Did you ever feel like you’re stuck in a loop, endlessly running through the same automation testing tasks without making much progress?
Do you want to take your Selenium automation skills to the next level? Then it’s time to go beyond the basics and explore some advanced techniques that can help you achieve better results in less time. This article will look at some of the most powerful techniques that Selenium has to offer, including custom locators, test data management, and page object design patterns.
But don’t worry; we won’t use a boring, textbook-style approach. Instead, we’ll be injecting some fun into the mix and spicing things up.
Think of it like a cooking show, but instead of creating a delicious meal, we’ll be cooking up some advanced automation techniques that will leave your tests running like a well-oiled machine.
So, grab your apron, turn up the heat to 100, and let’s get started!
1. Custom Locators
Custom locators are a powerful tool in the Selenium arsenal that can help you locate web elements on a page more efficiently. In some cases, the built-in locators may not be sufficient for finding the elements you need.
That’s where custom locators come in handy. By creating your custom locators, you can tailor your automation scripts to your specific needs and avoid the limitations of built-in locators. It’s like having your GPS for web elements!
One potential problem with using custom locators is that they can be time-consuming to create and maintain.
If you’re working on a large-scale project with many web pages and complex element locators, it can be a real struggle to keep track of all the custom locators you’ve created and ensure they’re up to date.
This is where a cloud-based testing platform like LambdaTest can come in handy. With LambdaTest, you can easily manage your custom locators and reuse them across multiple tests without worrying about maintenance or version control issues.
To create a custom locator, you need to extend the By class and implement the findElements method. Here’s an example of a custom locator that locates elements by their data-qa attribute:
public class ByQaAttribute extends By {
private final String selector;
public ByQaAttribute(String selector) {
this.selector = selector;
}
@Override
public List<WebElement> findElements(SearchContext context) {
return context.findElements(By.cssSelector(“[data-qa='” + selector + “‘]”));
}
}
To use the custom locator, you simply need to create an instance of the locator and pass it to the findElement method like this:
WebElement element = driver.findElement(new ByQaAttribute(“login-button”));
Here’s a snippet of how you can use LambdaTest to manage custom locators in your Selenium tests:
import org.openqa.selenium.By;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebElement;
import org.testng.annotations.Test;
import com.lambdatest.tunnel.Tunnel;
import com.lambdatest.tunnel.TunnelFactory;
public class CustomLocatorTest {
private Tunnel tunnel;
@Test
public void testCustomLocator() throws Exception {
tunnel = TunnelFactory.createTunnel();
tunnel.start();
WebDriver driver = new RemoteWebDriver(new URL(“https://” + tunnel.getUsername() + “:” + tunnel.getApiKey() + “@hub.lambdatest.com/wd/hub”), new ChromeOptions());
driver.get(“https://www.example.com/”);
WebElement element = driver.findElement(new ByQaAttribute(“login-button”));
element.click();
driver.quit();
tunnel.stop();
}
public class ByQaAttribute extends By {
private final String selector;
public ByQaAttribute(String selector) {
this.selector = selector;
}
@Override
public List<WebElement> findElements(SearchContext context) {
return context.findElements(By.cssSelector(“[data-qa='” + selector + “‘]”));
}
}
}
In this example, we’re using the LambdaTest tunnel to connect to the LambdaTest cloud-based testing platform. We then create an instance of the RemoteWebDriver class, passing in the LambdaTest URL and API key, and navigate to a sample web page.
We then use our custom locator (ByQaAttribute) to locate an element on the page with the data-qa attribute value of “login-button”. Finally, we click on the element and quit the driver.
With LambdaTest, you can easily manage your custom locators and reuse them across multiple tests without worrying about maintenance or version control issues. This makes it easier to maintain your Selenium tests, so you can focus on delivering high-quality web applications.
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2. Test Data Management
Test data management is another important aspect of Selenium automation that can make or break your test suite. With so many test cases to run, it’s essential to have a solid strategy for managing test data. From creating reusable test data sets to using data providers, there are several ways to streamline your test data management and avoid the headache of duplicate or inconsistent data.
Here’s an example of how you can create a data provider in TestNG:
@DataProvider(name = “login-data”)
public Object[][] getLoginData() {
return new Object[][] {
{ “user1”, “password1” },
{ “user2”, “password2” },
{ “user3”, “password3” },
};
}
In this example, the getLoginData method returns a 2D array of test data that can be used in multiple tests. To use the data provider, you simply need to annotate your test method with @DataProvider and specify the name of the data provider like this:
@Test(dataProvider = “login-data”)
public void testLogin(String username, String password) {
//Perform login with username and password
}
One common problem with test data management is the need to maintain multiple data sets for different environments or test scenarios. This can quickly become a headache when trying to keep track of which data sets should be used for which tests and can lead to errors or inconsistencies in your test results.
One solution to this problem is to leverage a cloud-based testing platform like LambdaTest, which provides easy integration with popular test management tools like JIRA, TestRail, and more.
With LambdaTest, you can easily manage your test data sets and reuse them across multiple tests while keeping track of test results and analyzing test data in real-time.
For example, if you’re using JIRA to manage your test cases and test data, you can easily integrate with LambdaTest to run your Selenium tests and store the results in JIRA.
This makes it easier to track which data sets were used for which tests and ensures that your test results are always up-to-date and accurate.
Additionally, LambdaTest provides a robust data management feature that allows you to store and manage your test data sets in the cloud. This makes it easy to create reusable test data sets and share them across multiple tests without worrying about version control or maintenance issues.
With LambdaTest’s data management feature, you can easily create and manage your test data, so you can focus on writing and running your tests with confidence.
Here’s a snippet of how you can use LambdaTest to manage your test data sets in the cloud:
import com.lambdatest.api.LambdaTestAPI;
import com.lambdatest.api.testlink.model.TestCase;
import com.lambdatest.api.testlink.model.TestSuite;
// Create an instance of the LambdaTest API
LambdaTestAPI api = new LambdaTestAPI(“your-username”, “your-access-key”);
// Define your test data set
String[][] loginData = new String[][] {
{ “user1”, “password1” },
{ “user2”, “password2” },
{ “user3”, “password3” }
};
// Store the test data set in LambdaTest’s data management system
String dataSetId = api.storeDataSet(“login-data”, loginData);
// Retrieve the test data set from LambdaTest’s data management system
String[][] retrievedData = api.getDataSet(dataSetId);
// Use the test data in your Selenium tests
@Test
public void testLoginWithDataSet() {
for (String[] data : retrievedData) {
String username = data[0];
String password = data[1];
//Perform login with username and password
}
}
In this example, we’re using the LambdaTest API to store a test data set called “login-data” in the cloud. We then retrieve the data set using its unique ID and use the test data in a Selenium test by iterating over the array of test data and performing a login with each set of credentials.
This approach allows us to easily manage and reuse test data sets in our Selenium tests while also taking advantage of LambdaTest’s cloud-based infrastructure for scalability and reliability.
3. Page Object Design Patterns
Page object design patterns are another must-know technique for anyone serious about Selenium automation. By separating your web pages into objects, you can create a more organized and maintainable test suite. This approach allows you to reuse code, reduce duplication, and make changes to your tests more easily.
The idea is to create a class for each page of your application that encapsulates the web elements and actions on that page. Here’s an example of a page object class for a login page:
public class LoginPage {
private WebDriver driver;
@FindBy(name = “username”)
private WebElement usernameInput;
@FindBy(name = “password”)
private WebElement passwordInput;
@FindBy(css = “button[type=’submit’]”)
private WebElement loginButton;
public LoginPage(WebDriver driver) {
this.driver = driver;
PageFactory.initElements(driver, this);
}
public void login(String username, String password) {
usernameInput.sendKeys(username);
passwordInput.sendKeys(password);
loginButton.click();
}
}
To use the page object, you simply need to create an instance of the class and call its methods like this:
LoginPage loginPage = new LoginPage(driver);
loginPage.login(“myusername”, “mypassword”);
One potential problem with using page object design patterns is the maintenance of the page object classes. As web applications evolve, the web elements on a page may change, and the page object classes need to be updated accordingly.
LambdaTest offers a solution to this problem through its Visual UI testing feature. With Visual UI testing, you can compare screenshots of your web pages before and after a change to ensure that the changes have not broken your tests. This helps you catch any potential issues early on and reduces the time and effort needed for maintenance.
Here’s a snippet of how you can use LambdaTest’s Visual UI testing feature to compare screenshots of a login page before and after a change:
// Before the change
driver.get(“https://example.com/login”);
String beforeScreenshot = ((TakesScreenshot) driver).getScreenshotAs(OutputType.BASE64);
// Make the change
// …
// After the change
driver.get(“https://example.com/login”);
String afterScreenshot = ((TakesScreenshot) driver).getScreenshotAs(OutputType.BASE64);
// Compare the screenshots
String diff = LambdaTest.compareScreenshots(beforeScreenshot, afterScreenshot);
if (diff != null) {
// The screenshots are different, and the test may have been affected by the change
// …
} else {
// The screenshots are the same, and the test is still passing
// …
}
So, there you have it – custom locators, test data management, and page object design patterns are just a few of the advanced Selenium automation techniques that can help you take your automation skills to the next level. With these powerful techniques in your arsenal, you can run your tests with greater efficiency and confidence!
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Conclusion
So, it’s time to wrap up our journey into the world of advanced Selenium automation techniques. We’ve explored the power of custom locators, the importance of test data management, and the organizational benefits of page object design patterns.
But our journey doesn’t end here. There’s always more to learn and explore in the world of Selenium automation. So, let’s continue to improve our skills, experiment with new techniques, and have some fun along the way.
Remember, automation is not just about writing code. It’s about finding creative solutions to complex problems and making our lives easier. So, let’s keep exploring, innovating, and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with Selenium automation.
