diff --git a/packages/playwright-core/src/server/index.ts b/packages/playwright-core/src/server/index.ts
index 3f127cb9158a9..c15944f0ae208 100644
--- a/packages/playwright-core/src/server/index.ts
+++ b/packages/playwright-core/src/server/index.ts
@@ -28,4 +28,4 @@ export { createPlaywright } from './playwright';
 
 export type { DispatcherScope } from './dispatchers/dispatcher';
 export type { Playwright } from './playwright';
-export { installRootRedirect, openTraceInBrowser, openTraceViewerApp, startTraceViewerServer } from './trace/viewer/traceViewer';
+export { installRootRedirect, openTraceInBrowser, openTraceViewerApp, runTraceViewerApp, startTraceViewerServer } from './trace/viewer/traceViewer';
diff --git a/tests/config/traceViewerFixtures.ts b/tests/config/traceViewerFixtures.ts
index 38bde5972cb4f..1da0058fc4182 100644
--- a/tests/config/traceViewerFixtures.ts
+++ b/tests/config/traceViewerFixtures.ts
@@ -16,10 +16,9 @@
 
 import type { Fixtures, FrameLocator, Locator, Page, Browser, BrowserContext } from '@playwright/test';
 import { step } from './baseTest';
-import path from 'path';
-import { CommonFixtures, TestChildProcess } from './commonFixtures';
+import { runTraceViewerApp } from '../../packages/playwright-core/lib/server';
 
-type BaseTestFixtures = CommonFixtures & {
+type BaseTestFixtures = {
   context: BrowserContext;
 };
 
@@ -31,7 +30,7 @@ type BaseWorkerFixtures = {
 };
 
 export type TraceViewerFixtures = {
-  showTraceViewer: (trace: string | undefined, options?: {host?: string, port?: number, stdin?: boolean}) => Promise<TraceViewerPage>;
+  showTraceViewer: (trace: string | undefined, options?: {host?: string, port?: number}) => Promise<TraceViewerPage>;
   runAndTrace: (body: () => Promise<void>, optsOverrides?: Parameters<BrowserContext['tracing']['start']>[0]) => Promise<TraceViewerPage>;
 };
 
@@ -54,7 +53,7 @@ class TraceViewerPage {
   themeSetting: Locator;
   displayCanvasContentSetting: Locator;
 
-  constructor(public page: Page, public process: TestChildProcess) {
+  constructor(public page: Page) {
     this.actionTitles = page.locator('.action-title');
     this.actionsTree = page.getByTestId('actions-tree');
     this.callLines = page.locator('.call-tab .call-line');
@@ -153,32 +152,21 @@ class TraceViewerPage {
 }
 
 export const traceViewerFixtures: Fixtures<TraceViewerFixtures, {}, BaseTestFixtures, BaseWorkerFixtures> = {
-  showTraceViewer: async ({ playwright, childProcess }, use) => {
+  showTraceViewer: async ({ playwright, browserName, headless }, use, testInfo) => {
     const browsers: Browser[] = [];
-    await use(async (trace: string | undefined, { host, port, stdin } = {}) => {
-      const command = [
-        'node',
-        path.join(__dirname, '../../packages/playwright-core/cli.js'),
-        'show-trace',
-        '--port', '' + (port ?? '0'),
-      ];
-      if (host)
-        command.push('--host', host);
-      if (stdin)
-        command.push('--stdin');
-      if (trace)
-        command.push(trace);
-      const cp = childProcess({ command });
-      await cp.waitForOutput('Listening on');
-      const browser = await playwright.chromium.launch();
+    const contextImpls: any[] = [];
+    await use(async (trace: string | undefined, { host, port } = {}) => {
+      const pageImpl = await runTraceViewerApp(trace, browserName, { headless, host, port });
+      const contextImpl = pageImpl.browserContext;
+      const browser = await playwright.chromium.connectOverCDP(contextImpl._browser.options.wsEndpoint);
       browsers.push(browser);
-      const page = await browser.newPage();
-      const url = cp.output.match(/Listening on (http:\/\/[^\s]+)/)![1];
-      await page.goto(url);
-      return new TraceViewerPage(page, cp);
+      contextImpls.push(contextImpl);
+      return new TraceViewerPage(browser.contexts()[0].pages()[0]);
     });
     for (const browser of browsers)
       await browser.close();
+    for (const contextImpl of contextImpls)
+      await contextImpl._browser.close({ reason: 'Trace viewer closed' });
   },
 
   runAndTrace: async ({ context, showTraceViewer }, use, testInfo) => {
diff --git a/tests/library/trace-viewer.spec.ts b/tests/library/trace-viewer.spec.ts
index fdb1b0aff3925..706197fb0e1d6 100644
--- a/tests/library/trace-viewer.spec.ts
+++ b/tests/library/trace-viewer.spec.ts
@@ -32,7 +32,6 @@ const test = playwrightTest.extend<TraceViewerFixtures>(traceViewerFixtures);
 
 test.skip(({ trace }) => trace === 'on');
 test.skip(({ mode }) => mode.startsWith('service'));
-test.skip(process.env.PW_CLOCK === 'frozen');
 test.slow();
 
 let traceFile: string;
@@ -2250,11 +2249,15 @@ test('should capture iframe with srcdoc', async ({ page, server, runAndTrace })
   await expect(frame.frameLocator('iframe').getByRole('button')).toHaveText('Hello iframe');
 });
 
-test('take trace paths via stdin', async ({ showTraceViewer }) => {
-  const traceViewer = await showTraceViewer(undefined, { stdin: true });
-  await expect(traceViewer.page).toHaveTitle('Playwright Trace Viewer');
-  traceViewer.process.write(traceFile);
-  await expect(traceViewer.actionTitles).toContainText([
+test('take trace paths via stdin', async ({ childProcess, page }) => {
+  const cliEntrypoint = path.join(__dirname, '../../packages/playwright-core/cli.js');
+  const cp = childProcess({ command: ['node', cliEntrypoint, 'show-trace', '--port', '0', '--stdin'] });
+  await cp.waitForOutput('Listening on');
+  const url = cp.output.match(/Listening on (http:\/\/[^\s]+)/)![1];
+  await page.goto(url);
+  await expect(page).toHaveTitle('Playwright Trace Viewer');
+  cp.write(traceFile);
+  await expect(page.locator('.action-title')).toContainText([
     /Create page/,
   ]);
 });