cy.location() for URL parts in Cypress - Framework Patterns

Framework Mode - cy.location() for URL parts

Folder Structure

  cypress/
  ├── e2e/                  # Test files
  │   └── urlParts.cy.js    # Tests using cy.location()
  ├── support/              # Support commands and utilities
  │   ├── commands.js       # Custom Cypress commands
  │   └── e2e.js            # Global setup for tests
  ├── fixtures/             # Test data files
  │   └── example.json
  cypress.config.js         # Cypress configuration file
  

Test Framework Layers

• Test Layer (cypress/e2e): Contains test files that use cy.location() to verify URL parts like pathname, hostname, protocol, and search params.
• Support Layer (cypress/support): Holds reusable commands and setup code to keep tests clean and DRY.
• Fixtures Layer (cypress/fixtures): Stores static test data to use in tests if needed.
• Configuration Layer (cypress.config.js): Defines environment settings, base URL, and browser preferences.

Configuration Patterns

Use cypress.config.js to set base URL and environment variables for different environments (dev, staging, prod).

import { defineConfig } from 'cypress';

export default defineConfig({
  e2e: {
    baseUrl: 'https://example.com',
    env: {
      username: 'testuser',
      password: 'testpass'
    },
    setupNodeEvents(on, config) {
      // implement node event listeners here
    }
  }
})
  

In tests, access environment variables with Cypress.env('username'). This keeps sensitive data out of test code.

Test Reporting and CI/CD Integration

• Use built-in Cypress test runner for interactive reports during development.
• Integrate with mochawesome reporter for detailed HTML and JSON reports in CI pipelines.
• Configure GitHub Actions or other CI tools to run npx cypress run on push or pull requests.
• Fail the build if any cy.location() assertions fail, ensuring URL correctness before deployment.

Best Practices

1. Use explicit assertions: Always assert specific URL parts like pathname or search to avoid flaky tests.
2. Keep tests independent: Each test should set its own URL state before checking cy.location().
3. Use baseUrl config: Avoid hardcoding full URLs in tests; use relative paths with cy.visit().
4. Leverage environment variables: Manage different URLs or credentials per environment without changing test code.
5. Use support commands: Create reusable commands for common URL checks to keep tests clean.

Self Check

Where in this folder structure would you add a reusable command to check the URL pathname using cy.location()?

Key Result

Organize Cypress tests with clear folder layers, config for environments, and use cy.location() assertions in e2e tests for URL validation.

Practice

1. What does cy.location('pathname') return in a Cypress test?

easy

A. The path part of the current URL, like /home

B. The full URL including protocol and hostname

C. Only the domain name without protocol

D. The query parameters after ?

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand cy.location() usage

   The cy.location() command gets parts of the current URL in Cypress tests.

2. Step 2: Identify what 'pathname' returns

   The 'pathname' is the part of the URL after the domain, showing the path like /home or /about.

3. Final Answer:

   The path part of the current URL, like /home -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   cy.location('pathname') = path part [OK]

Hint: Remember 'pathname' means the URL path after domain [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing 'pathname' with full URL
• Thinking 'pathname' returns query parameters
• Mixing 'hostname' with 'pathname'

2. Which of the following is the correct syntax to get the hostname using cy.location()?

easy

A. cy.location('hostname')

B. cy.location('host')

C. cy.location.hostname()

D. cy.location('domain')

Solution

1. Step 1: Recall correct property names for URL parts

   The correct property to get the domain name is 'hostname', not 'host' or 'domain'.

2. Step 2: Check syntax for cy.location()

   The syntax is cy.location('hostname') to get the hostname string.

3. Final Answer:

   cy.location('hostname') -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Use 'hostname' string inside cy.location() [OK]

Hint: Use exact property names like 'hostname' inside cy.location() [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using 'host' instead of 'hostname'
• Calling cy.location as a function property
• Using 'domain' which is invalid

3. Given the URL https://example.com/products?item=123#details, what will cy.location('search') return?

medium

A. example.com

B. #details

C. /products

D. ?item=123

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the 'search' part of the URL

   The 'search' part is the query string starting with ?, here it is ?item=123.

2. Step 2: Confirm what cy.location('search') returns

   This command returns the query string including the ? symbol.

3. Final Answer:

   ?item=123 -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   cy.location('search') = query string [OK]

Hint: Remember 'search' means query string starting with ? [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing 'search' with 'hash'
• Returning path instead of query string
• Omitting the leading '?' in the answer

4. You wrote cy.location('hash').should('eq', 'details') to check the URL hash #details. Why does this test fail?

medium

A. Because should('eq') cannot compare strings

B. Because cy.location('hash') returns the pathname, not the hash

C. Because the hash value includes the # symbol, so it should be '#details'

D. Because the hash is not part of the URL

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand what cy.location('hash') returns

   It returns the hash part of the URL including the # symbol, e.g., #details.

2. Step 2: Check the assertion value

   The test compares to 'details' without #, so it fails because the strings don't match exactly.

3. Final Answer:

   The hash value includes the # symbol, so it should be '#details' -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Hash includes '#' in cy.location('hash') [OK]

Hint: Include '#' when asserting hash values [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Forgetting '#' in hash comparison
• Confusing hash with pathname
• Using wrong assertion method

5. You want to verify that after clicking a link, the URL changes to https://shop.com/cart?item=5#checkout. Which chained Cypress commands correctly check the protocol, pathname, search, and hash parts?

hard

A. cy.location('protocol').should('eq', 'https:')
.location('pathname').should('eq', '/cart')
.location('search').should('eq', '?item=5')
.location('hash').should('eq', '#checkout')

B. cy.location('protocol').should('eq', 'https:')
cy.location('pathname').should('eq', '/cart')
cy.location('search').should('eq', '?item=5')
cy.location('hash').should('eq', '#checkout')

C. cy.location('protocol').should('eq', 'https')
cy.location('pathname').should('eq', 'cart')
cy.location('search').should('eq', 'item=5')
cy.location('hash').should('eq', 'checkout')

D. cy.location().should('eq', 'https://shop.com/cart?item=5#checkout')

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand how to check multiple URL parts with cy.location()

   Each call to cy.location() returns a promise, so you call them separately for each part.

2. Step 2: Check the correctness of values and chaining

   cy.location('protocol').should('eq', 'https:') cy.location('pathname').should('eq', '/cart') cy.location('search').should('eq', '?item=5') cy.location('hash').should('eq', '#checkout') calls cy.location() separately for each part with correct expected values including ':' in protocol and leading '/' in pathname.

3. Step 3: Identify errors in other options

   cy.location('protocol').should('eq', 'https:') .location('pathname').should('eq', '/cart') .location('search').should('eq', '?item=5') .location('hash').should('eq', '#checkout') chains location() calls incorrectly (no chaining support). cy.location('protocol').should('eq', 'https') cy.location('pathname').should('eq', 'cart') cy.location('search').should('eq', 'item=5') cy.location('hash').should('eq', 'checkout') misses ':' and leading characters. cy.location().should('eq', 'https://shop.com/cart?item=5#checkout') compares full URL string which is not supported by cy.location().

4. Final Answer:

   Separate calls to cy.location() with correct expected values -> Option B

5. Quick Check:

   Use separate cy.location() calls for each URL part [OK]

Hint: Call cy.location() separately for each URL part [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Trying to chain cy.location() calls
• Missing ':' in protocol value
• Omitting leading '/' in pathname
• Comparing full URL string with cy.location()