Fabio Andres Bombiela Ramirez

Fabio Andres Bombiela Ramirez

AI & Software Test Automation Engineer | Performance Testing | ISTQB Certified | M.Sc. Student

Getting Started with .NET Test Automation

3 minute read

Published:

Introduction

Test automation is essential for modern software development, enabling faster releases and higher quality. In this guide, I’ll walk you through building a robust test automation framework using .NET, Selenium WebDriver, and SpecFlow.

Why .NET for Test Automation?

.NET offers several advantages for test automation:

  • Strong typing reduces runtime errors
  • Excellent IDE support with Visual Studio and Rider
  • Rich ecosystem of testing libraries
  • Cross-platform with .NET Core
  • Great CI/CD integration with Azure DevOps and GitHub Actions

Setting Up Your Project

Prerequisites

  • .NET 6.0 or higher
  • Visual Studio 2022 or JetBrains Rider
  • Chrome or Edge browser

Create the Project

dotnet new nunit -n MyTestFramework
cd MyTestFramework
dotnet add package Selenium.WebDriver
dotnet add package Selenium.WebDriver.ChromeDriver
dotnet add package SpecFlow
dotnet add package SpecFlow.NUnit

Building the Framework

1. Page Object Model

The Page Object Model (POM) is a design pattern that creates an object repository for web elements.

public class LoginPage
{
    private readonly IWebDriver _driver;
    
    // Locators
    private By UsernameInput => By.Id("username");
    private By PasswordInput => By.Id("password");
    private By LoginButton => By.CssSelector("button[type='submit']");
    
    public LoginPage(IWebDriver driver)
    {
        _driver = driver;
    }
    
    public void Login(string username, string password)
    {
        _driver.FindElement(UsernameInput).SendKeys(username);
        _driver.FindElement(PasswordInput).SendKeys(password);
        _driver.FindElement(LoginButton).Click();
    }
}

2. WebDriver Factory

Create a factory to manage WebDriver instances:

public class WebDriverFactory
{
    public static IWebDriver CreateDriver(string browserType)
    {
        return browserType.ToLower() switch
        {
            "chrome" => new ChromeDriver(),
            "firefox" => new FirefoxDriver(),
            "edge" => new EdgeDriver(),
            _ => throw new ArgumentException($"Browser {browserType} not supported")
        };
    }
}

3. Base Test Class

[TestFixture]
public class BaseTest
{
    protected IWebDriver Driver;
    
    [SetUp]
    public void Setup()
    {
        Driver = WebDriverFactory.CreateDriver("chrome");
        Driver.Manage().Timeouts().ImplicitWait = TimeSpan.FromSeconds(10);
        Driver.Manage().Window.Maximize();
    }
    
    [TearDown]
    public void TearDown()
    {
        Driver?.Quit();
    }
}

4. Writing Your First Test

[TestFixture]
public class LoginTests : BaseTest
{
    [Test]
    public void SuccessfulLogin_ShouldNavigateToDashboard()
    {
        // Arrange
        var loginPage = new LoginPage(Driver);
        Driver.Navigate().GoToUrl("https://example.com/login");
        
        // Act
        loginPage.Login("testuser", "password123");
        
        // Assert
        Assert.That(Driver.Url, Does.Contain("/dashboard"));
    }
}

Adding BDD with SpecFlow

Feature File

Feature: User Login
  As a user
  I want to log into the application
  So that I can access my dashboard

Scenario: Successful login with valid credentials
  Given I am on the login page
  When I enter username "testuser" and password "password123"
  And I click the login button
  Then I should be redirected to the dashboard

Step Definitions

[Binding]
public class LoginSteps
{
    private readonly IWebDriver _driver;
    private readonly LoginPage _loginPage;
    
    public LoginSteps(IWebDriver driver)
    {
        _driver = driver;
        _loginPage = new LoginPage(_driver);
    }
    
    [Given(@"I am on the login page")]
    public void GivenIAmOnTheLoginPage()
    {
        _driver.Navigate().GoToUrl("https://example.com/login");
    }
    
    [When(@"I enter username ""(.*)"" and password ""(.*)""")]
    public void WhenIEnterCredentials(string username, string password)
    {
        _loginPage.Login(username, password);
    }
    
    [Then(@"I should be redirected to the dashboard")]
    public void ThenIShouldBeRedirectedToDashboard()
    {
        Assert.That(_driver.Url, Does.Contain("/dashboard"));
    }
}

Best Practices

1. Use Explicit Waits

var wait = new WebDriverWait(_driver, TimeSpan.FromSeconds(10));
var element = wait.Until(d => d.FindElement(By.Id("dynamic-element")));

2. Implement Retry Logic

public T RetryOnException<T>(Func<T> action, int maxRetries = 3)
{
    for (int i = 0; i < maxRetries; i++)
    {
        try
        {
            return action();
        }
        catch (Exception) when (i < maxRetries - 1)
        {
            Thread.Sleep(1000);
        }
    }
    throw new Exception("Max retries exceeded");
}

3. Take Screenshots on Failure

[TearDown]
public void TearDown()
{
    if (TestContext.CurrentContext.Result.Outcome.Status == TestStatus.Failed)
    {
        var screenshot = ((ITakesScreenshot)Driver).GetScreenshot();
        screenshot.SaveAsFile($"screenshot_{TestContext.CurrentContext.Test.Name}.png");
    }
    Driver?.Quit();
}

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions Example

name: Test Automation

on: [push, pull_request]

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v2
      - name: Setup .NET
        uses: actions/setup-dotnet@v1
        with:
          dotnet-version: '6.0.x'
      - name: Run Tests
        run: dotnet test --logger "console;verbosity=detailed"

Conclusion

You now have a solid foundation for .NET test automation! Key takeaways:

  • Use Page Object Model for maintainability
  • Implement proper wait strategies
  • Add BDD with SpecFlow for better collaboration
  • Integrate with CI/CD from day one

In future posts, I’ll cover advanced topics like parallel execution, reporting, and performance optimization.

Resources

Happy testing! 🚀

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