The original version of Selenium IDE that was realeased in 2006 helped makeSeleniumthe most popular browser automation tool .. Because it was apply as a Firefox browser extension, however, it had a number of limitations, including: flaky tests due to poor element designation, lack ofcross-browser support, no parallelization, no conditional logic. In 2016, with the release of Firefox 48, browser extensions needed to be subscribe in order to work. Thankfully, a new edition of Selenium IDE was created in 2018.

With Selenium IDE 3.0, the developer addressed many of the shortcomings of version 1, and included additional features that do the tool a valuable test asset to web automation.

What is Selenium IDE?

Selenium IDEis an open-source record and playbacktest automationextension for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge browsers. It allows developer to get bare recordings of their actions as they navigate a web application or web page, then become the recordings into scripts. The scripts are recorded using a proprietary language but can be exported to WebDriver code usingNUnit, JUnit, Mocha, Ruby RSpec, or Python Pytest. Once a session has be recorded, users can rebroadcast the test, manipulate exam commands, and debug tryout runs.

Despite its simplicity, Selenium IDE may not suit larger surroundings. You should consider running WebDriver for these.

Selenium IDE 3.0 Features

The Selenium Side Runner (command line runner):One of the pit of the original Selenium IDE was that it had no support forcross-browser support or parallelization. This has been solved with the advent of the Command-line Runner where you can now run exam on any browser, in parallel, and on a Grid (without needing to write any code!). To achieve this, you need to instal the runner as well as the connect browser driver for local test runs. Currently, Firefox, Chrome, Edge, IE, and Safari are supported and the Selenium IDE has greatcorroborationon how to configure your environment.

Multiple locators:Another major restriction of the earlier version of the Selenium IDE was the very flaky element designation process and how brittle it was. Previously the IDE would use one factor locater - either XPath or CSS and simply wait for the element. Now the Selenium IDE records multiple locators for each element it interacts with. If one locator fails during playback, the others will be tried until one is successful. You can see the IDE charm multiple XPath elements for my target, on top of the original CSS quarry:

Flow Control:The virtually novel addition to the IDE is Control Flow, which provides a lot of flexibility that was antecedently only uncommitted when writing codification. Selenium IDE now includes commands that enable you to add conditional logic and looping to your tests. You can execute a command (or set of dictation) solely when certain conditions are met, or execute bidding repeatedly based on pre-defined criteria. This is a critical aspect offunctional examinationand one that merit renewed tending because now you can create smart tests with the IDE, and you can test code paths antecedently unchecked.Here is an model directly from theSelenium IDE documentationexemplify a loop where the ‘ times ’ bid is used to specify the routine of looping:

Code generation:With the Code Export feature, user can export a trial or trial cortege to WebDriver codification. You can export to Java JUnit, JavaScript Mocha, Python Pytest, Ruby RSpec, C # NUnit, and C # xUnit. The IDE export selection include origin tracing code comments (details about the tryout steps), step description as a separate comment, and export for use on Selenium Grid. For more complex scenarios or code-driven tryout automation, users can start by create general scripts using the Selenium IDE for coverage and functionality and so advance as needed.

Synchronization:In addition to this functionality, the IDE proffer explicit wait commands that help when the built-in wait strategy of the IDE is insufficient. Instead of simply waiting for an element, users can apply weather like:

• Wait for element editable

• Wait for element present

• Wait for element visible

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

And...

• Wait for element not editable

• Wait for element not present

• Wait for element not visible

Why Selenium IDE?

The Selenium IDE is the most simple, powerful low-code open-source test automation tool available. The multiple locater and the synchronization commands dramatically improve reliability and minimize craziness. Control Flow adds significant flexibility for managing more than one specific scenario. In combinarion, this dramatically increases the number of functional tests that can be create. Add the ability to run cross-browser exam in parallel using the Command-line Runner and you feature a puppet that is not only practical but scalable.

With added test resiliency, where target element are place more effectively, it makes a great option for users looking for a low-code solution for creating trial In any event, theSelenium IDE documentationis straight and leisurely to understand with lots of relevant instance. Finally, the Selenium squad is hard at employment on a new adaptation of the IDE as an Electron app, which will make it even more flexible in how tests can be accomplish.