Cypress Tutorial

There is a higher demand for test automation frameworks to innovate in today's environment, as web applications are going through continual growth and ongoing deployment pipeline. Cypress is a modern web application end-to-end test automation framework.

It's a node. js-based JavaScript framework. You can develop and run integration, unit, and end-to-end tests quickly and efficiently with Cypress.

Here, we'll go through the Cypress automation framework, which gets a lot of acceptance among developers.

Cypress Tutorial - Table of Contents

• What is the Cypress Automation Framework?
• Understanding Cypress Framework
• Cypress From Selenium
• Cypress vs Selenium
• Installation
• Tools
• Features
• Benefits

What is the Cypress Automation Framework?

Cypress is a revolutionary front-end testing framework that makes creating flexible and robust web application tests a breeze.

It offers complete testing features for unit and integration tests, quick test configuration, simple reporting, and an appealing dashboard interface.

It has the significant advantage of being developed in JavaScript, the most widely used front-end web development language. Since it was officially available for the community, it has a large following of developers and QA engineers.

So, what makes Cypress a viable automation option?

Let's look at how Cypress deals with the issues that modern-day web application testing faces.

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Understanding Cypress Framework

Cypress is a JavaScript-based open-source testing framework that enables web application testing. Unlike Selenium, it relies entirely on a real browser and does not require driver binaries.

The automated and application codes run on the same platform, giving you complete control over your testing app.

Let's look at Cypress's high-level architecture to understand its backend tale better.

Most automation testing technologies, such as Selenium, work by executing commands outside the browser and sending them over the network. Cypress has a whole different set of functionalities.

The Node.js server runs in the background of Cypress. The Node server and the Cypress continually interact, adjust, and carry out operations supporting one another.

As a result, Cypress has access to the application's front, and back ends. This allows it to respond to real-time issues on the app while still performing actions outside of the browser that requires more privilege.

By monitoring and modifying web traffic, Cypress has the potential to operate on the network layer. This allows it to update the code that deals with browser automation in and out of the browser.

Cypress can control the entire automation process, allowing it to understand what is happening inside and outside the browser.  

This makes it helpful in collecting screenshots and conducting basic file system and network activities. Cypress has access to the Document Object Model (DOM), window objects, local storage, the network layer, and browser development tools, among other things.

In a nutshell, Cypress operates within the browser, and it is the browser that executes our test code. It may alter browser behaviour in real-time by manipulating the DOM and changing network requests and responses on the fly.

The advantages of the Cypress test automation framework are listed below:

• The Cypress framework is simple to install.
• Cypress includes a built-in request wait functionality that eliminates the need to set up additional waits.
• No driver binaries are required in Cypress, and the code is executed directly in the browser.
• Since the test code and the application are both runs in the same browser, the test code has access to the application's JS objects.
• Cypress is quite impressive in that it allows you to update code and execute it on the fly.
• It comes with a dashboard for extensive reporting.
• Because of the framework's auto-wait features, Cypress tests are less unreliable.
• It allows for the execution of tests in parallel.
• Screen captures of the test behaviour are taken at each step. These can be extremely useful in troubleshooting test issues.
• It supports both BDD and TDD testing methods.
• Documentation is extensive, and there is a thriving community.
  

What Distinguishes Cypress From Selenium?

Since Selenium is one of the popular open-source test automation frameworks, Cypress is frequently compared. However, the architecture and operation of both programs are fundamentally different.

Cypress runs in the same loop as the browser application. In contrast, Selenium tests run outside the browser and drive the browser using the JWP protocol. As a result, it has native access to all the application's objects.

Cypress vs Selenium

	Cypress	Selenium
Languages	Only JavaScript	Supports Java, Ruby, Python, Php, C#, etc.
Frameworks	Support only Mocha JS	Based on specific programming languages supports multiple frameworks. (E.g., Cucumber for JavaScript, JUnit for Java, etc.)
Browsers	Chrome, Firefox(beta), Edge, Electron	Chrome, Safari, IE, Firefox, Edge, Opera
Setup	The setup is simple. No additional downloads or dependencies are required.	The setup is a little complicated because it requires installing browser-specific drivers and configuring the test environment.
Documentation	The documentation is quite user-friendly, and the community is rapidly developing.	Well-established documentation, as well as strong community support from users worldwide

Although Selenium and Cypress are designed to simplify browser testing, their structure and performance are radically different. This is why Cypress is one of the fastest-growing automation platforms globally.

On the other hand, Selenium is a more all-purpose tool intended for a broader audience. It's not only a suitable Selenium replacement, but it's also a great way to teach engineers about test automation.

[ Related Article: Cypress vs Jest ]

How to Install Cypress for Automation

Since Cypress is provided as an NPM package, you have to install it from the repository and configure it to use Cypress.

• Step 1: Select the desired folder. Create New Folder (cypressdemo).
• Step 2: Open the terminal or command prompt inside the cypressdemo folder.
• Step 3: Enter the command:  npm install Cypress –save-dev.
• Step 4: Enter the command, once the installation is complete: npx cypress open.

The npx cypress open command sets up Cypress for the first time and opens the Cypress test runners, which allows us to view and engage with example tests.

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What are the Tools that Cypress Uses?

Cypress primarily uses three major libraries: Mocha for BDD testing, Sinon for mocking and stubbing, and Chai for assertions.

As a result, it relies on these well-known open-source testing libraries to provide a stable and familiar experience while working with Cypress. You're likely already trained with these libraries if you've ever dabbled in JS testing.

Other than these, Cypress uses jQuery, Sinon-chai, chai-jquery, and a few more that may be found in the Cypress documentation.

[ Check out Top Cypress Alternatives ]

Features of Cypress

• Time Travel: When the tests are running, it can take snapshots of the application. We can then hover over each command in the Test Runner window as test developers to observe what happened at each stage.
• Automatic Waiting: There's no need to add explicit waits or sleeps to your tests using Cypress. Before proceeding, it automatically waits for orders and assertions.
• Debuggability: It allows you to debug your tests using familiar tools like Developer Tools. Debugging is a breeze, thanks to the legible errors and stack traces.
• Network Traffic Control: You may stub network traffic and tailor the response of your API calls with Cypress.
• Stubs, Spies, and Clocks: Using the spies and stubs supplied by Cypress, you may verify and control the behaviour of functions, server responses, and timers at run time, similar to unit test scenarios.
• Consistent Results: Since Cypress doesn't use Selenium or WebDriver and instead runs tests directly in the browser, it facilitates quick, constant, and flake-free testing.
• Screenshots and Videos: When running from the command line, it automatically takes screenshots when a test fails or records videos of the entire test suite.

Benefits of Cypress Testing

There are many advantages of using Cypress in conjunction with other web testing frameworks. Here are a few of the most significant benefits.

1. Cypress is More Adaptable

Cypress is more universal than other automation frameworks because it is written in JavaScript and is based on Mocha and Chai. When operating in browsers, it also makes use of Node.js.

Since JavaScript is the primary language used by web developers, Cypress is highly crucial. Cypress tests are written in a language that developers are already familiar with, making the tool even more user-friendly.

2. Cypress has Debugging Option

With Cypress, you can quickly and easily debug your web projects. When tests fail, you'll be advised on addressing the problem. From there, you may use Chrome DevTools to debug directly. It also includes features like Time Travel and real-time reloading, allowing developers to see their website code during and after a test run.

3. Cypress is Easy to Set Up

Cypress automation for web testing is simple to get started with. If you've worked with Selenium previously, you'll know that you must first pick all of the dependencies and libraries you'll require before you begin testing. These dependencies and libraries are already installed with Cypress, so there's no need to configure them.

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4. Cypress Delivers Quick Test Execution

Cypress is known for its lightning-quick test execution, with response times of under 20 milliseconds. The framework automatically waits for things like DOM loading, elements, animation, etc. Automatic waiting is incorporated into the Cypress framework, so you don't have to create implicit or explicit waits.

5. Cypress Holds an Active Community

Cypress is an open-source framework that is free to use. It works on a flexible approach to choosing between the free and premium versions. Advanced capabilities include a dashboard containing artefacts, such as DOM snapshots, which help debug and video storage in the commercial edition.

Conclusion

Before deciding on an automation tool, one must assess the advantages and disadvantages of each alternative. Spend some time on a cloud-based platform that integrates with Cypress and Selenium to automate a few test cases. This will aid in determining which tool best serves the team and organisation in the long run.