How can you handle dynamic elements in Selenium WebDriver?

Handling dynamic web elements are usually based on AJAX. We can use following ways to manage it: 1) Using Waits such as Explicit and Fluent, sometimes Implicit too. 2) Creating Dynamic Locators such as relative xpath using axes, css selectors and even with Selenium 4.x we have locators strategies like leftOf, rightOf etc. those are useful. 3) Using FindElements with Try/Catch to handle dynamic behaviour.

Commonly during automation, we face the challenge where the attribute such as 'id' , 'class' or 'name' might dynamically change.We need to make locators using XPath and CSS selector with partial matching to match part of the attribute that remain constant. For example: driver.findElement(By.cssSelector("input[id='partialID']")). driver.findElement(By.xpath("https://input[contains(@id, 'partialId')]"));

Dynamic elements in the context of web development, software design, or user interfaces refer to components that change or behave differently depending on user interactions, changes in the environment, or other variables. These elements are not static; they can alter their appearance, content, or behavior in response to specific triggers or conditions. For example: Data-Driven Changes Elements that update automatically when underlying data changes. This could be a stock ticker that updates in real-time, or a dashboard that refreshes to display new data.

Dynamic elements? No big deal! ♀? Selenium's got waits, fluent locators, and frame-fu to conquer them all. #SeleniumMaster Don't let dynamism slow you down. XPath, CSS, waits, and refresh - your secret weapons for smooth testing! #AutomationHero Element not found? That's not in your vocabulary anymore. Selenium's got your back - dynamic or not! #TestConfidently

If an set of elements expanded with another action or doesn't have any static element identification (id, class name, etc.), it's a dynamic element. For example, based on the implementation, a table can have an id, but when adding new rows, they are created dynamically with long names or ids. Sometimes, tooltips with extra details will have complex structures. When dealing with web frameworks like Angular or with mobile automation, you might face more challenges with this. Capturing dynamic elements can be challenging, requiring a good knowledge of locator strategies.

Disagree up to some extent with this. Practically, waits are used when the DOM/elements are not present or available due to connection or network delays. Dynamic web elements handling don't have any direct connection with WebDriver waits.

Here's how you can use explicit waits to handle dynamic elements in Selenium WebDriver: 1. Import all the necessary classes. 2. setup the web drivers and use explicit waits WebDriverWait wait = newWebDriverWait(driver,10); // Example of waiting for an element to be clickable WebElement dynamicElement = wait.until(ExpectedConditions.elementToBeClickable(By.id("your_element_id"))); 3. Perform operations on dynamic elements. dynamicElement.click();

In test automation, use implicit waits for a global timeout, or explicit waits with WebDriverWait for specific conditions. Adjust wait times, combine implicit and explicit waits, and handle timeouts gracefully to synchronize with dynamic elements, ensuring stable and reliable scripts.

We use explicit waits, this wait for certain actions or conditions to happen. If locater can not find the element it throws “timeout” exception. If find earlier it doesn’t wait the whole time period and jump to the next step. WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 5); wait.until(ExpectedConditions.visibilityOf(element)); Find the static part of the element and write a locator (xpath or css) And then use starts-with, contains, ends-with, text() To Locate Dynamic WebElement with XPath //tag[starts-with(@attribute, ‘value’)] -> starts with //tag[ends-with(@attribute, ‘value’)] -> ends with //tag[contains(@attribute, ‘value’)] -> contains //tag[contains(text(), ‘text’)] -> contains //tag[text() = `usedId`] -> text

Dynamic elements are those whose presence, visibility, or state can change during the page load or as a result of user interactions.Waits provide a mechanism to synchronize your test execution with the web application's behavior, ensuring that elements are ready before attempting to interact with them. Implicit wait:Set a global timeout that applies to all subsequent findElement and findElements calls within the script's scope. Syntax: driver.manage().timeouts().implicitlyWait(timeoutInSeconds, TimeUnit.SECONDS); Explicit wait:Use WebDriverWait and ExpectedConditions to wait for specific conditions on a particular element or set of elements

For the dynamic portion of locator, replace with regular expressions in xpath and css syntaxes to identify the elements. If using regular expression in syntaxes returns multiple elements, then update a syntax by traversing from its parent to make it unique.

Xpaths and CSS Selectors are potential ways to locate dynamic elements. Xpath axes methods can be used to find the relative path of an element to be located with respect to a stable element. Regular expressions are another great way to find dynamic elements. CSS selectors could be of use when the element id updates but attributes of elements like class remain the same. However this could be risky as the DOM structure might update and locators might not be valid. Automation scripts might be brittle and prone to failures if the application updates.

When dealing with dynamic elements, it's often a good idea to use more flexible and robust locators. Here are some strategies using XPath and CSS selectors: Xpath: - Using Contains: By.xpath("https://div[contains(@class, 'partialClass')]") - Using Starts-With: By.xpath("https://*[starts-with(@id, 'partialId')]") - Using Dynamic Text: By.xpath("https://button[text()='Dynamic Text']") - Using Starts With: By.xpath("https://*[starts-with(@id, 'partialId')]") - Using Ends With: By.xpath("https://*[substring(@id, string-length(@id) - string-length('partialId') + 1) = 'partialId']") [Note: The ends-with function is not directly supported in XPath 1.0, but you can emulate it using the substring function.]

When dealing with dynamic elements in Selenium WebDriver, there are multiple strategies for locating them effectively. One approach is to utilize Xpath axes methods, which allow you to define the relative path of a dynamic element in relation to a stable reference point. This ensures that the element can be located consistently, even as the page content changes. Another useful technique is leveraging regular expressions. By incorporating regex patterns into your locators, you can dynamically match element attributes or text content that may vary across different instances. This flexibility enables you to locate dynamic elements reliably, regardless of specific attribute values or text variations.

To Locate Dynamic WebElement with XPath //tag[starts-with(@attribute, ‘value’)] -> starts with //tag[ends-with(@attribute, ‘value’)] -> ends with //tag[contains(@attribute, ‘value’)] -> contains //tag[contains(text(), ‘text’)] -> contains //tag[text() = `usedId`] -> text To Locate Dynamic WebElement with CSS tag[attribute^=‘some value’] -> starts with tag[attribute$=‘some value’] -> ends with tag[attribute*=‘some value’] -> contains

JavaScriptExecutor is an interface that provides us to execute JavaScript code thorough Selenium driver. ? It provides “executeScript and executeAsyncScript” methods to run JavaScript in the context of the currently selected frame or window. JavascriptExecuter js = (JavascriptExecuter) driver; js.executeScript(Script,Arguments); Actions class is used for advanced mouse and keyboard interactions such as; Hover over element Move to element Scroll up/down Double click Right click Drag and drop Keyboard combination Actions action= new Actions(driver); action.MoveToElement(-----).perform();

Both are most powerful way to handle dynamic web elements in selenium webdriver. Here is the examples: - JavascriptExecutor js = (JavascriptExecutor) driver; // Execute JavaScript code to click on a dynamic element js.executeScript("document.getElementById('dynamicElement').click();"); - Actions actions = new Actions(driver); WebElement dynamicElement = driver.findElement(By.id("dynamicElement")); // Move to the dynamic element and click actions.moveToElement(dynamicElement).click().perform();

JavaScriptExecutor: executeScript("document.getElementById('elementId').click();") triggers a click using JavaScript. Actions Class: new Actions(driver).moveToElement(element).perform(); hovers the mouse over a specific element.

Using JavaScriptExecutor: JavaScriptExecutor allows executing JavaScript code from Selenium, which can be handy for handling dynamic elements. Example: JavascriptExecutor js = (JavascriptExecutor) driver; WebElement element = (WebElement) js.executeScript("return document.getElementById('dynamicElement');"); Using Actions Class: The Actions class is useful for performing complex user interactions, such as handling dynamic elements in dropdowns or hover scenarios. Actions actions = new Actions(driver); WebElement dynamicElement = driver.findElement(By.id("dynamicElement")); actions.moveToElement(dynamicElement).click().perform();

The JavaScriptExecutor interface allows executing JavaScript code within the context of the currently selected frame or window. It can help interact with and manipulate elements that might be difficult to handle using standard Selenium commands. The major use case is to Scroll the page to bring a specific element into view. It can be used to toggle the visibility of certain elements and add certain attributes on the fly. Generally try Action class before resorting to use Javascript Executor

Use "XPath axes" to simplify your life with dynamic elements handling. For example, consider the following element: Input element with a class name "somename{any_ten_digit_random_number}" Relative XPath: "xpath //div[@class='inputbox']/../div/div/../div/input[@type='favourites']" Dynamic XPath: "xpath div[@class='inputbox']//parent::input[@type='favourites']" In this example, dynamic XPath makes more sense and won't break due to changes in the element structure.

Apart from finding the correct xpath or css and adding wait time, I think there are few things to consider are - Make sure the element is not in iframe - Make sure the element is in webview if not then travel to the nearest element - Some times these dynamic elements appear on screen once you click some elements or hover some other elements so make sure to follow all pre requisites steps - Check xpath is not a hard coded e.g Position=1 etc as it's really hard to maintain these scripts

Use xpaths like " .//*[starts-with(text(),''name_of_the_label)]/following::div[1] Instead of div[@id='something'] Because you can't rely on ids classes etc for a dynamic web element.

Things that helped me with dynamic elements-- - Found the pattern in attribute change, most of the time you can find a pattern i.e innerText or id is changing based on some action or selection made by user. - Keep your xpath/css selector dynamic, so you can provide input to dynamic xpath and it can be prepared on runtime.

Here are some things I'd like to add: Beyond Technical Solutions: Test mindset: Remember, the best tools are useless without a good testing mindset. Be curious, explore edge cases, and think like a user who might encounter unexpected scenarios. Collaboration: Testing isn't a solo act. Communicate with all stakeholders to understand requirements and share findings effectively. Automation balance: While automation is powerful, don't rely solely on it. Manual testing remains crucial for catching subtle issues and user experience nuances. Future Trends: AI-powered testing: Artificial intelligence is increasingly used to automate test case generation, defect detection, and even self-healing tests.