diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci-cd.yml b/.github/workflows/ci-cd.yml
index 86411f3c71..d140b80a3a 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci-cd.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci-cd.yml
@@ -99,39 +99,77 @@ jobs:
         - name: run unit tests
           working-directory: ./packages/nocodb
           run: pnpm run test:unit:pg
+
+    pre-build-for-playwright:
+      uses: ./.github/workflows/pre-build-for-playwright.yml
+
     playwright-mysql-1:
+      needs: pre-build-for-playwright
       if: ${{ github.event_name == 'push' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'trigger-CI') || !github.event.pull_request.draft }}
       uses: ./.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
       with:
         db: mysql
         shard: 1
     playwright-mysql-2:
+      needs: pre-build-for-playwright
       if: ${{ github.event_name == 'push' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'trigger-CI') || !github.event.pull_request.draft }}
       uses: ./.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
       with:
         db: mysql
         shard: 2
+    playwright-mysql-3:
+      needs: playwright-mysql-1
+      if: ${{ always() && ( github.event_name == 'push' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'trigger-CI') || !github.event.pull_request.draft )}}
+      uses: ./.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
+      with:
+        db: mysql
+        shard: 3
+    playwright-mysql-4:
+      needs: playwright-mysql-2
+      if: ${{ always() && ( github.event_name == 'push' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'trigger-CI') || !github.event.pull_request.draft )}}
+      uses: ./.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
+      with:
+        db: mysql
+        shard: 4                
     playwright-sqlite-1:
+      needs: pre-build-for-playwright
       if: ${{ github.event_name == 'push' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'trigger-CI') || !github.event.pull_request.draft }}
       uses: ./.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
       with:
         db: sqlite
         shard: 1
     playwright-sqlite-2:
+      needs: pre-build-for-playwright
       if: ${{ github.event_name == 'push' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'trigger-CI') || !github.event.pull_request.draft }}
       uses: ./.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
       with:
         db: sqlite
         shard: 2
     playwright-pg-shard-1:
+      needs: pre-build-for-playwright
       if: ${{ github.event_name == 'push' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'trigger-CI') || !github.event.pull_request.draft }}
       uses: ./.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
       with:
         db: pg
         shard: 1
     playwright-pg-shard-2:
+      needs: pre-build-for-playwright
       if: ${{ github.event_name == 'push' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'trigger-CI') || !github.event.pull_request.draft }}
       uses: ./.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
       with:
         db: pg
         shard: 2
+    playwright-pg-shard-3:
+      needs: playwright-pg-shard-1
+      if: ${{ always() && ( github.event_name == 'push' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'trigger-CI') || !github.event.pull_request.draft )}}
+      uses: ./.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
+      with:
+        db: pg
+        shard: 3    
+    playwright-pg-shard-4:
+      needs: playwright-pg-shard-2
+      if: ${{ always() && ( github.event_name == 'push' || contains(github.event.pull_request.labels.*.name, 'trigger-CI') || !github.event.pull_request.draft ) }}
+      uses: ./.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
+      with:
+        db: pg
+        shard: 4                
diff --git a/.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml b/.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
index 9cccaa26db..82830b94be 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/playwright-test-workflow.yml
@@ -18,11 +18,32 @@ jobs:
     steps:
       - name: Checkout
         uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - name: pre-requisite checks
+        shell: bash
+        run: |
+          node_version=$(node --version || echo "error")
+          pnpm_version=$(pnpm -v || echo "error")            
+          echo "node version: $node_version"
+          echo "pnpm version: $pnpm_version"
+          if [[ $node_version != v18* ]] || [[ $pnp_version != 8* ]]; then
+            echo "version mismatch: expected node v18 and pnpm v8"
+            RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS="true"  
+          elif [[ ${FORCE_RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS} == "true" ]];
+              # || [[ ! -f ${PRE_REQ_CHECK_FILE_PATH} ]];
+          then
+            echo "FORCE_RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS is true"
+            RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS="true"
+          else
+            RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS="false"  
+          fi
+          echo "RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS=${RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS}" >> $GITHUB_ENV        
       - name: Setup Node
+        if: env.RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS == 'true'
         uses: actions/setup-node@v3
         with:
           node-version: 18.14.0
       - name: Setup pnpm
+        if: env.RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS == 'true'
         uses: pnpm/action-setup@v2
         with:
           version: 8
@@ -31,6 +52,7 @@ jobs:
         run: |
           echo "STORE_PATH=$(pnpm store path --silent)" >> $GITHUB_ENV
       - uses: actions/cache@v3
+        if: env.RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS == 'true'
         name: Setup pnpm cache
         with:
           path: ${{ env.STORE_PATH }}
@@ -46,8 +68,6 @@ jobs:
           sudo -u postgres psql -c "ALTER USER postgres WITH PASSWORD 'password';" 
           sudo -u postgres psql -c "ALTER USER postgres WITH SUPERUSER;" 
           service postgresql restart
-      - name: Set CI env
-        run: export CI=true
       - name: Kill stale servers
         run: |
           # export NODE_OPTIONS=\"--max_old_space_size=16384\";
@@ -78,10 +98,6 @@ jobs:
         working-directory: ./packages/nocodb/tests/pg-cy-quick/
         run: |
           sudo -u postgres psql -U postgres -f 01-cy-quick.sql
-      - name: run frontend
-        working-directory: ./packages/nc-gui
-        run: pnpm run ci:run
-        timeout-minutes: 20
       - name: Run backend
         if: ${{ inputs.db == 'sqlite' }}
         working-directory: ./packages/nocodb
@@ -97,15 +113,38 @@ jobs:
         working-directory: ./packages/nocodb
         run: |
           pnpm run watch:run:playwright:pg &> ${{ inputs.db }}_${{ inputs.shard }}_test_backend.log &
+      - name: copy built output and start frontend
+        if: always()
+        working-directory: ./
+        run: |
+          # expects the variables to be available in runner context.
+          path="gh-artifacts/runs/${GITHUB_RUN_ID}/ui-build/.output"
+          target_dir="/mnt/${path}"
+          mkdir -p ${target_dir}
+          if [[ -d ${target_dir} ]]; then
+            echo "Directory ${target_dir} exists."
+            cp -r ${target_dir} ./packages/nc-gui/ || echo "playwright reports directory does not exists" >>  ${target_dir}/playwright-report/index.html
+          else
+            echo "Error: Directory ${target_dir} does not exists."
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          cd ./packages/nc-gui/
+          pnpm run ci:start
       - name: Install Playwright Browsers
         working-directory: ./tests/playwright
         run: pnpm exec playwright install --with-deps chromium
-      - name: Wait for backend
+      - name: Wait for frontend and backend
         run: |
-          while ! curl --output /dev/null --silent --head --fail http://localhost:8080; do
+          while ! curl --output /dev/null --silent --head --fail http://localhost:3000; do
             printf '.'
             sleep 2
           done
+          echo "Frontend is up"
+          while ! curl --output /dev/null --silent --head --fail http://localhost:8080; do
+            printf '.'
+            sleep 2
+          done          
+          echo "Backend is up"
         timeout-minutes: 2
       - name: Run Playwright Tests
         working-directory: ./tests/playwright
diff --git a/.github/workflows/pre-build-for-playwright.yml b/.github/workflows/pre-build-for-playwright.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..520f3b74d8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/pre-build-for-playwright.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,80 @@
+name: pre-build-for-playwright
+
+on:
+  workflow_call:
+    inputs:
+      FORCE_RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS:
+        description: 'FORCE_RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS'
+        required: false
+        type: string  
+        default: 'false'
+
+jobs:
+  playwright:
+    runs-on: [self-hosted, aws]
+    timeout-minutes: 100
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout
+        uses: actions/checkout@v3
+      - name: pre-requisite checks
+        shell: bash
+        run: |
+          node_version=$(node --version || echo "error")
+          pnpm_version=$(pnpm -v || echo "error")          
+          echo "node version: $node_version"
+          echo "pnpm version: $pnpm_version"
+          if [[ $node_version != v18* ]] || [[ $pnp_version != 8* ]]; then
+            echo "version mismatch: expected node v18 and pnpm v8"
+            RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS="true"  
+          elif [[ ${FORCE_RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS} == "true" ]];
+              # || [[ ! -f ${PRE_REQ_CHECK_FILE_PATH} ]];
+          then
+            echo "FORCE_RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS is true"
+            RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS="true"
+          else
+            RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS="false"  
+          fi
+          echo "RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS=${RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS}" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+      - name: Setup Node
+        if: env.RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS == 'true'
+        uses: actions/setup-node@v3
+        with:
+          node-version: 18.14.0
+      - name: Setup pnpm
+        if: env.RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS == 'true'
+        uses: pnpm/action-setup@v2
+        with:
+          version: 8
+      - name: Get pnpm store directory
+        shell: bash
+        run: |
+          echo "STORE_PATH=$(pnpm store path --silent)" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+      - uses: actions/cache@v3
+        if: env.RUN_PRERQUISITE_STEPS == 'true'
+        name: Setup pnpm cache
+        with:
+          path: ${{ env.STORE_PATH }}
+          key: ${{ runner.os }}-pnpm-store-${{ hashFiles('**/pnpm-lock.yaml') }}
+          restore-keys: |
+            ${{ runner.os }}-pnpm-store-
+      - name: install dependencies
+        run: pnpm bootstrap
+      - name: run frontend
+        working-directory: ./packages/nc-gui
+        run: |
+          pnpm run build
+        timeout-minutes: 20
+      - name: Copy Artifacts to Local Artifacts Dir
+        if: always()
+        working-directory: ./
+        run: |
+          # expects the variables to be available in runner context.
+          path="gh-artifacts/runs/${GITHUB_RUN_ID}/ui-build/"
+          target_dir="/mnt/${path}"
+          mkdir -p ${target_dir}
+
+          # start : add any artifacts to be copied here
+          cp -r ./packages/nc-gui/.output ${target_dir}/  || echo "playwright reports directory does not exists" >>  ${target_dir}/playwright-report/index.html
+
+          SUMMARY='[UI BUILD](http://65.21.27.147/'${path}')'
+          echo "$SUMMARY" >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
diff --git a/packages/nc-gui/package.json b/packages/nc-gui/package.json
index c895f58dbe..637df820cb 100644
--- a/packages/nc-gui/package.json
+++ b/packages/nc-gui/package.json
@@ -31,6 +31,7 @@
     "build:copy": "pnpm run generate; rm -rf ../nc-lib-gui/lib/dist/; rsync -rvzh ./dist/ ../nc-lib-gui/lib/dist/",
     "build:copy:publish": "pnpm run generate; rm -rf ../nc-lib-gui/lib/dist/; rsync -rvzh ./dist/ ../nc-lib-gui/lib/dist/; pnpm publish ../nc-lib-gui",
     "ci:run": "export NODE_OPTIONS=\"--max_old_space_size=16384\"; pnpm install; pnpm run build; NUXT_PAGE_TRANSITION_DISABLE=true NUXT_PUBLIC_NC_BACKEND_URL=http://localhost:8080 pnpm run start &",
+    "ci:start": "export NODE_OPTIONS=\"--max_old_space_size=16384\"; NUXT_PAGE_TRANSITION_DISABLE=true NUXT_PUBLIC_NC_BACKEND_URL=http://localhost:8080 pnpm run start &",
     "preinstall": "npx only-allow pnpm",
     "postinstall": "nuxt prepare"
   },
diff --git a/tests/playwright/package.json b/tests/playwright/package.json
index 2fc168cf61..6afc99ec4f 100644
--- a/tests/playwright/package.json
+++ b/tests/playwright/package.json
@@ -23,8 +23,10 @@
   "scripts": {
     "test": "TRACE=true pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4",
     "test:fast": "pnpm exec playwright test --workers=6",
-    "test:shard:1": "TRACE=true pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4 --shard=1/2",
-    "test:shard:2": "TRACE=true pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4 --shard=2/2",
+    "test:shard:1": "TRACE=true pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4 --shard=1/4",
+    "test:shard:2": "TRACE=true pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4 --shard=2/4",
+    "test:shard:3": "TRACE=true pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4 --shard=3/4",
+    "test:shard:4": "TRACE=true pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4 --shard=4/4",
     "test:repeat": "TRACE=true pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4 --repeat-each=12",
     "test:quick": "TRACE=true PW_QUICK_TEST=1 pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4",
     "test:debug": "./startPlayWrightServer.sh; PW_TEST_REUSE_CONTEXT=1 PW_TEST_CONNECT_WS_ENDPOINT=ws://127.0.0.1:31000/ PWDEBUG=console pnpm exec playwright test -c playwright.config.ts --headed --project=chromium --retries 0 --timeout 0 --workers 1 --max-failures=1",
@@ -32,8 +34,10 @@
     "test:debug:watch": "pnpm dlx nodemon -e ts -w ./ -x \"pnpm run test:debug\"",
     "test:debug:quick:sqlite": "./startPlayWrightServer.sh; PW_QUICK_TEST=1 PW_TEST_REUSE_CONTEXT=1 PW_TEST_CONNECT_WS_ENDPOINT=ws://127.0.0.1:31000/ PWDEBUG=console pnpm exec playwright test -c playwright.config.ts --headed --project=chromium --retries 0 --timeout 5 --workers 1 --max-failures=1",
     "ci:test": "pnpm exec playwright test --workers=2",
-    "ci:test:shard:1": "pnpm exec playwright test --workers=2 --shard=1/2",
-    "ci:test:shard:2": "pnpm exec playwright test --workers=2 --shard=2/2",
+    "ci:test:shard:1": "pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4 --shard=1/4",
+    "ci:test:shard:2": "pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4 --shard=2/4",
+    "ci:test:shard:3": "pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4 --shard=3/4",
+    "ci:test:shard:4": "pnpm exec playwright test --workers=4 --shard=4/4",
     "ci:test:mysql": "E2E_DB_TYPE=mysql pnpm exec playwright test --workers=2",
     "ci:test:pg": "E2E_DB_TYPE=pg pnpm exec playwright test --workers=2",
     "preinstall": "npx only-allow pnpm"