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Mobile Testing Tutorial

Learn how to automate native and hybrid mobile applications using TAFLEX PY and Appium.

1. Environment Setup​

Mobile testing requires the mobile strategy. Ensure you have Appium and the necessary drivers (like uiautomator2) installed.

Installing Appium (Local)​

If you are running tests against a physical device or local emulator:

# Install Appium Server
npm install -g appium

# Install Android Driver
appium driver install uiautomator2

Starting the Server​

appium --log-level info

2. Writing a Mobile Test​

Set the EXECUTION_MODE=mobile in your .env or use the mobile_driver fixture. TAFLEX PY provides a unified element wrapper (MobileElement) that works identically to the web elements.

Step 1: Create Locators​

Create a JSON file in src/resources/locators/mobile/settings.json:

{
  "system_settings_title": "//*[@text='Settings' or @text='Config' or @text='Configurações']",
  "search_box": "//*[contains(@resource-id, 'search') or contains(@content-desc, 'Search')]",
  "search_input": "//*[contains(@class, 'EditText')]"
}

Step 2: Create the Test Spec​

Create a file tests/mobile/test_android_settings.py:

import pytest
import allure
from src.core.utils.logger import logger

@allure.feature('Mobile App')
@allure.story('Android System Settings')
@pytest.mark.mobile
def test_android_settings_interaction(mobile_driver):
    driver = mobile_driver
    
    # 1. Load the mobile locators
    driver.load_locators('settings')
    
    # 2. Interact with the UI using the unified API
    title_element = driver.find_element('system_settings_title')
    title_element.wait_for(timeout=10)
    assert title_element.is_visible() is True

    # 3. Take a screenshot
    driver.capture_screenshot('settings_home_page')
    
    # 4. Perform complex interactions
    search_box = driver.find_element('search_box')
    search_box.wait_for()
    search_box.click()
    
    search_input = driver.find_element('search_input')
    search_input.wait_for()
    search_input.fill('Battery')
    
    driver.capture_screenshot('settings_search_page')

3. Best Practices​

  • Lazy Elements: Elements in TAFLEX PY are Lazy. They aren't searched for until you perform an action (click, fill, etc.), which makes them much more resilient to slow mobile transitions.
  • Wait Strategies: Always use element.wait_for() before critical actions on mobile devices.
  • Locator Fallbacks: Use broad XPaths in your locator files to ensure compatibility across different Android device manufacturers (Samsung, Pixel, etc.).

4. Execution on Real Devices (Cloud)​

While local execution is great for development, TAFLEX PY allows you to run these tests on real devices via BrowserStack and SauceLabs.

Configure your .env with your cloud credentials:

EXECUTION_MODE=mobile
CLOUD_PLATFORM=browserstack
CLOUD_USER=your_user
CLOUD_KEY=your_key
OS=Android
OS_VERSION=13.0

Refer to the Cloud Execution Tutorial for more details.