Setting Up Selenium WebDriver in Java: A Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: Install Java Development Kit (JDK)

Before you start using Selenium WebDriver, make sure you have Java installed on your system.

Download the JDK from the Oracle website or install an open-source version like OpenJDK.

Install the JDK by following the instructions provided on the download page.

Set up Java environment variables:

On Windows, set JAVA_HOME to the location where JDK is installed and add the bin directory to your system PATH.

On macOS/Linux, you can set the environment variable in your ~/.bash_profile or ~/.bashrc file.

Step 2: Install an IDE (Integrated Development Environment)

You can use any Java IDE to write your code. Some popular ones include:

IntelliJ IDEA (Highly recommended)

Eclipse

Step 3: Set Up Maven (or Gradle)

Using a build tool like Maven makes managing dependencies easier.

Install Maven:

You can download Maven from here and follow the setup instructions.

Add Maven to your IDE:

In IntelliJ IDEA, it’s built-in. For Eclipse, you can install the Maven plugin via the marketplace.

Create a Maven Project:

If you're using IntelliJ IDEA or Eclipse, create a new project and select Maven as the project type.

Step 4: Add Selenium Dependencies

Now, you need to add Selenium WebDriver as a dependency in your Maven pom.xml file.

Open the pom.xml file in your project.

Add the following Selenium dependency to the <dependencies> section:

xml

Copy

Edit

<dependencies>

    <!-- Selenium WebDriver -->

    <dependency>

        <groupId>org.seleniumhq.selenium</groupId>

        <artifactId>selenium-java</artifactId>

        <version>4.10.0</version> <!-- Use the latest stable version -->

    </dependency>

    

    <!-- Optional: If you need WebDriverManager -->

    <dependency>

        <groupId>io.github.bonigarcia</groupId>

        <artifactId>webdrivermanager</artifactId>

        <version>5.4.0</version> <!-- Or any latest version -->

    </dependency>

</dependencies>

Selenium Java is the core dependency.

WebDriverManager is optional but makes it easier to manage WebDriver binaries (ChromeDriver, GeckoDriver, etc.).

After adding dependencies, Maven will automatically download the required libraries.

Step 5: Install WebDriver Executables

Selenium WebDriver requires drivers for different browsers (e.g., ChromeDriver for Chrome, GeckoDriver for Firefox).

You can download the WebDriver executables from the following sites:

ChromeDriver: https://sites.google.com/a/chromium.org/chromedriver/

GeckoDriver (for Firefox): https://github.com/mozilla/geckodriver/releases

EdgeDriver: https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/tools/webdriver/

Make sure to download the driver version that corresponds to your browser version.

Step 6: Write Your First Selenium Test

Now that everything is set up, you can write a simple test to verify that Selenium WebDriver works.

Create a new Java class in your project, e.g., FirstTest.java.

Add the following code:

java

Copy

Edit

import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;

import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;

public class FirstTest {

    public static void main(String[] args) {

        // Set the system property for the WebDriver executable

        System.setProperty("webdriver.chrome.driver", "path_to_your_chromedriver");

        // Initialize the ChromeDriver

        WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();

        // Open a webpage

        driver.get("https://www.google.com");

        // Get the page title

        System.out.println("Page Title: " + driver.getTitle());

        // Close the browser

        driver.quit();

    }

}

Important Notes:

Replace path_to_your_chromedriver with the actual path to your ChromeDriver executable.

Make sure the WebDriver version matches the browser version.

Step 7: Run Your Test

In your IDE, run the FirstTest Java class.

The Chrome browser will launch, navigate to Google, and print the page title in the console.

The browser will close once the test is complete.

Step 8: Using WebDriverManager (Optional)

If you don't want to manually download and set the WebDriver executable path, you can use WebDriverManager to automatically handle this.

Add the following code to your FirstTest:

java

Copy

Edit

import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;

import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;

import io.github.bonigarcia.wdm.WebDriverManager;

public class FirstTest {

    public static void main(String[] args) {

        // Setup WebDriverManager to manage ChromeDriver

        WebDriverManager.chromedriver().setup();

        // Initialize the ChromeDriver

        WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();

        // Open a webpage

        driver.get("https://www.google.com");

        // Get the page title

        System.out.println("Page Title: " + driver.getTitle());

        // Close the browser

        driver.quit();

    }

}

WebDriverManager will automatically download and set the correct version of ChromeDriver for you.

Step 9: Advanced Selenium Setup (Optional)

Headless Testing: If you want to run tests without opening a browser window, you can enable headless mode for Chrome:

java

Copy

Edit

import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeOptions;

ChromeOptions options = new ChromeOptions();

options.addArguments("--headless");  // Run in headless mode

WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver(options);

Setting up Firefox: You can follow the same process for Firefox by using FirefoxDriver instead of ChromeDriver:

java

Copy

Edit

import org.openqa.selenium.firefox.FirefoxDriver;

import io.github.bonigarcia.wdm.WebDriverManager;

WebDriverManager.firefoxdriver().setup();

WebDriver driver = new FirefoxDriver();

Step 10: Run and Troubleshoot

Once your test is running smoothly, you can expand it by performing actions like clicking buttons, filling out forms, and verifying elements.

If you face any issues:

Make sure that all dependencies are added correctly.

Check that the browser version matches the WebDriver version.

Ensure that all paths (for WebDriver executables) are correct.

This should help you get started with Selenium WebDriver in Java. Once you are comfortable with this basic setup, you can explore more advanced features such as interacting with dynamic elements, handling waits, and using frameworks like TestNG or JUnit for test automation.

Learn Selenium JAVA Course

Read More

Introduction to Selenium WebDriver with Java

How do I handle cookies in Selenium Java?

Visit Our IHUB Talent Training in Hyderabad

Get Directions