Dynamic Element Handling in Test Automation with Cypress

Introduction:

Automation testing plays a crucial role in ensuring the accuracy, security, and reliability of all applications. However, targeting dynamic elements within these applications, such as changing IDs, can pose challenges for automation engineers.

In this article, we will explore practical techniques to effectively target dynamic elements in Cypress, using a banking application as an example.

By implementing these strategies, you can build robust and adaptable test suites, enhancing the quality and efficiency of your test automation efforts.

Example Scenario:

Imagine a banking application where transaction history is displayed in a dynamic table format. Each transaction row has dynamically generated IDs, making it challenging to target specific transactions for automation testing.

Our goal is to reliably select and interact with a particular transaction row, regardless of the changing IDs.

Solution:

To address the challenges of targeting dynamic elements in any application, we can employ the following techniques in Cypress:

Partial Matches:

Partial matching is a powerful technique when the transaction rows have IDs with a consistent pattern.

Example 1: Matching IDs with a Specific Prefix

If the transaction row IDs have a common prefix, we can use the ^= selector to target them. For instance:

This code selects an element whose ID attribute starts with "transaction-". It allows us to interact with the desired dynamic transaction row, regardless of changes in IDs as long as they share the specified prefix.

Example 2: Matching IDs with a Specific Suffix

If the transaction row IDs have a common suffix, we can use the $= selector to target them. For example:

This code selects an element whose ID attribute ends with "-transaction". It enables us to interact with the desired dynamic transaction row, regardless of changes in IDs as long as they share the specified suffix.

Example 3: Matching IDs with a Specific Substring

If the transaction row IDs contain a common substring, we can use the *= selector to target them. For instance:

This code selects an element whose ID attribute contains the substring "transaction". It allows us to interact with the desired dynamic transaction row, regardless of changes in IDs as long as they include the specified substring.

Example 4: Combining Multiple Attributes for Targeting

In some cases, transaction rows may have multiple attributes that remain consistent. We can combine partial matches with other attribute selectors to narrow down the targeting. For example:

In this code, we use the ^= selector to match the ID prefix "transaction-" and the [data-transaction-type="deposit"] attribute selector to target transaction rows with the specific type "deposit". This approach enables us to accurately identify and interact with the desired dynamic transaction row.

Example 5: Cypress's contains() command

By utilizing Cypress's contains() command with attribute selectors, we can target elements whose IDs begin with a known pattern.For example:

This code searches for an element whose ID starts with "transaction-" and contains the text "Transaction ID 1234". It allows us to interact with the desired dynamic transaction row, regardless of changes in IDs.

DOM Traversal:

DOM traversal is a technique that relies on the structure and relationships between elements to target dynamic elements. In the banking application scenario, consider the following examples of DOM traversal:

Example 1: Selecting the Next Sibling

Assuming the dynamic transaction row is a sibling of a known element, such as a button or an anchor tag, we can use DOM traversal to target it. For example:

This code first selects the known element with the class "known-element" and then traverses to the next sibling element with an ID starting with "transaction-". This way, we can accurately target the desired dynamic transaction row.

Example 2: Selecting a Parent and Its Child

If the dynamic transaction row is a child of a known element, such as a table, we can leverage DOM traversal to target it. For example:

In this case, the code first selects the known element with the class "table-class" and then searches within it for a child element with an ID starting with "transaction-". This allows us to target the specific dynamic transaction row within the table structure.

Example 3: Selecting Based on Index

If the dynamic transaction rows have a consistent index or position within a container, we can use DOM traversal to target them. For example:

In this example, we first select all elements with the class "transaction-row" and then specify the desired index (e.g., 2) to target a specific dynamic transaction row based on its position within the container.

Attribute-Based Selectors:

We can target dynamic elements using other attributes that remain consistent. For instance, if the task elements have a unique data attribute like data-task-id, we can use it to select the element. Here's an example:

By using the custom data attribute, we can accurately identify and interact with the desired dynamic element, regardless of changes in IDs.

Conclusion:

Targeting dynamic elements effectively is a critical aspect of successful automation testing. By implementing techniques such as partial matches, DOM traversal, and attribute-based selectors, you can overcome the challenges posed by changing IDs or attributes.

Through practical examples within the context of a banking application, we have demonstrated how these strategies can be applied in Cypress to create robust, adaptable, and reliable test suites.

By mastering dynamic element targeting in Cypress, you can elevate the accuracy, stability, and efficiency of your test automation efforts in any sector.