Safari is widely used because it is the default browser on all Apple devices, driving the need to test and optimize websites on Safari thoroughly.

Ensuring websites are compatible across all Safari versions is essential for developers and coders who prefer macOS. While newer Safari versions (from 10 and above) come with SafariDriver for debugging, older versions require the Safari WebDriver extension, which is no longer supported. Instead, Safari now utilizes SafariDriver to implement the WebDriver protocol.

This article will explore advanced configuration options within the Safari browser for Selenium Testing, ensuring comprehensive testing and optimization across Safari versions.

Overview of Selenium Testing 

Selenium is a powerful tool for automating tests across diverse web browsers. It supports various test types, including system testing, end-to-end testing, browser compatibility testing, regression testing, integration testing, and performance testing. Any test conducted in a web browser can be automated using Selenium, provided you possess the knowledge and training to configure it.

Selenium Grid enhances testing scalability by enabling concurrent test execution across multiple instances and machines. This feature simplifies application testing on various environments and configurations.

While Selenium Testing provides substantial advantages, its limitations can impede its efficacy for intricate testing requirements. Below are some of the challenges commonly associated with Selenium Testing:

1. It has an Intense learning curve and can be complex to master.
2. Building the desired testing solution often requires a significant amount of manual coding.
3. Effective use of Selenium requires extensive training and expertise.
4. Additional software is needed to test native, hybrid, and web mobile apps.
5. Selenium lacks built-in reporting capabilities, which can be a challenge for tracking and analyzing test results.
6. Apart from user forums, Selenium has yet to offer official support.

While Selenium Testing has advantages, it’s essential to consider its limitations and explore alternative testing solutions that better suit your needs and requirements.

Importance of Browser Configuration

Configuring browsers correctly for Selenium testing offers several key benefits:

• Realistic User Simulation: Browser configurations can be customized to replicate real-world user environments, including language settings, geographical locations, screen resolutions, and user preferences. It helps identify issues arising from specific user configurations or preferences.
• Performance and Load Testing: Selenium allows for simulating different network conditions and user scenarios by adjusting browser configurations, such as throttling or disabling caching. This enables comprehensive performance and load testing to ensure the web application performs well under various conditions.
• Security and Privacy: Selenium tests can facilitate Security and Privacy Testing by adjusting security and privacy settings to evaluate the application’s performance under various configurations. This includes testing how the application handles cookies, SSL certificates, and content blockers. Selenium helps identify potential vulnerabilities by simulating different security scenarios and ensures compliance with data protection regulations.
• Test Isolation and Reproducibility: Consistent browser configurations promote test isolation and reproducibility across testing environments. This means that issues can be reliably reproduced and debugged, leading to more effective root cause analysis and resolution.

You can use a cloud-based platform like LambdaTest to leverage browser capabilities one such platform is LambdaTest, it is an AI-powered test orchestration and execution platform that lets you run manual and automated tests at scale with over 3000+ real devices, browsers, and OS combinations.

Setting up Safari for Selenium Testing 

Additional setup steps are required to perform Selenium testing on the Safari browser compared to other browsers like Chrome or Firefox. This is because Apple has implemented security measures that restrict direct automation of the Safari browser.

1. Installing Safari Driver

The Safari Driver is a browser extension that enables WebDriver to automate the Safari browser. It acts as a bridge between Selenium and Safari, allowing you to execute Selenium scripts and interact with the browser programmatically.

To install the Safari Driver, follow these steps:

1. Visit the Safari Driver GitHub repository.
2. Download the latest release of the Safari Driver that is compatible with your Safari and macOS versions.
3. Extract the downloaded ZIP file.
4. Open the extracted folder and double-click the SafariDriver.pkg file.
5. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation.

After installing the Safari Driver, verifying that the SafariDriver executable is included in your system’s PATH environment variable is essential. It ensures that Selenium can locate and initiate the Safari Driver seamlessly during test execution.

2. Enabling Remote Automation

By default, Safari disables remote automation for security reasons. To enable it, you need to change the Safari browser settings. Follow these steps:

1. Open the Safari browser.
2. Go to Safari > Preferences > Advanced.
3. Check the “Show Develop menu in the menu bar” option.
4. From the menu bar, select Develop > Allow Remote Automation.

With remote automation enabled, Selenium can initiate and control the Safari browser during test execution.

Advanced Safari Configuration Options 

Setting Browser Preferences

Safari offers a wide range of preferences that can be configured to test different aspects of your web application. These preferences can be set programmatically through Selenium scripts or the Safari preferences interface.

• Configuring Privacy Settings:

By adjusting Safari’s privacy settings, you can test how your application handles various privacy-related scenarios, such as:

• Blocking third-party cookies.
• Enabling content blockers or ad blockers.
• Restricting cross-site tracking.
• Managing website data and cookies.

Also read: Selenium Mobile Testing: Cross-Platform Test Orchestration

• Customizing Security Preferences:

Safari allows you to configure various security settings, including:

• Managing trusted root certificates.
• ETurning SSL/TLS protocols on or off
• Configuring website permissions (e.g., camera, microphone, location).
• Setting content security policies.

• Managing Extensions and Plugins:

By eturning on or off specific extensions or plugins in Safari, you can test their compatibility with your application and ensure consistent behavior across different user configurations.

Handling SSL Certificates:

SWeb applications for secure data transmission commonly employ SSL/TLS encryption. Safari provides features for managing trusted root certificates and configuring SSL/TLS protocols. Testing with different certificate configurations everifiesthe application’s capability to handle diverse security scenarios. It includes scenarios involving self-signed certificates, certificate revocation, and expired certificates.

Configuring Proxy Settings:

Proxy configurations can impact web applications, especially in corporate or restricted environments. Safari enables you to configure proxy settings, such as automatic proxy configuration, manual proxy settings, and proxy bypass rules. Testing with different proxy configurations ensures your application functions correctly across various network environments.

Managing Cookies and Local Storage:

Safari provides features for managing cookies and local storage, allowing you to test scenarios like clearing cookies, blocking third-party cookies, and simulating storage limitations. Testing these scenarios ensures your application behaves as expected under different user settings and storage conditions.

Implementing Configurations in Selenium Scripts

After delving into the advanced configuration options for Safari, it’s crucial to grasp how to implement these settings in your Selenium scripts. It enables you to programmatically control the browser’s behavior and develop automated tests encompassing various scenarios and user configurations.

Using DesiredCapabilities

The DesiredCapabilities class specifies the characteristics and configurations of the browser instance you want to create. You can set specific capabilities for Safari to customize the browser’s behavior.

Here’s an example in Java that demonstrates how to set a proxy configuration for Safari using DesiredCapabilities:

//java DesiredCapabilities capabilities = DesiredCapabilities.safari(); capabilities.setCapability(“safari.proxy”, new HashMap<String, Object>() {{     put(“httpProxy”, “http://proxy.example.com:8080”);     put(“sslProxy”, “http://proxy.example.com:8080”); }}); WebDriver driver = new SafariDriver(capabilities);

In this example, we create a new instance of DesiredCapabilities for Safari and set the desired proxy configuration using the Safari.proxy capability.

Configuring Options Class

Selenium 4 introduced a new Options class, offering a more intuitive and structured method to configure browser instances. For Safari, you can use the SafariOptions class to set various configurations.

Here’s an example in Python that demonstrates how to enable content blockers in Safari using SafariOptions:

# python from selenium import webdriver from selenium.webdriver.safari.options import SafariOptions safari_options = SafariOptions() safari_options.set_content_blocking_enabled(True) driver = webdriver.Safari(options=safari_options)

Here, we create a new instance of SafariOptions, enable content blocking using the set_content_blocking_enabled method, and then pass the configured options when creating the Safari driver instance.

Code Examples

To further illustrate how to implement various configurations in Selenium scripts, here are some code examples in different programming languages:

Java:

// Set security preferences DesiredCapabilities capabilities = DesiredCapabilities.safari(); capabilities.setCapability(“safari.secureBrowsingEnabled”, true); capabilities.setCapability(“safari.webSecurityEnabled”, true); // Manage cookies and local storage capabilities.setCapability(“safari.privateBrowsingEnabled”, true); capabilities.setCapability(“safari.handlesAlerts”, true); WebDriver driver = new SafariDriver(capabilities);

Python:

from selenium import webdriver from selenium.webdriver.safari.options import SafariOptions safari_options = SafariOptions() # Set privacy settings safari_options.set_use_legacy_cookie_implementation(True) safari_options.set_content_blocking_enabled(True) # Configure security preferences safari_options.set_secure_browsing_enabled(True) safari_options.set_web_security_enabled(True) driver = webdriver.Safari(options=safari_options)

C#:

SafariOptions options = new SafariOptions(); // Manage SSL certificates options.SetTrustCredentials(Path.Combine(AppDomain.CurrentDomain.BaseDirectory, “cert.pem”)); // Set browser preferences options.SetPreference(“safari.handlesAlerts”, true); options.SetPreference(“safari.privateBrowsingEnabled”, true); IWebDriver driver = new SafariDriver(options);

These examples demonstrate how to implement various configurations, such as security preferences, privacy settings, SSL certificate management, and cookie handling, in Selenium scripts across different programming languages.

Best Practices for Configuring and Using Safari in Selenium Testing

Following are the best practices for configuring and using Safari in Selenium testing:

Performance Optimization:

• Disable Unnecessary Extensions and Plugins: Reducing browser clutter can enhance performance by minimizing potential sources of instability.
• Manage Caching and Browser Data: Regularly clearing caches and data between tests maintains consistency and prevents conflicts from residual data.
• Optimize Network Conditions: Adjust Safari’s network settings to simulate real-world conditions during performance testing but ensure regular functionality testing isn’t slowed down.
• Parallelize Test Execution: Distributing tests across multiple Safari instances via Selenium Grid or cloud platforms reduces overall execution time.

Debugging and Logging:

• Enable Safari’s Develop Menu: Access debugging tools like the JavaScript console and element inspection to troubleshoot issues efficiently.
• Leverage Selenium’s Logging: Capture detailed logs to analyze test execution, browser interactions, and potential problems effectively.
• Capture Screenshots and Page Source: Programmatically saving screenshots and page sources during failures aids in identifying root causes and investigating issues.
• Utilize Remote Debugging: Safari’s remote debugging feature enables external tools to inspect and interact with browser instances, providing deeper insights into test execution.

Common Pitfalls and Solutions:

• Safari Driver Compatibility Issues: Ensure compatibility between Safari Driver and browser/macOS versions to avoid crashes or unexpected behavior.
• Apple System Integrity Protection (SIP): Consider temporarily disabling SIP or using a virtual machine without SIP restrictions to resolve related issues.
• Safari Technology Preview: Exercise caution with Safari Technology Preview, as early features may introduce instability or compatibility problems with Selenium tests.
• Corporate Policies and Restrictions: Address organizational security policies by coordinating with IT teams or exploring alternative testing approaches if remote automation or third-party software is restricted.

Conclusion

This article covers advanced Configuration Options in the Safari Browser for Selenium Testing, the Safari WebDriver Extension installation process, and steps to create a basic Selenium test script. Additionally, we’ve shared some best practices for Configuring and Using Safari in Selenium Testing.

Running Selenium tests on Safari might pose challenges, especially for beginners. However, with the right tools and knowledge, it’s manageable. Safari is widely used among Apple users, so testing ensures your web application or website functions correctly across all platforms.

By harnessing the power of Selenium testing and staying updated with the latest enhancements, you can ensure your web applications deliver a smooth user experience on all browsers, including Safari. It helps maintain elevated levels of quality and reliability.

While configuring and running Selenium tests locally can be effective, it may also be resource-intensive and time-consuming, mainly when testing across multiple browsers, operating systems, and device configurations. Using LambdaTest offers a convenient and scalable solution for comprehensive Selenium testing.