Elegant Automation Frameworks with Python and Pytest

1. Introduction

This lecture introduces the course.

1. Setup Python 3 (Windows)

Let's set up Python 3 on your Windows machine, and ensure we're working with the same tools, so you don't run into unnecessary hardship.

2. Setting up Your Virtual Environment (Windows)

In order to avoid problems, it's best when we are working with the same tools.

3. Setting up Python 3 and the Virtual Environment (Mac OS / Linux)

For those of you working on Mac OS or linux, we go over setting up Python 3 and your virtual environment.

1. Getting started with Pytest

In this session we will set up a simple framework around some dummy tests and explain the pytest.ini file.

2. Test Searching

In this session we will discuss why test searching is so amazing, and why you should never run a test case file ever again.

3. Save Time and Code with Test Fixtures

Fixtures are one of the most powerful tools Pytest offers.

4. Reporting Test Results and Tracking Test History

In this video, the author demonstrates a quick reporting recipe using the open source Continuous Integration tool "Jenkins", since many students may work on teams that use Jenkins. The concept is transferable to many other tools that read XML test reports.

5. Customizing Test Runs with the Command Line and Configuration Files

We will learn how to pass data into your test run using the command line and write a self-building configuration file that allows testing in different environments without changing any code.

6. Handling Skips and Expected Failures

How do we skip tests without forgetting we ever wrote them? How do we handle tests that are expected to fail? We cover both solutions in today's lecture

7. Cross-Browser and Data-driven testing with parametrize

In this lecture we learn a recipe for testing multiple browsers without writing additional tests, and how to perform Data-driven testing using the contents of a JSON file.

8. Fast Testing with Pytest-xdist, and Parallel vs Concurrent

Learn the difference between parallelism and concurrency, and how we can leverage parallel testing to slash run-times on our test suites.

1. Writing Unit Tests (White Box Testing)

We will learn how to write valuable, well-scoped unit tests to expose bugs before we push our changes to the repository.

2. Running Unit Tests with Tox

To set up our unit tests for primetime, it's important to separate our testing harness and cases from the library we are testing. We will use a tool called Tox to make this process fast, fluid, and repeatable.

3. Writing Functional Tests (Black/Grey Box Testing)

When testing something from the "outside", it's important that we structure our tests and framework so that our intent is clear, and so that the tests are maintainable by other people.