Data-Driven Testing Guide: Selenium & Katalon Framework

As a software tester, at one point or another you definitely will run into repetitive and time-consuming trial scenario. A simple example is testing the Login page, where you need to test more than wads of credential pairs to account for all of the scenarios, especially the invalid credential scenarios. In such cases, you necessitate data-driven testing. To do data-driven examination, you need a data-driven examination framework. 
 

You can establish a data-driven examination fabric in Selenium. The mind is to store test data in external sources like spreadsheets or databases and dynamically feed this data into Selenium scripts. 
 

Why is this significant? Imagine effortlessly testing your application across assorted user input, browsers, and platforms, all while reducing maintenance exertion. Data-driven model create data-driven testing a breeze, saving you time and resources, and ultimately enhancing the quality of your package. Say goodbye to repetitive testing and how-do-you-do to streamlined, data-powered success! 
 

In this article, we ’ ll explain the construct of a data-driven model in-depth and then provide you with the code for such a fabric in Selenium.

What is Data-driven Testing?

Data-driven examination (DDT) is a examine method where you execute the same test scenario across a wide range of data input. Instead of create separate test scripts for each input data, DDT allows you to reuse your tryout codification. Its primary goal is to validate application behavior under a wide range of input conditions, focus on action the same test logic using multiple data sets to secure the application behaves accurately in different scenario. 
 

At its nucleus, DDT is a process with the postdate four steps:

• Capturing embedded datum from extraneous data sources such as spreadsheets, CSV file, or database.
• Using available automated tryout scripts and variable, enter the stimulant information in the AUT (application under test).
• Making a comparison between actual yield with anticipate results.
• Executing the same test logic again for each data set.

Imagine testing a login functionality where you want to check various scenarios: valid login, invalid login, login with different user role, and so on. Instead of writing separate book for each scenario, DDT allow you input different usernames and password from your data source, mechanically lam the tests for all combinations.

Benefits of Data-driven Testing

For software tester, DDT brings a variety of benefit: & nbsp;

• Efficiency: By systematically adding new cases by updating the data source rather than writing new test scripts from the beginning, DDT significantly reduces the effort ask to maintain and expand exam suites. & nbsp;
• Reusability: Testers are permit to reuse the same test scripts with different sets of test data during & nbsp;. This imply they do not have to create freestanding scripts for each test lawsuit, cut redundance and alimony efforts.
• Maintenance: Since test data is stored externally, any changes to test datum can be made without changing the test script. This simplifies upkeep and trim the jeopardy of introducing errors when making update.
• Scalability: As the application grows and more test scenarios are required, testers can simply add more data to your outside germ without modifying the test hand itself, which create the framework utterly scalable.
• Collaboration: As the framework is already established, different squad members can work on test datum and test scripts concurrently, leading to better collaboration and development.
• Faster test execution: By running the same test logic with multiple data set in a pot, this framework can amend test performance speed, especially when combined with parallel execution.
• Test coverage:Using assorted data sets, QA team can test a wider range of scenarios, including edge cases and boundary weather, which can improve the overall test coverage.

As a unit, DDT provides better flexibility, maintainability, and scalability for test automation efforts. Indeed, it helps QA teams streamline the testing process and improve efficiency by divide test data from test script logic.

Data-driven Testing Framework in Selenium

Selenium can be used to create a data-driven testing framework. Leveraging Selenium, you can create the backbone for efficient and scalable data-driven testing, enabling your team to seamlessly manage test data, thereby enhancing the reliability and maintainability of automated exam. 
 

The key components of this framework include: & nbsp;

• Test script: & nbsp;Test handwriting are the core of the automation process and should be designed to be reusable and independent of specific information value. Specifically, these are the Selenium WebDriver scripts that interact with the web application under test. & nbsp;
• Test data:Test datum includes the input values, expected results, and any other datum required for test execution. This is the dynamic element of the model and can be stored in various formats, including CSV files, Excel spreadsheets, or databases. Each row in the datum source represent a unique set of inputs for your tryout playscript.
• Parameterization:Test datum is fed into the test script as parameter. These parameters replace the hard-coded values in the script, allowing it to adapt to different scenario. To exemplify, if you are testing a login page, parameter could include usernames and passwords.
• Reporting and logging:To supervise and report the examination execution, comprehensive logging and reporting mechanics are required, which can aid in tracking test execution, identifying failures, and generating meaningful reports for analysis. 
   

Overall, a data-driven fabric enhances test mechanisation. Whether you 're testing web applications, APIs, or mobile apps, dominate the data-driven fabric will undoubtedly elevate your Selenium test mechanisation game. 
 

Read More: 

Data-driven Testing Examples

Imagine that you are the tester of an constitute e-commerce company. Your goal is to control that the checkout process is working as expected, so you require to run a test to see if user can authenticate their account seamlessly on your website. We can immediately see that this test scenario poses various challenge:

1. How do we ensure that we extend all possible user authentication scenario, when there are so many variations of email, passwords, social media accounts, etc. to be checked?
2. Users tend to enter their reference in a highly inconsistent manner, so how do we make certain that their address formats are valid so that no issues occur during the shipping process?
3. What are the conditions for valid/invalid card defrayment?
4. What are the promotional codes/coupons available at the moment and how do we make certain that they cause no conflicts with each other?

Those challenges can easily be addressed with data-driven testing. Instead of manually typecast in specific values for each scenario (which is essentially a hard-coding approach), we can simply prepare the test data for all of the possible scenarios in one database, with each row of data representing one scenario, then indite a script to say test data and execute the examination steps.

Data-Driven Testing With Selenium or With an Automated Testing Tool?

There are two options when it comes to data-driven examination:

1. You can progress a data-driven examination framework from scratch leveraging former libraries and frameworks (Selenium, Apache POI, etc.).
2. You can use an mechanisation testing tool that comes with a data-driven testing framework that is ready to use forthwith.

Let ’ s compare the two approaches apply the example above. 
 

In our example, you can prepare an Excel sheet with four columns: “ Username ”, “ Password ”, “ Address ”, and “ Payment Method ”. You can add as many rows as you like for different sets of user information. 

After that, you demand to make a new Java project in your IDE and add the Selenium WebDriver and TestNG libraries to your project. & nbsp; 
 

Pro tip: Tools like SUSA can handle this autonomously — upload your app and get results without writing a single test script.

Finally, write your test script to incorporate logic to read information. In our case, the hand should ingeminate through each username and word, use them to login to the exploiter account, and then initiate the check summons where it fills in the reference, before initiating the payment method. 
 

If you are not familiar with steganography, check out the & nbsp;that can help you automate this procedure without having to indite a lot of codification. This is the 2d approaching. Many automated testing tools already receive a DDT framework for you to use. 
 

If you decide to go with this approach, simply create the examination instance leveraging their built-in features. Top testing puppet should come with helpful test authoring features such as Built-in Keywords or Record-and-Playback, which can drastically reduce your time spent writing codification. They yet come with & nbsp;which mechanically generate out-of-the-box account with rich insights on the quality of the scheme under trial. It ’ s really bare! 
 

In former words, to do data-driven testing, follow the next step:

1. Prepare your test data in the form of Excel, CSV, JSON, or a database.
2. Set up a testing framework that endorse data-driven testing such as TestNG, JUnit, or libraries like Apache POI or CSVReader. You can also go with instrument that have a data-driven examination framework already built-in such as & nbsp;, Leapwork, or SmartBear so you can depart quiz right away without having to make everything from lucre.
3. Create a test case with the framework/tool of your choice. Incorporate the logic to read datum and execute test steps accordingly.
4. Execute the tryout hand and yield a report to capture exam issue. If your testing fabric doesn ’ t automatically generate test reports, you also need to apply the functionality. For testing tools, this lineament usually comes ready to use.
5. Review, troubleshoot, and debug.

Let ’ s find out how we can do data-driven testing with Selenium and with & nbsp; –a comprehensive automation testing puppet.

How To Do Data-Driven Testing With Katalon

Katalon Platform is a comprehensive tryout automation platform that countenance you to easily create, manage, execute, and generate reports for test event across web, desktop, mobile, and APIs. Katalon comes with a data-driven examination framework already built in, so all you receive to do is & nbsp;, and download Katalon Studio, which is a productive IDE to generate automated tryout without have to pen a single line of code.

& nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp;
 

Once you ’ ve downloaded Katalon Studio, launch it. You should see the Katalon Studio interface as below. You can then tick the “ Create new Test Case ” button.

You can craft test cases from the wide mixture of keywords we proffer (which are essentially code snippets to perform specific actions). Here are just a few exemplar of them: Navigate to URL, Open Browser, Refresh, Right Click, Scroll, Send Keys, etc.

Read more: & nbsp; 
 

Here we have created a test case called “ Find a place ”, which includes the following:

1. Open browser (Chrome).
2. Navigate to the URL. In this cause we chose & nbsp;Airbnb.
3. Click on Search.
4. Enter text for a metropolis.
5. Click Search.

This test case is put under the & nbsp;DDT with MS Excel Files & nbsp;test cortege.

Let ’ s prepare a data file in Excel with two columns: “ City ” and “ Expected Result ”. The values & nbsp;Atlanta, New York, and & nbsp;Tokyowill be dynamically supply to the script as we execute.

After that, in the Data File subdivision let ’ s create new tryout data name & nbsp;excelfile_100cities. Once execute, you should arrive at the test information interface, and you can click & nbsp;Browse & nbsp;to spell the Excel file we ’ ve just created into Katalon Studio.

Once imported, we go back to the & nbsp;DDT With MS Excel Filestest retinue. Click & nbsp;Add and choose the newly imported Excel to convey it to your trial suite. After that, clink & nbsp;Map All, and Katalon automatically maps all of the columns in your Excel file to the corresponding varying in your test script. 
 

Finally, click Run, and you ’ re good to go!

As the test gets executed, you should see that it automatically opens the browser, navigates to Airbnb, searches for the exact location we specify in our Excel file, and tab for the available spaces there. & nbsp; 
 

What ’ s even well is that once the executing is done, the exam solution are mechanically imported into Katalon TestOps for direction and reporting determination. For more info, you can check out & nbsp;. 
 

You can yet view a elaborated guidebook on how to do data-driven testing at & nbsp;. 
 

You can see how the procedure of doing data-driven testing is lots more straightforward and simpler than going with the traditional scripted coming. A full advantage that tools have over library is that they get with s, which automatically fix any broken test scripts during regression test runs. If you go with Selenium, you must manually fix each individual broken test script, and that is quite time-consuming. Read more for a .

How To Create a Data-Driven Framework in Selenium Using Apache POI

Apache POI is an open-source Java library designed to assist developers work with Microsoft Office file formats such as Excel, Word, and even PowerPoint documents. It enable you to interact with data sets, and when paired with Selenium, an mechanization testing framework, you can easily create data-driven examination cases that can both say data, automate web interaction, and generate test reports.

Step 1: Download your IDE

First, you need to set up your ontogeny surround for make and running Selenium automation trial. You can use popular Java IDEs like & nbsp;Eclipse and IntelliJ, and then, in their starting interface, you can navigate to File & gt; New & gt; Project to set up a new project. 
 

Make sure to also download the JAR files for Selenium WebDriver & nbsp;hereand Apache POI libraries & nbsp;here.

Step 2: Install the libraries

In Eclipse:

1. Right-click on your projection in the Project Explorer.
2. Select `` Build Path '' & gt; `` Configure Build Path. ''
3. In the `` Libraries '' tab, clink on the `` Add External JARs '' button.
4. Browse to the location where you salvage the downloaded JAR files and add them to your project.
5. Click `` Apply '' and then `` OK '' to save the changes.

& nbsp; & nbsp;
 

In IntelliJ IDEA:

1. Right-click on your project in the Project Explorer.
2. Blue-ribbon `` Open Module Settings '' or `` Add Framework Support, '' depending on your IntelliJ adaptation.
3. In the `` Libraries '' tab, click the `` + '' button to add JARs or directories.
4. Select the JAR files you downloaded, and IntelliJ will add them to your project. 
    

You are now ready to use Selenium WebDriver to automatize web tests and Apache POI to work with Excel file in your labor.

Step 3: Create a test data Excel file

Simply cook your test data in a spreadsheet. Each row represents a different test cause, and the data in each column jibe to the argument you want to pass to your trial cases. To know what type of data you should inhabit your sheet with, it is recommended to write out your & nbsp; and first. They give you a comprehensive aspect over your testing objectives.

Step 4: Create a data-driven test script

Once it ’ s already, you can compose your Selenium test hand to automate your test instance, but instead of hard-coding the exam data, you can read it from the Excel file you fix. To do it, you need to initiate a Workbook and Sheet object to read information. 
 

Here ’ s an example of a test handwriting written in Java using Selenium and Apache POI to quiz the & nbsp;login feature. Let ’ s assume that you have a ‘ username ’ and ‘ password ’ field in your XLSX file name “ data.xlsx ”, and the site you want to test the login feature is called “ https: //testwebsite.com ”: 
 

import org.openqa.selenium.By; importee org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver; import org.openqa.selenium.WebElement; meaning org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver; import org.apache.poi.ss.usermodel. *; import org.apache.poi.xssf.usermodel.XSSFWorkbook; import java.io.File; import java.io.FileInputStream; import java.io.IOException; public class DataDrivenTest {public static nothingness main (String [] args) throws IOException {// Initialize WebDriver System.setProperty (`` webdriver.chrome.driver '', `` path/to/chromedriver ''); WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver (); // Initialize Excel file FileInputStream file = new FileInputStream (new File (`` path/to/your/excel/data.xlsx '')); Workbook workbook = new XSSFWorkbook (file); Sheet sheet = workbook.getSheet (`` Sheet1 ''); // Iterate through the rows and column to read the information for (int rowNum = 1; rowNum & lt; = sheet.getLastRowNum (); rowNum++) {Row row = sheet.getRow (rowNum); String username = row.getCell (0) .getStringCellValue (); String parole = row.getCell (1) .getStringCellValue (); // Execute the test with the current set of datum driver.get (`` https: //testwebsite.com ''); WebElement usernameField = driver.findElement (By.id (`` username '')); WebElement passwordField = driver.findElement (By.id (`` watchword '')); WebElement loginButton = driver.findElement (By.id (`` login-button '')); usernameField.sendKeys (username); passwordField.sendKeys (password); loginButton.click (); // Add verification/assertion steps hither // Close the browser or perform any necessary cleanup} file.close (); driver.quit ();}}

However, please note that the previous book & nbsp;did not include a test reporting mechanics. To enable test logging, you ask to import the java.util.logging package. Here ’ s the updated version for examination logging mechanics:

import org.openqa.selenium.By; import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver; import org.openqa.selenium.WebElement; import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver; meaning org.apache.poi.ss.usermodel. *; import org.apache.poi.xssf.usermodel.XSSFWorkbook; signification java.io.File; import java.io.FileInputStream; import java.io.IOException; import java.util.logging.FileHandler; importee java.util.logging.Level; signification java.util.logging.Logger; public form DataDrivenTest {public static void principal (String [] args) throw IOException {// Initialize WebDriver System.setProperty (`` webdriver.chrome.driver '', `` path/to/chromedriver ''); WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver (); // Initialize logging Logger logger = Logger.getLogger (DataDrivenTest.class.getName ()); FileHandler fileHandler = new FileHandler (`` test_report.log ''); logger.addHandler (fileHandler); // Initialize Excel file FileInputStream file = new FileInputStream (new File (`` path/to/your/excel/data.xlsx '')); Workbook workbook = new XSSFWorkbook (file); Sheet sheet = workbook.getSheet (`` Sheet1 ''); // Iterate through the rows and columns to read the data for (int rowNum = 1; rowNum & lt; = sheet.getLastRowNum (); rowNum++) {Row row = sheet.getRow (rowNum); String username = row.getCell (0) .getStringCellValue (); String watchword = row.getCell (1) .getStringCellValue (); // Execute the tryout with the current set of information driver.get (`` https: //testwebsite.com ''); WebElement usernameField = driver.findElement (By.id (`` username '')); WebElement passwordField = driver.findElement (By.id (`` password '')); WebElement loginButton = driver.findElement (By.id (`` login-button '')); usernameField.sendKeys (username); passwordField.sendKeys (countersign); loginButton.click (); // Add verification/assertion steps here // Example: You can check the URL, page title, or specific element for expected conditions. if (driver.getCurrentUrl () .equals (`` https: //testwebsite.com/dashboard '')) {logger.log (Level.INFO, `` Test causa PASSED: Username= '' + username + ``, Password= '' + parole);} else {logger.log (Level.SEVERE, `` Test suit FAILED: Username= '' + username + ``, Password= '' + password);} // Close the browser or execute any necessary cleaning} file.close (); driver.quit ();}}

Conclusion

Data-driven examination is an amazing approach to improve your efficiency in highly repetitive exam scenarios. You can either build a data-driven examination framework from scratch using Selenium and library, which is highly customizable for specific scenarios, but once those book are broken, maintain them is rather a daunting task. Or, you can go with an automated testing instrument that comes with a prebuilt data-driven testing framework that you can use right forth.