Automate login test using base test class pattern

Preconditions (3)

Step 1: Open browser and navigate to login page URL

Step 2: Enter 'testuser@example.com' in the email input field

Step 3: Enter 'Test@1234' in the password input field

Step 4: Click the login button

Step 5: Verify that the user is redirected to the dashboard page URL

✅ Expected Result: User successfully logs in and dashboard page is displayed

Automation Requirements - Selenium WebDriver with JUnit 5

Assertions Needed:

Verify current URL matches expected dashboard URL after login

Best Practices:

Use a base test class to initialize and quit WebDriver

Use @BeforeEach and @AfterEach annotations for setup and teardown

Use explicit waits to handle page load and element visibility

Use meaningful locators (By.id, By.name) instead of brittle XPath

Keep test methods focused and readable

Automated Solution

Selenium Java

import org.junit.jupiter.api.AfterEach;
import org.junit.jupiter.api.BeforeEach;
import org.junit.jupiter.api.Test;
import org.openqa.selenium.By;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebElement;
import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.support.ui.ExpectedConditions;
import org.openqa.selenium.support.ui.WebDriverWait;

import java.time.Duration;

import static org.junit.jupiter.api.Assertions.assertEquals;

public class BaseTest {
    protected WebDriver driver;
    protected WebDriverWait wait;

    @BeforeEach
    public void setUp() {
        driver = new ChromeDriver();
        wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, Duration.ofSeconds(10));
        driver.manage().window().maximize();
    }

    @AfterEach
    public void tearDown() {
        if (driver != null) {
            driver.quit();
        }
    }
}

public class LoginTest extends BaseTest {
    private final String loginUrl = "https://example.com/login";
    private final String dashboardUrl = "https://example.com/dashboard";

    @Test
    public void testSuccessfulLogin() {
        driver.get(loginUrl);

        WebElement emailInput = wait.until(ExpectedConditions.visibilityOfElementLocated(By.id("email")));
        emailInput.sendKeys("testuser@example.com");

        WebElement passwordInput = driver.findElement(By.id("password"));
        passwordInput.sendKeys("Test@1234");

        WebElement loginButton = driver.findElement(By.id("loginButton"));
        loginButton.click();

        wait.until(ExpectedConditions.urlToBe(dashboardUrl));

        assertEquals(dashboardUrl, driver.getCurrentUrl(), "User should be redirected to dashboard after login");
    }
}

The BaseTest class sets up and tears down the WebDriver before and after each test. This avoids repeating setup code in every test class.

We use @BeforeEach to initialize the ChromeDriver and maximize the window. @AfterEach quits the driver to close the browser.

The LoginTest class extends BaseTest to reuse this setup. It navigates to the login page, waits for the email input to be visible, enters credentials, clicks login, and waits for the dashboard URL.

Assertions verify the final URL matches the expected dashboard URL, confirming successful login.

Explicit waits ensure elements are ready before interacting, preventing flaky tests.

Common Mistakes - 4 Pitfalls

Initializing WebDriver inside each test method instead of a base class

Using Thread.sleep() instead of explicit waits

Using brittle XPath locators like absolute paths

Not quitting WebDriver after tests

Bonus Challenge

Now add data-driven testing with 3 different sets of login credentials

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