Hey everyone! I’m using Ruby with Sinatra and RSpec/Capybara for testing. I’ve got a weird issue with my form tests.
I added HTML5 required validations to my form inputs. They work fine in Chrome, stopping users from submitting empty forms. But in my RSpec/Capybara tests, these validations are ignored. The tests just breeze through and fail because they’re submitting empty forms.
Has anyone run into this before? Is there a way to make RSpec/Capybara respect HTML5 validations in headless mode? Or should I be handling this differently?
I’m pretty new to TDD, so any advice would be awesome. Thanks!
I’ve encountered this issue in my projects as well. While switching drivers can work, I prefer a different approach. Instead of relying on HTML5 validations, I implement server-side validations and test those directly. This ensures your app’s core logic is solid, regardless of client-side behavior. For Sinatra, you can use ActiveModel::Validations or write custom validation methods. Then, in your RSpec tests, focus on submitting both valid and invalid data to verify your server handles it correctly. This approach tends to be more robust and less prone to browser-specific quirks.
I’ve dealt with this exact problem in my projects. Here’s what worked for me: instead of relying solely on HTML5 validations, I implemented JavaScript validations alongside them. This approach lets you test the form behavior more thoroughly in your RSpec/Capybara tests.
You can write custom JS validation functions and attach them to your form’s submit event. In your tests, you can then check if these functions are called and if they prevent form submission when fields are empty.
This method gives you more control over the validation process and allows you to test both client-side and server-side validations effectively. It’s a bit more work upfront, but it makes your tests more robust and closer to real-world usage scenarios.
Remember to still keep your server-side validations as the ultimate safeguard. The JS validations are just an extra layer for user experience and testability.
hey josephk, ran into this before. capybara’s default driver (rack_test) doesn’t support html5 validations. you could try switching to selenium or apparition for those tests. but honestly, i’d recommend just testing server-side validations instead. that’s more reliable anyway. good luck with your TDD journey!