I’m switching from CasperJS to Jest with Puppeteer for my tests. Everything works fine in one file but I want to split it up. The main issues are:
I don’t want to set up Puppeteer for each test file. It’s slow.
I want to run specific tests without running everything.
I need to reuse the same browser instance for all tests.
I tried using Jest’s setupFiles but it runs for every test file. That’s not what I want. I also thought about importing test files and running them manually but that doesn’t let me run tests separately.
I looked into custom test environments but I’m not sure how they work exactly. Can anyone help me figure out the best way to set this up? I’m new to Jest and might be missing something obvious. Thanks!
hey, i’ve dealt with this before. you could try using jest-puppeteer package. it handles browser setup and teardown for you. just install it, add preset to jest config, and import puppeteer in your tests. works like a charm and keeps things simple. good luck!
Having worked extensively with Jest and Puppeteer, I can share a solution that’s worked well for me. Consider implementing a custom Jest environment that manages a single Puppeteer instance. In your jest.config.js, specify this custom environment. Within the environment, launch the browser in the setup method and close it in the teardown.
To share the browser across tests, expose it via a global variable. In your test files, access this global to create new pages as needed. This approach maintains a single browser instance, speeds up execution, and allows for running individual tests.
Remember to handle errors properly and ensure the browser closes even if tests fail. This setup strikes a balance between performance and flexibility, addressing your main concerns effectively.
I’ve been in a similar situation when transitioning from older testing frameworks to Jest with Puppeteer. Here’s what worked for me:
Consider using a global setup file with Jest. In your jest.config.js, you can specify a globalSetup option that runs once before all tests. This is where you can launch your Puppeteer browser instance.
Then, use a custom environment to share that browser instance across tests. Create a new file, say puppeteer-environment.js, extending NodeEnvironment. In this file, you can grab the browser instance from globalThis and make it available to your tests.
In your test files, you can then access the shared browser instance and create new pages as needed. This approach lets you run specific tests while reusing the same browser.
It took some trial and error, but this setup significantly sped up my test suite and gave me the flexibility I needed. Hope this helps point you in the right direction!