Written By :Appsierra

Sat Dec 16 2023

5 min read

How To Test Mobile Apps Using Selenium?

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 Mobile Apps Using Selenium

All automation advancement and testing engineers are very much aware of ‘Selenium’ which is the true testing system for web applications. With the changing mobile scene, Appium is the most utilized system to test mobile app. However, is it conceivable to utilize Selenium for mobile app testing? The explicit reply answer isn’t ‘Not really’ yet there is a long and distinctive way to deal with this answer. 

Appium is the most famous structure to test mobile app which can be utilized to test all local, mixture, and mobile web applications for iOS and Android. It is utilized for mobile app testing that includes testing on genuine gadgets and genuine programs. The truth of the matter is that Appium has got its foundations from Selenium and it utilizes JSONWireProtocol to communicate with iOS and Android applications utilizing Selenium’s web driver. 

Appium/Selenium Architecture 

In an ordinary architecture, Appium is an HTTP server written in Node.js that produces and handles various WebDriver meetings. Appium begins tests on the gadget and gets orders from the principal Appium worker. The worker is for the most part equivalent to the Selenium worker that gets HTTP demands from Selenium customer libraries. In case you’re a test automation engineer, you have unquestionably known about Selenium. However, with the occasions changing and all you’re presumably inquiring as to whether you can utilize your Selenium abilities to test mobile app. Indeed, we have some incredible news for you, simply continue perusing! 

Selenium for Mobile Testing

There is such a lot of programming now available from your programs, and a large portion of these sites have a coordinating application. If you are utilizing Selenium for mobile app testing, you are trying web applications, so there is a decent possibility that your organization has at any rate one mobile application. So “Can Selenium be utilized for mobile app testing? ” The short answer would be “Not actually”, however, don’t surrender at this time, there is a more extended response to that question. The long answer would be: “You can’t utilize Selenium for mobile app testing, yet there are structures dependent on Selenium particularly made for mobile automated testing. You can, in any case, utilize Selenium for mobile site testing.”

These systems are: 

Selendroid

Appium

  1. What is selendroid? 

Selendroid, as the name recommends, is a Selenium-based test automation system made particularly for Android which drives off the UI of local and crossover applications. Selendroid can be utilized on emulators and genuine gadgets and can be incorporated into the Selenium Grid for scaling and parallel testing. 

  • What makes Appium exceptional?

Appium, then again, is a cross-stage cross-innovation mobile UI testing system dependent on Selenium for local, half breed, and mobile web applications. This implies that you can run tests on both Android and iOS while composing only one test script. Each test automation engineer that realizes how to compose tests with Selenium can compose tests with Appium. The best thing about Selenium/Selendroid and Appium? You can compose the test scripts in any WebDriver-viable language like Java, Objective-C, JavaScript with Node.js, PHP, Python, Ruby, C#, Clojure, or Perl. 

Also Read: 6 Trends in Mobile App Testing Services

Android and iOS Mobile App Automation Testing Using Selenium

Appium has fundamentally two distinct approaches to utilize for getting your application, game, or some web piece tried. For instance, numerous famous Android mobile applications/games get tried with Appium Client-Side tests. This is the first thought of how test automation should function – and likely somewhat even crude, as you can only with significant effort handle equal trials or not at any rate start those. This additionally requires a few arrangements occasionally as you need to set up Selenium wanted capacities. Better choice – and one to assist you with disposing of those ideal abilities – is to utilize Appium Server-Side tests. 

 Test Mobile Apps
Android and iOS Mobile App Automation

Difference between these Approaches

Working with Selenium – and Selenium testing – is simple and you will learn it rapidly. In the first place, something different: investigate Selenium IDE, which is a Firefox module, and record and plays back client communications with the program. Utilize this to either make straightforward scripts or aid exploratory testing. It sends out those contents for WebDriver. You can do it physically by signing in, selecting a project, and transferring the document – or you can utilize the API to get your application record (APK or IPA) remembered for the undertaking where test execution will have its spot. 

Likewise, the test bundle (as a compress record including all test resources, script, and so on) can be transferred a similar path as you would do with other test automation structures. Like the application record, you can push the test compress bundle through Bitbar API (as a test document) or utilize the manual web front-end. 

Likewise, worth referencing, however, the wide range of various features work consistently with the server-side Appium and you can – for instance – arrange and make new Android or iOS gadget gatherings and run those tests inside these gadget bunches with no adjustments to wanted capacities. This itself can save you hours from setup time – and get your tests running prior as you don’t have to play with those ideal covers. To get your tests running, you can choose a local Android project or all the more explicitly Selenium Android and additionally Selenium iOS for project types you ought to be seen under project arrangement. 

Conclusion

One of the main improvements that gave this server-side Appium execution is the capacity to execute Appium tests equal to genuine gadgets. As Appium was initially intended to give a tight connection to the emulator or each gadget in turn, we’ve presently stretched out the likelihood to utilize it across even many genuine gadgets at the same time. 

Besides, as Appium gives a cross-stage way to deal with Android automation testing and iOS mobile app automation testing using selenium, you can run tests on the two stages, simultaneously (extraordinary gadget gatherings, however).  Furthermore, clients don’t have to arrange any of those gadgets on wanted capacities, however, all should be possible with Device Group creation and design by moving wanted gadgets into your gadget gatherings. This kills an assortment of mistakes that regularly accompany designing gadgets in the content.

Also Read: Stages of Mobile App Testing

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