Updated April 1, 2023
Introduction to Cypress testing
Cypress is a free, open-source next-generation test automation tool that is used to perform front-end testing for modern web applications. Cypress makes the writing and debugging of the unit and integration testing easy with the help of end-to-end tests. It is written in Javascript and based on Mocha and Chai (famous assertion JavaScript libraries). Testing of highly interactive applications is made easy with the help of Cypress testing tools, and the tester can easily perform operations like read/ write the data in the test fields, submit the forms, check if the required elements are present on the screen, or not, etc. The engine of the Cypress operates inside the browser, unlike the other testing tools like Selenium.
Why do we need Cypress testing?
Cypress is an all-in-one tool that can perform any front-end automation testing. In addition, it can perform some extraordinary things which no other testing tool can, which are given below:
- It automatically takes the Screenshots and Videos on the test case’s failure, which makes it easy for the tester to check where exactly the test has failed.
- Cypress has the ability to control the Network Traffic according to specific requirements.
- Testers need not add additional wait or sleep conditions in the program as it automatically waits for the assertion before proceeding further.
- Unlike other testing tools, Cypress does not use Selenium. It is built on a different architectural background. It can run the test in the same loop as the application (means test code is executed inside the browser in which the application is).
- Only one test language is supported by Cypress, Javascript, which means there is no language or driver binding.
- With the help of Fixtures in Cypress, we can separate the test scripts from the test data. Moreover, the same framework offers the facility to mock third-party requests and test the frontend independently.
- It is quite easy to Debug the code to find which part of it is causing the error with the help of the Cypress tools like Chrome DevTools. Debugging in Cypress is made faster through the stack traces readable errors.
- It provides quick, dependable, and excellent test results because of its high architectural design.
How is Cypress testing carried out?
Below given are some of the points showing the Cypress Testing is carried out practically:
- One of the famous Javascript assertion libraries, Mocha and Chai, is the basis of Cypress, so the test cases are written normally while building the application (it supports TDD) in Cypress like other Javascript frameworks.
- Test cases/ scripts are run in Cypress with the help of Cypress Test Runner. It allows you to see each command as they execute.
- Cypress Dashboard Service can record the test case after the integration of the test suite with the CI provider. In addition, the dashboard Service gives access to record the test result to give complete insight to the tester of what happens exactly when the test script ran.
- Cypress Dashboard allows the tester to manage the projects, see test results, manage runs, manage users, manage organizations and Integrations with various tools, etc.
- Moreover, Cypress Dashboard has the Test Status Menu, which shows the exact count of the number of test cases passed or failed. It provides the proper error log message to the Tester showing the reason for the failure of the test script. Details about each test event can be easily visible by hovering over the Command in the Command Log of Cypress.
Advantages and Disadvantages
Here we discuss the advantages and disadvantages
Advantages
- Cypress has the ability to automatically manipulate the DOM, which means that the Cypress test has access to everyhtingtimer, service worker, DOM web elements, etc.
- To perform the testing on Cypress, the User does not need to do any extra downloads, installing additional dependencies. Installing only Cypress in the system will do everything as the test cases run inside the browser only.
- It is built on JavaScript, which is one of the most popular and widely used web development languages. Almost all the Programmers are familiar with JavaScript, so it is quite easy for them to work on it.
- Each minute detail of every test activity is clearly visible to the tester on the Cypress interactive UI, like stubs, assertions, test results, etc. This makes it easy for the coder to debug.
- It is quite easy to integrate the Cypress with the other CI/ CD tools like Jenkins, BitBucket, Bamboo, etc.
- Cypress runs very fast, in fact much faster than the other testing tools. It provides the ability to TDD (Test Driven Development) with end-to-end testing of the web application. As a result, apps can be developed faster and tested faster as the changes are reflected in real-time, making the overall development fast.
- Cypress supports parallelization and load balancing, which is a blessing for Testers.
Disadvantages
- Cypress is a less preferred choice when it comes to cross-browser testing as it is available for limited browsers like Chrome, Firefox, and Electron Browsers.
- Cypress supports only JavaScript, so programmers familiar or good at other languages find it difficult to work with.
- Cypress does not support ‘handling of multiple browser tabs’, unlike Selenium, which is quite easy to handle.
- Cypress does not allow the programmer for the remote execution, unlike the other testing tools like Selenium.
- With Cypress, it is impossible to visit 2 domains having different origins in a single test case.
Uses of Cypress Testing
- Cypress Testing is used to perform Unit Testing and carry out the Integration Test and End to End Flow testing for the front end of the application.
- Cypress Testing can be used to run a large number of test cases that need to be executed inside the browser.
- The Developers can use it for various activities as it provides excellent features and the ability to debug code faster and maintain it easily.
- Cypress Testing can also be used in any framework which supports Test Driven Development as it allows the Developers to create the test cases along with the development.
Conclusion
The above description clearly explains what Cypress Testing is and why it is widely used all over the world by testers for testing modern web applications. It is a quick, dependable tool that runs the test inside the browser. Furthermore, it overcomes the various problems faced by the Testers in performing the end-to-end testing by providing some extraordinary features. As a result, testing is made more enjoyable and relaxing with Cypress.
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