Flex Automation issue reporting – QTP log enabling

This section is for a user of flex automation with the following details.

1. You are a flex automaiton user .

2. You are using QTP as the testing tool

3. You are facing some issue with the automaiton and you would like to know the details of QTP calls or you would like take the help of Adobe Flex Automation team for resolving your issue.

If you like to inform Adobe about your issue – What you need to do?

1. File an issue in JIRA – the open Adobe bug base. http://bugs.adobe.com/jira Project FLEXENT

2. Have a log file related to QTP interaction and provide the log file also as a part of the bug details.

The steps below describes how to enabling the logging for QTP 9.2 (or lesser versions)

Steps to enable QTP logging.

1. Go to the mercury installation/bin directory say: “C:\Program Files\Mercury Interactive\QuickTest Professional\bin” and run MicLogSetting.exe

2. Select the log settings as:
Level: MicLogLevelDebug2
Folder:C:\Program Files\Mercury Interactive\QuickTest Professional\
Selected Categories:LogCatPackTEA

Ensure the max size of the file is reasonably high (else once the size reaches the maximum limit another file is created. So please ensure that all newly created files are identified)

Note: Please zip these files before uploading them to bug base.

3. Run QTP and repeat the operation which is found non functioning (please try to have minimum steps in your application recorded or executed and those are related to the issue. Else the log file can be huge )

4. A log file would have been generated like C:\Program Files\Mercury Interactive\QuickTest Professional\MicLogFile_QTPro_pid1912_11_32_32.html

Automation Issues – controls non clickable

I am trying to cover the common issues faced by automation customers of Adobe Flex.

Issue Description :
When the application is compiled with  automation libraries some controls become non click-able. (Without automation libraries, the controls behaves perfectly fine).Please note that issue is different from controls not recording right events.

Reason:
In application layout, a container is overlapping the controls. Containers are invisible, and without automation, there are no event listeners to the containers. Hence all operation on the controls under the containers also work.
But when automation libraries are included, containers gets listeners registered, hence it will not pass to the containers physically present under them. (You can visualize the container as a transparent sheet kept on controls)
There are two samples below, working and no working case, when automation libraries are enabled.

Non working case:

<mx:Application xmlns:mx=”http://www.adobe.com/2006/mxml” layout=”absolute”>

<mx:Button label=”Hi” click=”{l1.text=’button clicked’}” />

<mx:VBox width=”100%” height=”100%” alpha=”0″  id=”vb1″>

<mx:Spacer height=”20″ />

<mx:Label id=”l1″ text=”button not clicked” />

</mx:VBox>

</mx:Application>

The application above does not allow the button to be clicked, if it is compiled with automation libraries. Without automation libraries it can be clicked.Reason is that, the invisible VBox overlaps this button. When we click on the button the following script gets recorded.Browser(“Browser”).FlexApplication(“temp”).FlexBox(“vb1″).Click

Working equivalent case:

If such a case exists it can be changed as follows.

<mx:Application xmlns:mx=”http://www.adobe.com/2006/mxml” layout=”absolute”><mx:VBox width=”100%” height=”100%”>

<mx:Button label=”Hi” click=”{l1.text=’button clicked’}” />

<mx:Spacer height=”20″ />

<mx:Label id=”l1″ text=”button not clicked” />

</mx:VBox>

</mx:Application>

Here button is inside the VBox. And hence the script gets recorded as

Browser(“Browser”).FlexApplication(“temp”).FlexButton(“Hi”).Click

Note from the script that , the user can find out what container is overlapping the control. And they can use the design view also to find this.

I.e. in short , in such scenario problem is with the application layout of components.

Automation Of Flex Applications

Adobe provides the automation framework for the flex components. The plug-in for the QTP tool is also provided by Adobe.

Users of flex will be using either the 2.0.1 sdk or the latest 3.0 sdk.

With the Flex3 release, users of Flex 3.0 can try the automation support using the trail version or standard version of Flex Builder. But this will be restricted. i.e. the users can try only ~30 lines of user interaction recording and replay.

Once the user buys the professional version of Flex Builder, they can enable their 2.0.1 and 3.0 applications for automation.Old users (2.0.1) of automation was expected to have the LCDS license to use the automation. With flex3 this is not needed. However there is no trial version for 2.0.1 automation with the FlexBuilder.

The section below is for the users who already know how to use the Adobe Flex Automation and Flex Builder. It mentions how user can pick up the different components needed for automation.

2.0.1 User

Libraries to be used (set the sdk to be used is 2.0. sdk)

Automation Libraries – automation.swc and automation-charts.swc

Location – (C:Program FilesAdobeFlex Builder 3sdks2.0.1frameworkslibs)

Automation Libraies – automation-agent_rb.swc automation_agent.swc and qtp.swc (user should move the _rb.swc to the locale folder of 2.0.1frameworks)

Location – C:Program FilesAdobeFlex Builder 3sdks3.0.0frameworkslibs2.0.1.automation_swcs (this directory will be present only when they enter the valid flex builder professional license key

Plugin to be used – QTP_Plugin_Installer

Location- C:Program FilesAdobeFlex Builder 3InstallersQTP_Plugin_Installer.exe

How to run the application without recompiling.

Use the runtime loading swf. How to create the runtime loading swf.

Point to the location of the 2.0.1 swc’s mentioned above in the build.bat which is available under C:Program FilesAdobeFlex Builder 3sdks3.0.0templatesautomation-runtimeloading-files and compile the runtimeloading.swf from the runtimeloading.mxml

3.0 User

Libraries to be used (set the sdk to be used is 3.0. sdk)

AutomationLibraries – automation.swc and automation_agent.swc,automation_dmv.swc automation_flashflexkit.swc qtp.swc

Location – (C:Program FilesAdobeFlex Builder 3sdks2.0.1frameworkslibs)

Plug-in to be used -QTP_Plugin_Installer.exe

Location – C:Program FilesAdobeFlex Builder 3InstallersQTP_Plugin_Installer.exe

How to run the application without recompiling.

Run the build.bat which is available under C:Program FilesAdobeFlex Builder 3sdks3.0.0templatesautomation-runtimeloading-files use that runtimeloading.swf

(The users who are not familiar with the flex automation can get the details of the same from http://www.adobe.com/support/documentation/en/flex/3/releasenotes_flex3_fb.html#install_automated_testing and from the Help of FlexBuilder AdobeFlex3Help -> Flex Data visualization developer’s Guide -> Advanced Data Grid Controls and Automation Tools -> Creating Applications For testing)

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