Скачать или смотреть How to Resolve the webdriver-manager start --detach Issue in Azure DevOps for Selenium Tests

Learn how to successfully run Selenium tests in Azure DevOps without pipeline hang-ups using Docker containers for standalone Selenium.
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Handling the webdriver-manager start --detach Issue in Azure DevOps

Running Selenium tests is a crucial part of ensuring that your web applications function as intended. When configuring these tests in Azure DevOps, you might encounter a frustrating problem: Your pipeline hangs on the npm start command. This scenario mainly arises when using the webdriver-manager start --detach command, which does not operate as expected in Azure DevOps despite working locally. In this post, we’ll discuss the problem in detail and explore an effective solution using Docker.

The Challenge

What's Going Wrong?

You’ve set up your Azure DevOps pipeline with agents running Ubuntu 20.04, and the following relevant section in your azure-pipelines.yml file looks promising:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

However, the command npm start hangs at this point and never progresses to testing. The --detach argument does not behave as it should in this environment.

Why Does this Happen?

The issue arises because Azure DevOps pipelines can sometimes handle processes differently than your local environment. Specifically, the --detach flag is intended to run the Selenium server in the background, but Azure DevOps may not support this correctly. As a result, your pipeline gets stuck, waiting for the command to complete.

A Practical Solution: Running Standalone Selenium in Docker

Leveraging Docker for Isolation

The most effective workaround for this issue is to use a Docker container to run a standalone Selenium server. This approach isolates the Selenium environment and allows for proper execution without blocking the pipeline.

Steps to Implement the Solution:

Modify Your YAML File: Update your azure-pipelines.yml to include steps for setting up and running a Docker container with Selenium.

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Create a Dockerfile: Ensure you have a Dockerfile that pulls a Selenium image (like the one provided by SeleniumHQ), which contains the necessary software to run your tests effectively.

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Run Your Tests: Once the Selenium server is running inside the Docker container, your pipeline will not hang up at npm start, allowing you to proceed directly to testing.

Benefits of This Approach

Environment Consistency: Docker ensures that your Selenium environment remains consistent across different setups, avoiding any discrepancies between local and CI environments.

Separation of Concerns: Running Selenium in isolation prevents potential conflicts with other processes in the pipeline.

Conclusion

While encountering issues with webdriver-manager start --detach in Azure DevOps can be frustrating, using Docker to run a standalone Selenium server presents a reliable solution. By following the steps outlined above, you can enhance your testing strategy in Azure DevOps and maintain a smooth pipeline execution. Happy testing!