Time is of the importance in today’s fast-paced software development environment. So here are 10 Tips to Speed Up Test Automation. Fast and effective test execution is essential for producing high-caliber software.
Here are 10 tips you may follow if you’re sick of waiting for tests to finish and want to step up your automation game.
- Recognise and effectively use page elements
How you will identify the objects on the page is among the most crucial factors to take into account while writing automation code. So that your tests pass, you need to perform this in a trustworthy and effective manner.
Adding distinctive characteristics to the items on the website is one significant tactic. This helps prevent flakiness and makes it much simpler for the automation code to find the elements.
You can enhance your locator approach in two more ways besides leveraging distinctive qualities.
- Use common locators first, such as ID, name, CSS selector, and link text. Compared to other locators, like XPath, these locators are more trustworthy.
- Second, avoid employing link text as a location in your content. Your various tests could fail since the link text is subject to change. Use the href attribute or the link’s entire text as a substitute.
- Set smart waits
The automation tool can be instructed to wait until a certain condition is met before continuing using smart waits. When an element is not yet loaded or enabled, this can assist prevent errors.
A few pointers for making wise waits:
Use a pre-set series of intelligent waits.
Keep an eye on how well your tests are performing to make sure that smart delays aren’t holding them up.
To ensure that smart waits are used in all new automation tests, adopt a code review procedure.
Go to the repository for code.
- Streamline your code
Here are some tips for improving your automation code:
- Apply the right data structures. Each and every programming language, including Java, Python, and others, has a wide variety of data structures. It is crucial to pick the best candidate for the job because of this.
- Reduce the number of HTTP and DB calls. Every time you call a database or make an HTTP request, your code is burdened. Therefore, by caching data that may store multiple values, you can aim to reduce the amount of calls you make.
- Alternatively, conditions. You should have another condition if you have an if condition. Instead of doing additional steps and causing a failure at a separate point, this will assist you in capturing failures at the same state.
- Use the cache memory that the browser itself provides
You can make a cache in the browser itself so that data isn’t constantly fetched from the data server. This will enable you to obtain the info more rapidly by storing it locally.
The cache’s expiration dates can also be configured, and as new data becomes available, the cache will be immediately renewed. Your web automation tests may perform better as a result.
- Don’t open new browser tabs for every situation
Yes, it’s crucial to avoid starting new browser instances or sessions for every other test case. Making autonomous scenarios at first is one of the keys.
Using the same browser session for a variety of circumstances saves time by preventing the need to set browser preferences, delete cookies, and create cache. This may take longer than doing the test itself.
Additionally, it’s crucial to avoid running numerous scripts in the same browser session. Due to the use of variables and other resources, this would require memory. However, starting a new browser for each script is not required. Instead, it is possible to combine related test scripts into a single browser session and run them all at once.
- Use the API rather than UI interactions
In some scripts, UI interactions are still required, but in others, API calls can take their place. For instance, utilizing API testing, products can be added to the shopping cart when interacting with an e-commerce site. For necessary operations, such as adding items for checkout scripts, UI interactions can be avoided.
As the Selenium API testing library, REST Assured is also referenced.
To get user feedback, some businesses use user interface (UI) tests, although APIs make the process easier. Utilizing specified functions, functional and API testing could be merged. Through this integration, needless UI interactions can be skipped and the end-to-end flow is streamlined.
- Disable the unstable visuals and pop-ups
The loading of a large number of graphics and pop-up windows can considerably slow down some apps, such e-commerce websites. In light of the fact that validation is more concerned with the characteristics of the products than the actual photos, blocking image loading may be a useful option.
The majority of contemporary browsers allow you to block graphics. This significantly cuts down on testing time.
Pop-ups frequently come in surprising promotional forms that cannot be foreseen or prepared for in advance. You must build a URL parameter that turns off all pop-ups in order to prevent waiting for them to appear while testing. As a result, testing will go more smoothly and won’t be interrupted by unanticipated pop-up windows.
- Allow parallel testing
Teams can create numerous machines on a local laptop by using Docker. This enables them to swiftly verify scenarios and perform tests in parallel. However, it’s crucial to make sure that all other tests are independent of one another and do not depend on one another.
Teams can use APIs to fetch data from a database server and process it concurrently. By doing this, you can be sure that each Docker is using the same data.
- Testing in parallel has advantages
- Shortened test execution duration
- Improved test stability and increased test coverage
- Delete any obsolete code
When managing a big number of scripts, teams frequently overlook irrelevant code. They periodically check the scripts to ensure functionality and get rid of dated code in order to handle this, whether it’s once a quarter or at regular intervals. By using this procedure, the codebase is kept current while also saving time.
A few pointers for clearing out outdated code:
- Regularly review your scripts.
- Any code that is no longer in use should be noted.
- Delete or comment out the outdated code.
- Scripts should be backed up before any modifications are made.
- It’s crucial to delete code safely even though some people may be hesitant to do so.
- Execute headlessly
Automated tests can be run more quickly by using the headless execution technique, which disables the GUI. Teams can use headless mode to visualize how the application will look on multiple devices by taking advantage of tools like Chrome emulation. The execution times are sped up by this method.
You can alert the team if a test fails by doing the following:
- Utilizing email or a notification system like Slack
- Include the test name, the error message, and the procedures to duplicate the error
- Organizing the failures into categories will help the team rapidly determine the problem
The tests presently take about 3 hours. It is likely that the runtime would be longer without the optimisations
The Best Tips for Creating Automated Tests
Every new release includes improvements, new data structures, and enhanced methods. As a result, it’s crucial to keep the test suite up to date with the most recent trends. To maintain proficiency in the field of testing, continuous learning is essential.
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