Selenium is a powerful tool for automating web browsers, and WebDriver is an interface that provides a set of methods to interact with a web browser. The basic functions of WebDriver are essential for controlling a web browser and performing automated tests. In this article, Novatesting will provide an overview of the basic functions of WebDriver and how to use them.
- Basic functions of WebDriver
WebDriver provides several functions that allow you to interact with a web browser. These functions are:
- Explanation and use
In the following sections, we will go into more detail about each of the basic functions of WebDriver and provide examples of how to use them.
2.1. The function findElement()
The findElement() function is used to locate a single WebElement based on a specified search criteria. For example, you can use findElement() to locate an element with a specific ID, class name, or tag name.
How to use:
WebElement element = driver.findElement(By.id(“element_id”));
Example:
import org.openqa.selenium.By;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebElement;
import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;
public class FindElementExample {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.setProperty(“webdriver.chrome.driver”, “/path/to/chromedriver”);
WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();
driver.get(“https://www.example.com”);
WebElement searchBox = driver.findElement(By.name(“q”));
searchBox.sendKeys(“Selenium WebDriver”);
searchBox.submit();
driver.quit();
}
}
2.2. Initialize
Before you can use the functions of WebDriver, you must first initialize the WebDriver instance. You can do this by creating an instance of a WebDriver implementation for the browser you want to use (e.g. ChromeDriver, FirefoxDriver, etc.).
How to use:
System.setProperty(“webdriver.chrome.driver”, “/path/to/chromedriver”);
WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();
Example:
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;
public class InitializeExample {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.setProperty(“webdriver.chrome.driver”, “/path/to/chromedriver”);
WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();
driver.get(“https://www.example.com”);
driver.quit();
}
}
2.3. Basic Browser Operations
With WebDriver, you can perform basic operations on a web browser such as navigating to a URL, refreshing the page, and maximizing the window.
How to use:
driver.get(“https://www.example.com“); driver.navigate().refresh(); driver.manage().window().maximize();
Example:
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver; import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;
public class BasicBrowserOperationsExample { public static void main(String[] args) { System.setProperty(“webdriver.chrome.driver”, “/path/to/chromedriver”); WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver(); driver.get(“https://www.example.com“); driver.navigate().refresh(); driver.manage().window().maximize(); driver.quit(); } }
2.4. Advanced Browser Operations
WebDriver also provides advanced operations such as switching between windows and frames, and manipulating cookies.
How to use:
driver.switchTo().window(“windowName”);
driver.switchTo().frame(“frameName”);
driver.manage().addCookie(new Cookie(“name”, “value”));
Example:
import org.openqa.selenium.Cookie; import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver; import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;
public class AdvancedBrowserOperationsExample { public static void main(String[] args) { System.setProperty(“webdriver.chrome.driver”, “/path/to/chromedriver”); WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver(); driver.get(“https://www.example.com“); driver.switchTo().window(“windowName”); driver.switchTo().frame(“frameName”); driver.manage().addCookie(new Cookie(“name”, “value”)); driver.quit(); } }
2.5. Options of interface Options
The interface Options provides a set of options for configuring the behavior of the WebDriver instance. For example, you can use the interface Options to set the size of the browser window or to set the position of the window.
How to use:
driver.manage().window().setSize(new Dimension(1024, 768));
driver.manage().window().setPosition(new Point(0, 0));
Example:
import java.awt.Dimension; import java.awt.Point; import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver; import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;
public class OptionsExample { public static void main(String[] args) { System.setProperty(“webdriver.chrome.driver”, “/path/to/chromedriver”); WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver(); driver.get(“https://www.example.com“); driver.manage().window().setSize(new Dimension(1024, 768)); driver.manage().window().setPosition(new Point(0, 0)); driver.quit(); } }
2.6. TargetLocator interface options
The TargetLocator interface provides a way to interact with elements on the page that are not part of the main DOM (Document Object Model). This can include elements in frames, windows, and alerts.
How to use:
driver.switchTo().frame(“frameName”);
driver.switchTo().window(“windowName”);
driver.switchTo().alert();
Example:
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;
public class TargetLocatorExample {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.setProperty(“webdriver.chrome.driver”, “/path/to/chromedriver”);
WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();
driver.get(“https://www.example.com”);
driver.switchTo().frame(“frameName”);
driver.switchTo().window(“windowName”);
driver.switchTo().alert();
driver.quit();
}
}
2.7. Wait Configurations
Waiting is an important aspect of automating web applications, as pages can take time to load and elements may not be immediately available for interaction. WebDriver provides several ways to wait, including implicitly waiting and explicitly waiting with WebDriverWait.
How to use:
driver.manage().timeouts().implicitlyWait(10, TimeUnit.SECONDS);
WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);
wait.until(ExpectedConditions.visibilityOfElementLocated(By.id(“element-id”)));
Example:
import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
import org.openqa.selenium.By;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.support.ui.ExpectedConditions;
import org.openqa.selenium.support.ui.WebDriverWait;
public class WaitConfigurationsExample {
public static void main(String[] args) {
System.setProperty(“webdriver.chrome.driver”, “/path/to/chromedriver”);
WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();
driver.manage().timeouts().implicitlyWait(10, TimeUnit.SECONDS);
driver.get(“https://www.example.com”);
WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);
wait.until(ExpectedConditions.visibilityOfElementLocated(By.id("element-id")));
driver.quit();}
}
Novatesting has provided you in details the basic functions of Webdriver. We hope that it will help you in your tasks with Selenium Java.