Why chaining simulates real workflows in Postman - Test Execution Impact

Test Overview

This test checks how chaining API requests in Postman simulates real user workflows by passing data from one request to the next and verifying the final result.

Test Code - Postman

Postman

pm.test("Chained API workflow test", function () {
    // Step 1: Send first request to create a user
    pm.sendRequest({
        url: 'https://api.example.com/users',
        method: 'POST',
        header: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
        body: {
            mode: 'raw',
            raw: JSON.stringify({ name: 'Alice', role: 'tester' })
        }
    }, function (err, res) {
        pm.expect(err).to.be.null;
        pm.expect(res).to.have.property('code', 201);
        const userId = res.json().id;

        // Step 2: Use userId from first response to get user details
        pm.sendRequest({
            url: `https://api.example.com/users/${userId}`,
            method: 'GET'
        }, function (err2, res2) {
            pm.expect(err2).to.be.null;
            pm.expect(res2).to.have.property('code', 200);
            pm.expect(res2.json()).to.have.property('name', 'Alice');

            // Step 3: Update user role
            pm.sendRequest({
                url: `https://api.example.com/users/${userId}`,
                method: 'PUT',
                header: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
                body: {
                    mode: 'raw',
                    raw: JSON.stringify({ role: 'admin' })
                }
            }, function (err3, res3) {
                pm.expect(err3).to.be.null;
                pm.expect(res3).to.have.property('code', 200);

                // Step 4: Verify updated role
                pm.sendRequest({
                    url: `https://api.example.com/users/${userId}`,
                    method: 'GET'
                }, function (err4, res4) {
                    pm.expect(err4).to.be.null;
                    pm.expect(res4).to.have.property('code', 200);
                    pm.expect(res4.json()).to.have.property('role', 'admin');
                });
            });
        });
    });
});

Execution Trace - 4 Steps

Step	Action	System State	Assertion	Result
1	Send POST request to create a new user with name 'Alice' and role 'tester'	API server receives user creation request	Response code is 201 Created	PASS
2	Extract userId from response and send GET request to fetch user details	API server returns user details for userId	Response code is 200 OK and user name is 'Alice'	PASS
3	Send PUT request to update user's role to 'admin' using userId	API server updates user role	Response code is 200 OK	PASS
4	Send GET request to verify user's updated role	API server returns updated user details	Response code is 200 OK and role is 'admin'	PASS

Failure Scenario

Failing Condition: If any API response returns an error or unexpected data, such as missing userId or wrong role

Execution Trace Quiz - 3 Questions

Why does the test extract userId from the first response?

A To test if the server returns errors

B To use it in the next requests simulating a real user workflow

C To ignore it and send random IDs later

D To check if the user name is correct

Key Result

Chaining API requests in tests helps simulate real user workflows by passing data between steps and verifying the entire process, making tests more realistic and reliable.