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Testing in the Cloud

This tutorial will guide you through the process of executing your existing Taflex JS tests on BrowserStack or SauceLabs.

Prerequisites​

  1. A BrowserStack or SauceLabs account.
  2. Your Username and Access Key from the provider's dashboard.
  3. An existing Taflex JS project (follow the Quick Start if you haven't yet).

Step 1: Configure Environment Variables​

The framework is designed to switch to cloud execution purely through configuration. Open your .env file and set the following:

For BrowserStack​

CLOUD_PLATFORM=browserstack
CLOUD_USER=your_browserstack_username
CLOUD_KEY=your_browserstack_access_key

# Target Environment
OS=Windows
OS_VERSION=11
BROWSER=chromium
BROWSER_VERSION=latest

For SauceLabs​

CLOUD_PLATFORM=saucelabs
CLOUD_USER=your_sauce_username
CLOUD_KEY=your_sauce_access_key

# Target Environment
OS=Windows 10
BROWSER=firefox
BROWSER_VERSION=latest

Step 2: Execute Web Tests​

Once the .env is configured, you don't need to change any code. Simply run your standard test command:

npm run test:web

The framework will:

  1. Detect CLOUD_PLATFORM is not local.
  2. Build the required capabilities for the selected provider.
  3. Establish a remote WebSocket connection to the cloud grid.
  4. Execute the tests and stream results back to your terminal.

Step 3: Execute Mobile Tests​

To run mobile tests on real devices in the cloud:

  1. Update your .env: 
    EXECUTION_MODE=mobile
    CLOUD_PLATFORM=browserstack
    OS=Android
    OS_VERSION=Google Pixel 7
  2. Run the BDD or mobile specs: 
    npm run test:bdd

Step 4: Verify in the Cloud Dashboard​

After the execution starts, you can visit your provider's dashboard:

  1. BrowserStack: Go to the Automate Dashboard.
  2. SauceLabs: Go to the Automated Test Results.

You will see a new session named "Playwright Web Test" (for web) or "WebdriverIO Mobile Test" (for mobile) under the "Taflex Framework" project.

💡 Pro Tip: CLI Overrides​

You can override your .env settings directly from the terminal to run a quick test on a different OS without changing files:

# Run on macOS Ventura using BrowserStack
OS="OS X" OS_VERSION="Ventura" CLOUD_PLATFORM="browserstack" npm run test:web

Troubleshooting​

  • Invalid Credentials: Ensure CLOUD_USER and CLOUD_KEY are correct. BrowserStack calls it an "Access Key," while SauceLabs calls it an "Access Key" as well.
  • Unsupported Platform: Ensure the OS and OS_VERSION strings match what the provider expects (refer to their capability builders).
  • Network Issues: Cloud execution requires a stable internet connection to stream browser commands.