Introduction
Well many of us heard this name during our school and college days in Chemistry classes or labs. Selenium (symbol: Se) is a chemical element with atomic number 34. It belongs to the chalcogen group on the periodic table, along with oxygen, sulfur, tellurium, and polonium. But, what would be your thoughts when I say “What is Selenium” in software engineering? Yes, you read it correctly. We do have Selenium in the software industry as well. If you want to get its answer, then you just need to read this entire blog because you will be happy and satisfied that you had spent a handful amount of time getting the introduction which could be the center of attraction for your next job role.
What is Selenium?
Selenium is a popular open-source framework used for automating web browsers. It provides a set of tools and libraries that enable developers to automate browser actions, interact with web elements, and perform functional testing of web applications. It (especially Selenium WebDriver) supports multiple programming languages like Java, C#, Python, Ruby, etc to create your automated Selenium Test Scripts. You could use these test scripts to run day-in-day-out to test your applications with minimal or no human intervention.
But please hold on before you are so delighted, let me inform you that you could only perform automated testing using Selenium is Web-Application only. You cannot directly test your desktop or mobile applications. Certainly, there are certain ways by which you can even achieve that. We will discuss them in other topics.
Components of Selenium Suite
The Selenium tool suite, widely used in software testing, comprises several components that facilitate different aspects of test automation. These components work together to support the creation, execution, and management of automated tests. The key components of the Selenium tool suite are as follows –
Selenium IDE
Selenium IDE (Integrated Development Environment) is a Firefox browser extension that allows testers to create and record automated tests directly within the browser. It offers a user-friendly interface for creating test scripts using a record-and-playback approach. Selenium IDE generates WebDriver code that can be exported for use in other testing frameworks. Note that, if you want to create more advanced logic then you need to involve either Selenium RC (which is deprecated now) or Selenium WebDriver as it has no support for iteration & conditional operations.
Selenium Remote Control (RC)
As discussed earlier, Selenium RC is a deprecated component of Selenium that preceded WebDriver. It provides a client-server architecture, allowing testers to execute tests on remote machines or browsers. However, it has been largely replaced by WebDriver due to its limitations and the improved capabilities of WebDriver. But, Selenium Core hit a major block in terms of cross-domain testing because of the same-origin policy.
Selenium WebDriver
WebDriver is the primary component of Selenium and provides a programming interface for interacting with web browsers. It enables testers to automate interactions with web elements, simulate user actions, and perform verifications. WebDriver supports multiple programming languages, including Java, Python, C#, Ruby, and many more.
Selenium Grid
Selenium Grid enables parallel test execution on multiple machines or browsers simultaneously. It allows testers to distribute test scripts across different environments, increasing test efficiency and reducing execution time. With Selenium Grid, tests can be run on various configurations and platforms in parallel, making it useful for cross-browser and cross-platform testing.
Below picture depicting the all various components of Selenium Suite:
Conclusion
In this article, we understand what Selenium is in Software Testing, its importance, and its various components. So that brings the conclusion to this blog on “What is Selenium“. This is the first article in Selenium Category. Stay tuned for further updates. Still, if you have any questions on this article drop them in the comments. HAPPY LEARNING.!! 😊