WebDriver
[This documentation is preliminary and is subject to change.]
WebDriver provides an API to automate testing user scenarios in the browser.
What is WebDriver?
WebDriver enables developers to create automated tests that simulate users interacting with web pages and report back results. This is different from JavaScript unit tests because WebDriver has access to functionality and information that JavaScript running in the browser doesn't, and it can more accurately simulate user events or OS-level events.
It can also manage testing across multiple windows, tabs, and webpages in a single test session.
Installing WebDriver in Internet Explorer Developer Channel 1
Didn't I install WebDriver with Internet Explorer Developer Channel 1?
Yes, but it was not activated. Once WebDriver is activated, any program that knows how to access it can control your browser. To make sure no one is surprised by their browser being controlled unexpectedly, the current version of WebDriver needs to be activated manually. To do that, follow these steps:
Open a command prompt with administrator privileges. The easiest way to do this is press the WINDOWS LOGO KEY + X for the Quick Link menu, then press A to select the "Command Prompt (Admin)" option.
A User Account Control prompt will ask you to confirm you want to let the command prompt make changes to your computer. Approve it and a command prompt window will open.
Navigate to where the Internet Explorer Developer Channel 1 installer placed the WebDriver library:
cd C:\Program Files\Common Files\IEDCWebDriverRegister the IEDCWebDriver.dll file:
regsvr32 IEDCWebDriver.dllOpen Internet Explorer Developer Channel 1. Open Internet Options from the Tools menu, select the Security tab, and near the bottom of the tab, check the box next to Enable Protected Mode. Apply the new setting. You're ready to use WebDriver.
How do I disable WebDriver in Internet Explorer Developer Channel 1?
Follow the instructions above, but uncheck the box next to Enable Protected Mode and unregister the library with:
regsvr32 /u IEDCWebDriver.dll
Running WebDriver Apps with Internet Explorer Developer Channel
If you want to run a compiled app that targets WebDriver, you need to provide an appvve flag with a special GUID at runtime to ensure it properly targets Internet Explorer Developer Channel 1. For example, if your app was named WDApp.exe, you should run it from the command line using the following:
WDApp.exe /appvve [GUID].
A way to automate this is to right-click on your app in the file manager and choose Create shortcut, then right-click the resulting shortcut item and choose Properties. Select the Shortcut tab of the Properties window.
In the Target field, you'll see the path to your app in quotes. Append the /appvve flag and GUID within the quotes and apply the change. Using the shortcut will run your app with the flag appended every time.
Important
The GUID noted above is for the first release of Internet Explorer Developer Channel. The GUID will change with each release, so if you're testing apps written against this release with a newer release, check that version's documentation for the correct GUID.
Important
The flag and GUID are built into the settings of the WebDriver C# sample project. Visual Studio will apply them as a runtime flag automatically when launching debugging sessions in Visual Studio, but it's not built into the compiled apps.
Using WebDriver
WebDriver in Internet Explorer Developer Channel 1 is experimental and only responds to commands sent through a COM interface. For more information on the COM interface and using the sample code, please see the Internet Explorer Developer Channel 1 developer guide page for the WebDriver API.
For the currently implemented list of commands, please visit the WebDriver command list.