Hey everyone, I’m new to Python and Django but have experience with PHP and Symfony. I’m trying to set up some testing with Behave, which is similar to Behat in PHP. In Symfony, we could use a lightweight driver instead of Selenium for browser testing. This made things faster and easier to set up.
I’m wondering if there’s something like this for Python and Django. Is there a way to run Behave tests without needing a full browser or Selenium? I’m looking for a headless option that’s quick to set up and doesn’t need a whole browser running.
Any suggestions or tips would be really helpful. Thanks in advance!
For a lightweight alternative to Selenium in Django with Behave, I’d recommend looking into Splinter. It’s a Python tool that provides a high-level interface for browser automation and works well with Behave.
Splinter supports headless browsing out of the box, which makes it perfect for fast, lightweight testing. You can use it with Django’s test client to simulate browser interactions without the overhead of a full browser.
I’ve used Splinter in several Django projects, and it’s been a game-changer. The syntax is intuitive, and it integrates seamlessly with Behave. Plus, it’s much faster than Selenium for most testing scenarios.
To get started, just pip install splinter and configure it in your Behave environment. You’ll be writing browser tests in no time, without the hassle of setting up Selenium.
I’ve been in a similar situation, transitioning from PHP to Python for web development. For lightweight browser testing in Django with Behave, I’ve had success using django-webtest. It’s not a full browser emulator, but it provides a WSGI-compatible interface that works well with Django and Behave.
The setup is straightforward, and it’s much faster than Selenium for basic interactions. You can simulate GET and POST requests, fill out forms, and check responses without the overhead of a full browser.
Another option worth exploring is requests-html. It’s not Django-specific, but it offers a simple API for making HTTP requests and parsing HTML responses. This can be integrated with Behave for headless testing scenarios.
Both these options have served me well in projects where I needed quick, lightweight testing without the complexity of Selenium. They might not cover all use cases, but for many scenarios, they’re excellent alternatives.
hey Tom42Gamer, have u looked into using pytest-django? it’s pretty lightweight and works great with behave. no need for a full browser. i’ve used it for headless testing and it’s super quick to set up. might be worth checkin out if u haven’t already!