Karate Desktop Automation with Karate Robot: A Comprehensive Guide

Are you looking to expand your automation testing toolkit beyond web and API testing? Karate, a popular open-source framework known for its simplicity in API testing, now offers desktop automation capabilities through the Karate Robot feature. In this blog, I'll guide you through everything you need to know to get started with Karate Desktop Automation using the Karate Robot.

🚀 What is Karate?
Karate is a powerful open-source test automation framework that simplifies testing for APIs, web UIs, and now, even desktop applications. With its easy-to-understand syntax, Karate has become a favorite among testers for API and web automation. The new Karate Robot extends Karate’s capabilities to desktop automation, allowing you to interact with native applications on Windows.

🖥️ What is Karate Robot?
Karate Robot is an extension of the Karate framework designed for desktop automation. It allows you to automate interactions with desktop applications by simulating mouse clicks, keyboard inputs, and other interactions. This is particularly useful for testing Windows-based applications that don't have a web interface.

🌟 Key Features of Karate Robot
Cross-Platform Support: Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
Keyboard and Mouse Automation: Automate key presses, mouse clicks, and drag-and-drop actions.
Screenshot and Image Recognition: Capture screenshots, find images on the screen, and interact with them.
Seamless Integration with Karate Scripts: Leverage existing Karate features like data-driven testing and assertions.
🎯 Use Cases for Karate Desktop Automation
Automating Legacy Applications that don't have an API or web interface.
Automating Desktop-based Reports or batch processes that need user interaction.
Automating Testing for EHR/EMR systems in healthcare or financial desktop applications.
🛠️ Getting Started with Karate Robot
Let's dive into a step-by-step guide on how to set up and use Karate Robot for desktop automation.

1. 📥 Installation Ensure you have the latest version of Karate installed. You can download it here.

Add the Karate dependency to your pom.xml if you are using Maven:

xml
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com.intuit.karate
karate-core
1.5.1

1. ⚙️ Configuration Create a new Karate project or use an existing one. Your project structure should look like this:

arduino
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src/test/java
└───karate-config.js
└───features
└───DesktopAutomation.feature

1. ✍️ Writing Your First Karate Robot Script Create a new .feature file for your desktop automation script:

DesktopAutomation.feature

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Feature: Desktop Automation using Karate Robot

Scenario: Launch Notepad and Type Text
* def robot = karate.robot()

# Launch Notepad (Windows-specific)
* robot.winRun('notepad.exe')
* robot.waitForWindow('Untitled - Notepad')

# Type some text
* robot.type('Hello, Karate Robot!')

# Take a screenshot
* def screenshot = robot.screenshot()
* karate.log('Screenshot captured:', screenshot)

# Close Notepad
* robot.key('ALT+F4')
* robot.key('ENTER')

1. 🖱️ Understanding the Code robot.winRun('notepad.exe') - Launches the Notepad application. robot.type('Hello, Karate Robot!') - Types the specified text into the active window. robot.screenshot() - Captures a screenshot of the current screen. robot.key('ALT+F4') - Simulates pressing the ALT+F4 keyboard shortcut to close the window.
2. ▶️ Running the Script To run your Karate Robot script, execute the following command in your terminal:

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mvn test -Dkarate.options="--tags @desktop"
📸 Advanced Karate Robot Features
Image Recognition and Mouse Actions
If you need to click on specific UI elements, you can use image recognition:

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Scenario: Click on an Image Button

• def robot = karate.robot()
• robot.winRun('calc.exe')
• robot.waitForWindow('Calculator')

# Locate an image on the screen and click it

• robot.click('src/test/resources/images/equals.png')

# Close Calculator

• robot.key('ALT+F4') Drag and Drop Automate drag-and-drop functionality:

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Scenario: Drag and Drop Example

• def robot = karate.robot()
• robot.mouseMove(100, 200)
• robot.mouseDown()
• robot.mouseMove(300, 400)
• robot.mouseUp() 🛡️ Best Practices for Karate Desktop Automation Use Explicit Waits: Always use waitForWindow() or other wait functions to ensure the application is ready. Keep Screenshots for Debugging: Use the screenshot() function to capture images for troubleshooting. Modularize Scripts: Break down your scripts into reusable functions for better maintainability. 🤖 Real-World Use Case: Automating EHR System Tests I recently used Karate Robot to automate testing for an EHR desktop application. The goal was to validate the functionality of patient registration, prescription entry, and billing processes. Using Karate Robot, I was able to automate these workflows by simulating user interactions, resulting in a 50% reduction in manual testing time.

🎉 Conclusion
Karate Robot is a game-changer for testers looking to expand their automation skills beyond web and API testing. Its simple yet powerful capabilities make it an excellent choice for automating desktop applications, especially legacy systems that lack modern interfaces.

Feel free to share your thoughts or questions in the comments below. Happy testing with Karate Robot! 🚀

📚 Additional Resources
Official Karate GitHub Repository
Karate Robot Documentation