_REPO_COMMIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL,
diff --git a/packages/server/test/e2e/7_record_spec.coffee b/packages/server/test/e2e/7_record_spec.coffee
index d07315e29296..3b3b211616d6 100644
--- a/packages/server/test/e2e/7_record_spec.coffee
+++ b/packages/server/test/e2e/7_record_spec.coffee
@@ -829,6 +829,30 @@ describe "e2e record", ->
           expectedExitCode: 1
         })
 
+    describe "create run 402 - free plan exceeds monthly tests", ->
+      setup([{
+        method: "post"
+        url: "/runs"
+        req: "postRunRequest@2.1.0",
+        res: (req, res) -> res.status(402).json({
+          code: "FREE_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS"
+          payload: {
+            used: 600
+            limit: 500
+            orgId: "org-id-1234"
+          }
+        })
+      }])
+
+      it "errors and exits when on free plan and over recorded tests limit", ->
+        e2e.exec(@, {
+          key: "f858a2bc-b469-4e48-be67-0876339ee7e1"
+          spec: "record_pass*"
+          record: true
+          snapshot: true
+          expectedExitCode: 1
+        })
+
     describe "create run 402 - parallel feature not available in plan", ->
       setup([{
         method: "post"
@@ -1164,7 +1188,7 @@ describe "e2e record", ->
   describe "api interaction warnings", ->
 
     describe "create run warnings", ->
-      describe "grace period - over limit", ->
+      describe "grace period - over private tests limit", ->
         routes = defaultRoutes.slice()
         routes[0] = {
           method: "post"
@@ -1195,6 +1219,37 @@ describe "e2e record", ->
             expectedExitCode: 0
           })
 
+      describe "grace period - over tests limit", ->
+        routes = defaultRoutes.slice()
+        routes[0] = {
+          method: "post"
+          url: "/runs"
+          req: "postRunRequest@2.1.0",
+          res: (req, res) -> res.status(200).json({
+            runId
+            groupId
+            machineId
+            runUrl
+            warnings: [{
+              code: "FREE_PLAN_IN_GRACE_PERIOD_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS"
+              limit: 500
+              gracePeriodEnds: "2999-12-31"
+              orgId: "org-id-1234"
+            }]
+          })
+        }
+
+        setup(routes)
+
+        it "warns when over test recordings", ->
+          e2e.exec(@, {
+            key: "f858a2bc-b469-4e48-be67-0876339ee7e1"
+            spec: "record_pass*"
+            record: true
+            snapshot: true
+            expectedExitCode: 0
+          })
+
       describe "grace period - parallel feature", ->
         routes = defaultRoutes.slice()
         routes[0] = {
@@ -1255,7 +1310,7 @@ describe "e2e record", ->
             expectedExitCode: 0
           })
 
-      describe "paid plan - over limit", ->
+      describe "paid plan - over private tests limit", ->
         routes = defaultRoutes.slice()
         routes[0] = {
           method: "post"
@@ -1285,3 +1340,34 @@ describe "e2e record", ->
             snapshot: true
             expectedExitCode: 0
           })
+
+      describe "paid plan - over tests limit", ->
+        routes = defaultRoutes.slice()
+        routes[0] = {
+          method: "post"
+          url: "/runs"
+          req: "postRunRequest@2.1.0",
+          res: (req, res) -> res.status(200).json({
+            runId
+            groupId
+            machineId
+            runUrl
+            warnings: [{
+              code: "PAID_PLAN_EXCEEDS_MONTHLY_TESTS"
+              used: 700
+              limit: 500
+              orgId: "org-id-1234"
+            }]
+          })
+        }
+
+        setup(routes)
+
+        it "warns when over test recordings", ->
+          e2e.exec(@, {
+            key: "f858a2bc-b469-4e48-be67-0876339ee7e1"
+            spec: "record_pass*"
+            record: true
+            snapshot: true
+            expectedExitCode: 0
+          })
diff --git a/packages/server/test/unit/ci_provider_spec.coffee b/packages/server/test/unit/ci_provider_spec.coffee
index 503550910626..a7a4290fba46 100644
--- a/packages/server/test/unit/ci_provider_spec.coffee
+++ b/packages/server/test/unit/ci_provider_spec.coffee
@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@ describe "lib/util/ci_provider", ->
     })
     expectsCommitParams({
       sha: "repoCommit"
-      branch: "repoBranch"
+      branch: "appveyorPullRequestHeadRepoBranch"
       message: "repoCommitMessage"
       authorName: "repoCommitAuthor"
       authorEmail: "repoCommitAuthorEmail"
diff --git a/scripts/win-appveyor-build.js b/scripts/win-appveyor-build.js
index 41745c3a80e3..7ad0634fc661 100755
--- a/scripts/win-appveyor-build.js
+++ b/scripts/win-appveyor-build.js
@@ -19,9 +19,9 @@ shell.set('-e') // any error is fatal
 // https://www.appveyor.com/docs/environment-variables/
 
 const isRightBranch = () => {
-  const branch = process.env.APPVEYOR_REPO_BRANCH
+  const branch = process.env.APPVEYOR_PULL_REQUEST_HEAD_REPO_BRANCH || process.env.APPVEYOR_REPO_BRANCH
 
-  return branch === 'develop' || branch === 'issue-716-ffmpeg-packaging'
+  return branch === 'develop'
 }
 
 const isForkedPullRequest = () => {