Appium is an open source, cross-platform Test automation tool for native, hybrid and mobile web apps, tested on simulators (iOS, FirefoxOS), emulators (Android), and real devices (iOS, Android, FirefoxOS). It drives various native automation frameworks and provides an API based on Selenium’s WebDriver JSON wire protocol. Android support uses the UiAutomator framework for newer platforms and Selendroid for older Android platforms.
The client/server pattern helps Appium achieve multi-platform testability, once a test is written it is executed in the client/test station. Thanks to Google’s JSON, the tool is able to have tests send commands to devices through the test server. When writing tests, the code will simply perform HTTP calls to the server which will translate those meta-commands into device-specific actions sent to the device to test. Commands are essentially user interactions with the app like clicking an interface component, swiping on the screen, scrolling onto a particular area or performing a specific gesture.
Why Appium?
- You don’t have to recompile your app or modify it in any way, due to use of standard automation APIs on all platforms.
- You can write tests with your favorite dev tools using any WebDriver-compatible language such as Java, Objective-C, JavaScript with Node.js, PHP, Python, Ruby, C#, Clojure, or Perl with the Selenium WebDriver API and language-specific client libraries.
- You can use any testing framework.
Requirements
Your environment needs to be setup for the particular mobile platforms that you want to run tests on. See below for particular platform requirements.
- Android SDK API >= 17 (Additional features require 18/19)
- Java Development Kit (JDK)
- TestNG
- Eclipse
- Selenium Server JAR
- Webdriver Language Binding Library
You also need to download the Appium client for your language so you can write tests. The clients are simple extensions to the WebDriver clients. You can see the list of clients and links to download instructions at the clients list.
Steps to Install & Setup APPIUM
1. Install Android SDK in your system. Make sure ‘Environment Variables’ path is set to ANDROID_HOME variable that point to your SDK directory.
2. Download Appium from the Website
3. A ZIP file is downloaded successfully – AppiumForWindows
4. Unzip the file & run the Setup.exe file >> ‘Select Setup Language’ pop-up is displayed >> Select ‘English’.
5. Setup Wizard is opened ‘Setup – Appium’ >> Click Next to continue
6. Select the Destination location for installation. Let it be default ‘Program Files’. Please note the free disk space message at the bottom (101.4 MB in this case)
7. Select the Start Menu Folder for the Shortcut. Let it be default ‘Appium’, a new folder will be created.
8. Select additional tasks like ‘Create a Desktop icon’ & click Next.
9. Click ‘Install’ in ‘Ready to Install’ wizard.
10. Installation starts. Please wait while Setup installs Appium, this might take few minutes.
11. Your installation is complete. Select ‘Launch Appium’ checkbox & click ‘Finish’
12. Kick up an Appium server, and then run a test written in your favorite WebDriver-compatible language!
Happy Automation!!
