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In the previous blog, we saw that we can integrate our test cases with Jenkins. Now, in this blog, we will see how we can achieve data-driven testing using karate DSL.

What is DDT?

• DDT or data-driven testing is an technique in which we read the data from a table or an excel sheet or a CSV file (or any external file), and take them directly as input for our test cases.
• This data is also verified by checking that the information which is being stored in the database is the same which we are sending in the request.
• A single test case is run with multiple data set as it becomes tedious to write the same test case again and again.

What is Scenario Outline?

• As karate follows BDD (Cucumber / Gherkin), we will be using Scenario Outline for that. Let’s see what is Scenario outline.
• This keyword is used for running the same scenario again and again with multiple combinations of inputs.
• Each input is taken from a table or an external file.
• Writing the same test cases multiples times just by changing the values becomes repetitive and very tedious. And also increases the lines of code.
• Scenario outline must contain an Examples section where the data is stored.

.feature file with Scenario Outline:

Feature: POSTCallReadingDataTable

  Background:
    * url 'https://43db3005-4ed9-4bab-b0a3-bb066e79e816.mock.pstmn.io'

  Scenario Outline: create a user from given details.

    Given path '/POSTUser'
    And request {firstName:<firstName>, lastName:<lastName>,username:<userName>,email:<email>}
    When method post
    Then status 201
    Then print response

    And match $.Status == '#present'
    And match $.Status == 'OK'

    Examples:
      | firstName       | lastName       | username       | email                |
      | John            | Wick           | john123        | johnwick@gmail.com   |
      | Wiz             | Vegas          | wizGamer       | wiz1122@gmail.com    |
      | Post            | Malone         | malone123      | postmalone@gmail.com |

• In the above example in the request section of our test script we are using <> as a reference.
• <firstName> is referring to the firstName field in the Examples table.
• The examples table is divided into 2 parts, the key, and the corresponding values.
• The first line has the key which is passed in the request section without the <>.
• In the second line, we have defined the inputs which will replace the values in the request section with <>.

• As we can see in the above example we have a single scenario which got executed three times as we have defined three inputs in the Examples section.

Reading data from CSV file

• We can execute the same test by taking the values from an external CSV file as well.

CSV file

• Content of karateTestData.csv

firstName,lastName,username,email
Mike,,Posner,mike1234@gmail.com
Steve,Aoki,steveyy,steve556677@gmail.com
Afro,Jack,afroJack,afro998877@gmail.com

Reading CSV file stored in the same directory:

Feature: POSTCallReadingDataFromCSVFile

  Background:
    * url 'https://43db3005-4ed9-4bab-b0a3-bb066e79e816.mock.pstmn.io'

  Scenario Outline: create a user from given details.

    Given path '/POSTUser'
    And request {firstName:<firstName>, lastName:<lastName>,username:<userName>,email:<email>}
    When method post
    Then status 201
    Then print response

    And match $.Status == '#present'
    And match $.Status == 'OK'

    Examples:
      | read('karateTestData.csv') |

• | read(‘karateTestData.csv’) |will read the data from the file in JSON format and input it in the service.

So, this was a short blog on how to execute data driven testing using karate. See you in the next one.

References:

https://cucumber.io/docs/gherkin/reference/