6. Cucumber Hooks

Estimated reading: 3 minutes 19 views

Cucumber Hooks are powerful tools that allow you to perform setup and teardown actions in your BDD test framework. Whether it’s initializing browsers, cleaning up resources, or handling specific conditions for tagged scenarios, hooks streamline your test execution process and make your tests cleaner and more maintainable.

In this article, we’ll explore:

The types of Cucumber Hooks
Practical examples with code snippets
The benefits of using hooks in your test automation

What are Cucumber Hooks?
Hooks are methods in Cucumber that execute before or after each scenario or step. They help you manage repetitive tasks like browser setup or test data cleanup. Cucumber provides several types of hooks:

@Before: Executes before each scenario.
@After: Executes after each scenario.
@BeforeStep: Executes before each step.
@AfterStep: Executes after each step.
Tagged Hooks: Executes hooks conditionally for specific scenarios.

Types of Hooks with Syntax and Description

Hook Type	Syntax	Description
@Before	`@Before public void beforeScenario() { ... }`	Runs before every scenario. Ideal for initializing environments or clearing cookies.
@After	`@After public void afterScenario() { ... }`	Runs after every scenario. Used for cleanup tasks like closing the browser.
@BeforeStep	`@BeforeStep public void beforeStep() { ... }`	Executes before each step. Useful for logging or dynamic preparation.
@AfterStep	`@AfterStep public void afterStep() { ... }`	Executes after each step. Ideal for capturing screenshots or logging results.
Tagged Hooks	`@Before("@TagName") public void specificTagHook() { ... }`	Executes only for scenarios with the specified tag.

Feature File Example

				
					Feature: User Login

Scenario: Valid Login
  Given the user is on the login page
  When the user enters valid credentials
  Then the user should be redirected to the dashboard

Step Definitions with Hooks

Here’s how step definitions and hooks work together in a Cucumber framework:

Step Definitions

				
					@Given("the user is on the login page")  
public void userIsOnLoginPage() {  
    System.out.println("Opening login page...");  
}  

@When("the user enters valid credentials")  
public void userEntersValidCredentials() {  
    System.out.println("Entering username and password...");  
}  

@Then("the user should be redirected to the dashboard")  
public void userRedirectedToDashboard() {  
    System.out.println("User redirected to the dashboard.");  
}

Hooks Example

				
					@Before  
public void beforeScenario() {  
    System.out.println("Setting up browser and clearing cookies...");  
}  

@After  
public void afterScenario() {  
    System.out.println("Closing the browser...");  
}

Tagged Hooks Example

Tagged hooks allow you to run specific setup or teardown actions for scenarios marked with particular tags in the feature file. This is especially useful for scenarios requiring different preconditions or configurations.

Feature File

				
					Feature: User Login

@Regression
Scenario: Valid Login  
  Given the user is on the login page  
  When the user enters valid credentials  
  Then the user should be redirected to the dashboard  

@SmokeTest
Scenario: Invalid Login  
  Given the user is on the login page  
  When the user enters invalid credentials  
  Then the user should see an error message

Tagged Hooks Implementation

				
					import io.cucumber.java.Before;

public class TaggedHooks {

    @Before("@Regression")
    public void regressionSetup() {
        System.out.println("Running setup for Regression tests...");
    }

    @Before("@SmokeTest")
    public void smokeTestSetup() {
        System.out.println("Running setup for Smoke Test scenarios...");
    }
}

Benefits of Using Cucumber Hooks

Efficiency: Automates repetitive setup and teardown tasks, saving time and effort.
Clean Code: Keeps your step definitions focused on scenario logic while managing auxiliary tasks separately.
Reusability: Centralizes shared logic, reducing redundancy in your codebase.
Tag-Specific Logic: Enables you to target specific scenarios for custom pre- or post-processing.

Conclusion

Cucumber Hooks are essential for any well-organized test automation framework. They simplify your test setup and cleanup, making your scripts more maintainable and efficient. By leveraging hooks effectively, you can ensure your test suite is scalable, clean, and adaptable to various scenarios.

Start integrating hooks into your Cucumber framework today and experience the difference they make in your automation journey!

6. Cucumber Hooks

Tagged Hooks Example

Feature File

Benefits of Using Cucumber Hooks

Conclusion

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

CONTENTS