Alert configuration in Postman - Test Execution Trace

Test Overview

This test checks if an alert is correctly triggered when an API response contains an error status. It verifies that the alert message matches the expected error message.

Test Code - Postman

Postman

pm.test("Alert triggers on error status", function () {
    pm.response.to.have.status(400);
    const jsonData = pm.response.json();
    pm.expect(jsonData.error).to.eql("Invalid request data");
    pm.environment.set("alertMessage", jsonData.error);
});
pm.test("Alert message is set correctly", function () {
    pm.expect(pm.environment.get("alertMessage")).to.eql("Invalid request data");
});

Execution Trace - 5 Steps

Step	Action	System State	Assertion	Result
1	Test starts and sends API request	Postman sends request to API endpoint	-	PASS
2	Checks if response status is 400 (error)	Response received with status 400	pm.response.to.have.status(400)	PASS
3	Parses JSON response and checks error message	Response body contains {"error": "Invalid request data"}	pm.expect(jsonData.error).to.eql("Invalid request data")	PASS
4	Sets environment variable 'alertMessage' with error message	Environment variable 'alertMessage' set to 'Invalid request data'	-	PASS
5	Verifies environment variable 'alertMessage' matches expected message	Environment variable 'alertMessage' is 'Invalid request data'	pm.expect(pm.environment.get("alertMessage")).to.eql("Invalid request data")	PASS

Failure Scenario

Failing Condition: API response status is not 400 or error message differs

Execution Trace Quiz - 3 Questions

What does the test check first after receiving the API response?

A If the response body is empty

B If the response status is 400

C If the alert message is displayed on screen

D If the environment variable is cleared

Key Result

Always verify both the response status and the content of the response when testing alert triggers to ensure accurate detection of errors.