Automated Testing for WPF Desktop Applications

Pop-Ups Automation

Problem

Automating pop-ups has always been a challenge for most automated software testing tools. In WPF applications, it is even more complicated because the respective controls are not part of the main Visual Tree since each pop-up under test would have its own Visual Tree, not accessible from the main application tree.

Solution

The Test Studio recording surface enables users to detect WPF pop-ups and connect to them. Users can highlight elements within these pop-ups, and record verifications against them as well as navigate through their Visual Trees in the DOM Explorer.
Elaborate Graphics and Animations

Problem

The WPF platform provides an avenue for displaying complex graphics and custom themes, rich media elements, 3D surfaces and interactive effects. These impose challenges to testers trying to automate these animated objects.

Solution

The Test Studio execution engine waits for an element to become visible and for the item to stop its animations. Automated software testing instantly detects if the element is in view, and if not, scrolls to make it visible. Only then, will the action be performed.
Testing Custom Controls

Problem

When building next-generation, line-of-business and kiosk applications, developers quite often customize out-of-the-box components to complete their applications. The Visual Tree, however, fails to recognize the base control of the newly-created component, and therefore files it as a new element type.

Solution

As soon as the Test Studio recording surface detects a custom control in the app under test, it identifies the base class that the control has inherited and shows the quick tasks for it. You no longer have to worry about using custom controls to achieve stunning user experiences. If you need to test an application built with Telerik WPF controls, Test Studio will instantly detect them and suggest specific verifications even for complex data and navigation components.
High Level of Tech Skills Needed

Problem

You need considerable scripting knowledge to test WPF applications through any of the available testing tools on the market. This makes it hard for testers with no development skills. As developers need to be involved in the testing process, the result means a slower development cycle and much higher production and maintenance costs.

Solution

With Test Studio, it only takes a point-and-click to build test automation for WPF applications. This approach not only simplifies the testing process, but also makes test maintenance much easier. Recording WPF tests doesn’t differ from recording any other app, so there is no need to learn new technologies to automate it.
Platform Complexity

Problem

The extremely robust and complex WPF platform presents numerous obstacles when it comes to test automation. In WPF, you can have unlimited number of elements, which makes the object hierarchy quite complicated. Users find it hard to understand the parent/child element relationships in the application.

Solution

The Test Studio powerful recorder helps users locate the targeted element in the application hierarchy with a mouse-click. The recording surface offers visual cues which represent the object layers in the hierarchy. Depending on which selection box users choose, specific to the object verifications will be exposed.
Automating WPF Desktop Applications

Building on the potential of the WPF platform and established Progress leadership in presentation layer technologies, Test Studio naturally expands Progress expertise to the field of WPF test automation. Our automated software testing tool is among the few to deliver rich UI object model that covers the entire range of UI elements in WPF. Test Studio was built with Telerik UI for WPF, thus strengthening the product team’s profound knowledge of the WPF platform.