How can I retain data after successful tests with a headless Selenium browser?

I’m currently utilizing selenium for testing automation in our projects, and specifically, we’re running tests in a headless mode using PhantomJs WebDriver on Bamboo. However, I’ve noticed that the data or content generated during these tests seems to disappear once they finish successfully. In contrast, when we conduct tests using the Firefox driver instead of PhantomJs, the content created remains accessible. What steps can I take to configure the PhantomJs WebDriver in selenium to ensure that the data persists after test execution? Any insights would be appreciated!

When using a headless Selenium browser like PhantomJs, the issue of ephemeral data often relates to the session and how browser instances handle data. In your case, it seems that PhantomJs is not retaining the session data as Firefox does.

To ensure that data persists after tests with PhantomJs, consider the following strategies:

  1. Persistent Storage: Unlike non-headless browsers, PhantomJs may not be set up to use persistent storage by default. You can manually set the location of the cookies and session storage to a permanent location on disk.

  2. Switch to Chrome/Firefox in Headless Mode: Since PhantomJs is no longer maintained, switching to a better-supported headless mode in Chrome or Firefox might be beneficial. Here’s how to run Chrome in headless mode:

    from selenium import webdriver
    from selenium.webdriver.chrome.options import Options
    
    chrome_options = Options()
    chrome_options.add_argument("--headless")
    chrome_options.add_argument("--disable-gpu")
    driver = webdriver.Chrome(options=chrome_options)
    

    Switching to a more maintained browser allows for better support and more community advice on persisting data.

  3. Utilize External Database or Files: Instead of relying on the browser’s session data, consider storing necessary data in an external database or in files. This way, your test scripts can write to and read from stable storage that is independent of the browser session.

  4. Configure PhantomJs Defaults: If you must continue with PhantomJs, ensure any configuration related to the session cookies and storage is set to recall previous sessions. Often, similar issues can be resolved by explicitly saving state data locally through scripts.

Implement these strategies to handle the session management effectively, allowing your data to persist across test executions.