Safari Browser plays a significant role in ensuring a seamless and user-friendly web experience for its users across different Apple devices. As the popularity of Apple devices is growing exponentially it becomes crucial for developers to perform testing on Safari Browser online to guarantee compatibility and performance across various Apple devices.
Considering the widely changing dynamic field of web development, cross-browser compatibility is essential in providing a consistent and reliable user experience. Since the Safari browser occupies a significant population share within the Apple ecosystem, especially on mobile devices and its unique rendering engine, testing web applications on Safari becomes more important.
There are several testing techniques available, of which manual testing is the traditional technique however it can be time-consuming. On the other hand, automation testing is one of the most used testing techniques as it is more accurate and time-saving, and offers a more efficient and reliable way to test web applications across various environments, including Safari.
What is Automation Testing?
Automation testing involves using software tools and scripts for testing software under development. This is aimed at creating scripts or test cases more efficiently that will enable automatic execution of tests, therefore increasing efficiency, effectiveness, and coverage while reducing human errors and time taken.
Core Features of Automation Testing:
Consistency and Accuracy:
Automated tests run uniformly, eliminating the risks of human error associated with conventional manual testing.
Speed and Efficiency:
Automation testing ensures that the speed of testing is fast enough so we can conduct more tests in a shorter period.
Reusability of Tests:
Once created, the same test scripts can be reused across different versions of the application, hence reducing efforts that need to be put in by future tests.
Scalability:
Automated testing can work in parallel with different environments and configurations, hence increasing the coverage of tests.
Comprehensive Coverage:
Automation facilitates extensive testing, including functional, regression, load, and performance testing, which may be impractical manually.
Significance of Automation Testing
Automation testing is crucial in modern software development for several reasons:
Speed and Efficiency:
Automation testing reduces the time required to run tests, which enables quick feedback and, therefore, increases the frequency of testing cycles.
Cost savings:
As you start, initial costs for the setup of the automation scripts and tools are enormous, but in reality, this is a path to huge savings in the long run through the reduction in manual testing resources.
Early issue detection:
Automated tests can be run relatively often, so defects can be detected early in the development cycle, which is less costly to fix than those found later.
More Reliable:
The automated tests are consistent, so they give more reliable results due to minimal interference by human errors.
Continuous Integration and Delivery:
Automation is key to CI/CD pipelines. Automated regression testing is crucial to ensure that new changes are continuously validated.
Greater Test Coverage:
Automation testing allows greater test coverage, which is impossible through manual testing.
Repeatability:
Tests can be repeated as many times as required. This ensures applications remain robust even during frequent updates.
Types of Automation Testing:
Regression Testing:
Regression testing aims to prevent implementations of current functionalities from being affected by unwanted impacts of recent changes to the code. In other words, it is a reassessment of previously added functionalities to prevent destabilization of the system after the addition or changes carried out in the code.
Smoke Testing:
It is the very first screening mechanism with the help of which the basic functionalities of the software are interpreted to ensure whether they are working or not. It simply checks whether the part of the software under test is ready for further testing or not as well as gives some idea of the quality of the build.
Load Testing:
The performance of a software application is tested under an expected number of loads. It consists of the usage of the software by multiple users at the same time. It focuses on system scalability, potential bottlenecks in system performance, and responsiveness under load.
Stress Testing:
This is the testing process that determines the stability and robustness of the software under the test in extreme operating conditions with very high loads or limited resources.
GUI Testing:
GUI testing helps in testing the consistency of the graphical user interface across different devices. By testing the user experience and interface design, developers and testers can identify the issues as well as solve them to ensure customer satisfaction.
API Testing:
API testing ensures the reliability, functionality, and security of the application programming interface. It, therefore, guarantees smooth interaction and communication between software components and other systems by testing the endpoints of APIs. As a result, interoperability and data integrity will be boosted.
Security Testing:
It helps to point out the weak and vulnerable points of a system, thus, eventually helping in the protection of sensitive data from unauthorized access and data theft.
Unit Testing:
It is a very critical step in establishing code integrity, whereby every one of its smallest constituents is taken under the test. It ensures that individual components of the software function as intended and ultimately enhances the overall quality and reliability of the software.
Integration Testing:
This testing technique ensures that all developed software components work efficiently and as intended with each other without any issues. It includes the integration of the different elements together to find any inconsistencies and issues in the software.
Functional Testing:
It is the testing technique in which the functionalities of the software are checked against the pre-specified requirements to ensure that the developed product is in alignment with the intended functionalities. Hence, it helps in ensuring the quality standards and fulfilling user needs.
How to Perform Automation Testing?
To perform automation testing, follow the steps listed below:
Pick a Testing Tool:
The first step is to pick a testing tool that meets the project requirements and is supported by the platforms you are aiming at. Then, check other features such as ease of use, ability to scale, and support for various types of testing.
Clearly Define Scope:
The second step in performing automation testing is to define the scope of the testing process. Then, identify specific functionality and areas in your application that will benefit most from automation. This focused approach would ensure low-resourced treatment.
Plan, Design, Build:
Lay out a detailed plan that highlights the scope and objectives of the test. Design an automation framework while keeping reusability and maintainability in mind and then implement those automation scripts.
Integration with CI/CD:
Consider integrating the tests into a Continuous Integration/ Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) pipeline to have frictionless and automatic testing linked to all the other phases of the software development.
Test Execution:
Execute the automated tests to ensure achieving the scope defined. Watch closely over test executions to confirm that outcomes are according to plan and that there is precision in results. In case of issues and failures, refine your scripts accordingly without delay.
Sustained Maintenance:
Your automation suites should be maintained regularly to cater to software changes and enhancements. Automation suites should be updated regularly to fit the evolving requirements of the project. This ensures that your automation testing effort does not go in vain and remains effective in the long run.
QA metrics and Reporting:
Consider using metrics and reporting to track the performance of automated tests, it provides a better view of how valuable a testing strategy is and where the improvements could be made.
Automation Testing Using LambdaTest
LambdaTest is a cloud-based cross-browser testing platform that helps simplify and enhance the automation testing process on the Safari browser. Apple no longer offers updates for Safari for Windows however many Windows users opt for Safari over any other browsers. Similarly, Apple device users also use Safari for browsing hence LambdaTest has become one of the most important tools for testing software compatibility on the Safari browser. Some of the most prominent features of LambdaTest are mentioned below.
Cloud-Based Infrastructure
LambdaTest provides a scalable cloud infrastructure, allowing access to multiple versions of Safari without the need for local setups. This eliminates the complexity of maintaining physical devices or VMs, offering on-demand testing environments.
Real Device Testing
LambdaTest helps in conducting tests on real macOS devices to ensure accurate and reliable results. Real device testing helps capture issues related to hardware-specific behaviors and performance, which emulators might miss.
Parallel Testing
LambdaTest supports parallel testing, enabling the execution of multiple tests simultaneously across different Safari versions and configurations. This feature of LambdaTest helps in reducing the overall testing time drastically.
Seamless CI/CD Integration
LambdaTest integrates with popular CI/CD tools like Jenkins, GitHub Actions, Travis CI, and CircleCI. This enables automated testing workflows and continuous integration, ensuring that new code changes are validated against Safari as part of the deployment pipeline.
Support for Automated Testing Frameworks
Apart from Selenium, LambdaTest also supports Cypress, Playwright, and WebdriverIO frameworks. This feature of LambdaTest brings flexibility to its users by allowing them to use their existing test scripts and frameworks for Safari testing, without the need to start again.
Geo-Location Testing
Simulate tests from different geographic locations to validate how your web application behaves and performs in various regions. This is particularly useful for testing localized content and compliance with regional regulations.
User-Friendly Interface
LambdaTest provides a user-friendly and intuitive interface to its users for managing and executing tests.
Automated Visual Testing
LambdaTest offers visual regression testing tools to detect UI anomalies and ensure that your application looks consistent across different Safari versions and screen resolutions.
Mobile Browser Testing
As stated earlier Safari browser is also available in mobile devices and to cater to automation testing on mobile LambdaTest also supports mobile browser testing on iOS devices.
Conclusion
Automation testing on Safari is crucial for delivering a reliable and consistent user experience to Apple users. By using SafariDriver and integrating testing into CI/CD pipelines, developers can achieve comprehensive test coverage and efficiency. Nowadays users interact with applications using multiple devices, operating systems, and platforms, hence automation testing helps developing and testing teams to test their applications across different devices using the Safari browser. This helps in making the software better and easily accessible to everyone.
