Selenium team has added Selenium 4.0 Alpha to <a href="https://mvnrepository.com/artifact/org.seleniumhq.selenium/selenium-java">mvnrepository</a> two weeks back(24th April) and has created a buzz in the Automation QA Community. 



The QA fraternity has been eagerly waiting for one or more features proposed in this release. The most significant of them would be the <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/webdriver1/">W3C Standardization</a>. It would make the Framework much more stable and reduce some of the compatibility issues across different Web Browsers. 



Another beginner-friendly change that is coming with this major release is updated Documentation.&nbsp;After version 2,&nbsp;Selenium Documentation had not been thoroughly updated. The updated documentation would help beginners, as well as the experienced, immensely. We also hope some of the drawbacks in the article&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://testsigma.com/blog/selenium-automation-testing-pros-cons/" target="_blank">Pros and Cons of Selenium as an Automation Testing tool</a>&nbsp;will be handled by Selenium 4.



Let us look at some of the prominent changes that we can expect in Selenium 4. And if you dig in at the right place, you can see the complete list of changes in CHANGELOG or CHANGES file &#8211; <a href="https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium">Selenium Github Repo</a> 



Note: This is not a complete list and I have deliberately omitted many of the underlying implementation and architectural changes that a regular QA Automation guy like me wouldn’t have to deal with on a daily basis 😀







<div id="toc_container" class="no_bullets">Table Of Contents<ul class="toc_list"><li><a href="#Architectural_Changes">1 Architectural Changes</a><ul><li><a href="#1_Now_using_W3C_Protocol_for_Browser-driver_Communications">1.1 1. Now using W3C Protocol for Browser-driver Communications</a></li><li><a href="#2_Compliant_withnbspW3C_WebDriver_Specifications">1.2 2. Compliant with&nbsp;W3C WebDriver Specifications</a></li><li><a href="#3_Removed_support_for_few_Browsers">1.3 3. Removed support for few Browsers</a></li><li><a href="#4_Optimized_Selenium_grid">1.4 4. Optimized Selenium grid</a></li><li><a href="#5_Added_limited_support_for_Opentracing_and_Docker">1.5 5. Added limited support for Opentracing and Docker</a></li></ul></li><li><a href="#API_changes">2 API changes</a><ul><li><a href="#1_Changes_to_Window_class">2.1 1. Changes to Window class</a></li><li><a href="#2_Changes_to_Builder_class">2.2 2. Changes to Builder class</a></li><li><a href="#3_Changes_to_chromeDriver">2.3 3. Changes to chrome.Driver</a></li><li><a href="#4_Changes_to_firefoxDriver">2.4 4. Changes to firefox.Driver</a></li><li><a href="#5_Changes_to_Options_Class">2.5 5. Changes to Options Class</a></li><li><a href="#6_Changes_to_Errors">2.6 6. Changes to Errors</a></li><li><a href="#7_Changes_to_WebDriver">2.7 7. Changes to WebDriver</a></li><li><a href="#8_Changes_to_Alerts">2.8 8. Changes to Alerts</a></li><li><a href="#9_Others">2.9 9. Others</a></li></ul></li><li><a href="#Standardized_Documentation">3 Standardized Documentation</a></li><li><a href="#Footnote">4 Footnote</a></li></ul></div>
<h2 id="architectural-changes">Architectural Changes</h2>



<h3 id="1-now-using-w3c-protocol-for-browser-driver-communications">1. Now using W3C Protocol for Browser-driver Communications</h3>



The earlier versions of Selenium used JSON wire protocol which required encoding and decoding of the API. Whereas, Selenium 4 will now use a standard W3C Protocol to communicate between the driver and the browser. The advantage is that W3C protocol doesn’t require encoding or decoding the API and the tests will be able to directly communicate with the Browser.



<h3 id="2-compliant-with-w3c-webdriver-specifications">2. Compliant with&nbsp;W3C WebDriver Specifications</h3>



Selenium 4 will be entirely compliant with W3C WebDriver standards and this will include the documentation as well. So, the updated documentation will cover detailed instructions for usage.



Also, The actions API has been revamped&nbsp;to conform with the WebDriver Spec.



<h3 id="3-removed-support-for-few-browsers">3. Removed support for few Browsers</h3>



The team will remove native support for&nbsp;Opera&nbsp;and&nbsp;PhantomJS&nbsp;going forward. Still, the users who need to test Opera can rely on Chrome since Opera is based on Chromium(which Chrome is forked from) and for PhantomJS users can use <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="The team will remove native support for&nbsp;Opera&nbsp;and&nbsp;PhantomJS. Still, the users who need to test Opera can relay on Chrome since Opera is based on Chromium and for PhantomJS users can use Chrome or Firefox in headless mode as shown in the example (opens in a new tab)" href="https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/blob/trunk/javascript/node/selenium-webdriver/example/headless.js" target="_blank">Chrome or Firefox in headless mode</a>.



<a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/selenium-standalone-server/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Selenium Server</a> now no longer includes HtmlUnit by default.<gwmw style="display:none;">



<h3 id="4-optimized-selenium-grid">4. Optimized Selenium grid</h3>



Alpha version of new Grid Server supports &#8220;standalone&#8221;, &#8220;hub&#8221;, &#8220;node&#8221;, and completely distributed usage. Also, this new Grid Server can output logs in single-line JSON format to the stdout.



<h3 id="5-added-limited-support-for-opentracing-and-docker">5. Added limited support for Opentracing and Docker</h3>



Basic support for OpenTracing landed. Use the &#8211;ext flag to the new Grid Server to provide the classpath to an OpenTracing implementation.



Selenium 4 will introduce Basic support for using Docker containers with the new Grid Server. More information will be available once the official documentation is released.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



Check out Testsigma to see how most of these things are already considered and made available to all our customers. 



<figure class="wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" width="3001" height="582" data-id="3532" src="https://testsigma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/1.jpg" alt="Try Testsigma banner ad" class="wp-image-3532"/><figcaption>Create your tests in simple English and run them in parallel</figcaption></a></figure>
</figure>



<h2 id="api-changes">API changes</h2>



<h3 id="1-changes-to-window-class">1. Changes to Window class</h3>



<ul class="list_style_disc"><li>All window manipulation commands are now supported &#8211; fullscreen() and minimize() methods will be added.</li><li>Added getRect() &amp; setRect() and removed getSize() &amp; getPosition() &#8211; The getRect() method retrieves a rect describing the current top-level window’s size and position. setRect() method sets the current top-level window’s size and position. This will replace the getSize() and getPosition() methods &#8211; Underlying implementation methods (These changes are not relevant in common usage).</li></ul>



<h3 id="2-changes-to-builder-class">2. Changes to Builder class</h3>



<ul class="list_style_disc"><li>Added “setChromeService”, “setEdgeService”, &amp; “setFirefoxService” methods &#8211;&nbsp;Underlying implementation methods (These changes are not relevant in common usage).</li></ul>



<h3 id="3-changes-to-chrome-driver">3. Changes to chrome.Driver</h3>



<ul class="list_style_disc"><li>Added sendDevToolsCommand() &#8211; The sendDevToolsCommand() method sends an arbitrary devtools command to the browser and returns a promise that will be resolved when the command has finished.</li><li>Added setDownloadPath() &#8211; The setDownloadPath() method sends a DevTools command to change Chrome’s download directory and returns a promise that will be resolved when the command has finished.</li></ul>



<h3 id="4-changes-to-firefox-driver">4. Changes to firefox.Driver</h3>



<ul class="list_style_disc"><li>Added installAddon(path) &#8211;&nbsp;The installAddon() method installs a new addon within the current session. This function will return an &#8220;id&#8221; that can be used to uninstall the addon using uninstallAddon().</li><li>Added uninstallAddon(id) &#8211; Uninstall the Addon using ID.</li><li>Added addExtensions()&nbsp;&#8211; Add extension to the automation session easily.</li><li>Added setPreference() &#8211; Add preferences to the session.</li></ul>



<h3 id="5-changes-to-options-class">5. Changes to Options Class</h3>



<ul class="list_style_disc"><li>Options class now extends Capabilities class for Chrome, Firefox, IE, Safari.</li><li>Removed the firefox.profile class. All of its functionality is now provided directly by firefox.options.</li><li>setProfile now only accepts a path to an existing profile.</li></ul>



<h3 id="6-changes-to-errors">6. Changes to Errors</h3>



<ul class="list_style_disc"><li>Added ElementClickInterceptedError &#8211; The Selenium code throws ElementClickInterceptedError when a click command cannot complete due to the click target being obscured by other elements on the page.</li><li>Added InsecureCertificateError &#8211; The Selenium code throws InsecureCertificateError when a navigation event causes the browser to generate a certificate warning. An expired or invalid TLS certificate usually cause this. </li><li>Added InvalidCoordinatesError &#8211; The Selenium code throws InvalidCoordinatesError when an interaction operation becomes invalid due to the passing of invalid coordinates.</li><li>Added NoSuchCookieError &#8211; The Selenium code throws NoSuchCookieError when a named Cookie is missing in the cookie jar for the current document.</li><li>Removed ElementNotVisibleError</li><li>Removed InvalidElementCoordinatesError</li></ul>



<h3 id="7-changes-to-webdriver">7. Changes to WebDriver</h3>



<ul class="list_style_disc"><li>Added driver.switchTo().parentFrame() &#8211;&nbsp;We can use it to go from the child frame to the parent frame directly.</li><li>Removed touchActions﻿</li></ul>



<h3 id="8-changes-to-alerts">8. Changes to Alerts</h3>



<ul class="list_style_disc"><li>Removed authenticateAs</li></ul>



<h3 id="9-others">9. Others</h3>



<ul class="list_style_disc"><li>Element screenshots are now possible</li><li>Added support for WebSockets to the HttpClient</li><li>Deleted many of the deprecated methods and classes</li></ul>



<h2 id="standardized-documentation">Standardized Documentation</h2>



The main problem which most Selenium users face is that there is no proper and updated documentation for Selenium. The Selenium team has not updated the documentation since Selenium 2.0. With Selenium 4, they have updated Selenium’s official documentation to explain the latest changes.







<h2 id="footnote">Footnote</h2>



While it&#8217;s great to see the improvements that are expected to be covered in Selenium 4, it would be a hassle for small and medium-sized teams to read through the API docs, analyze the changes, and rectify the tests broken by the updates due to the considerable changes. 



Many of the above-discussed changes have already been implemented by test automation tools like <a href="https://testsigma.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Many of the above-discussed changes have already been implemented by test automation tools like Testsigma.
 (opens in a new tab)">Testsigma</a>. 



With a cloud-based tool like Testsigma, the updates will be reviewed internally and applied to all the customer’s tests automatically without any additional time, resources and efforts from the teams and is very easy for functional teams to get started!



 



<figure class="wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" width="3001" height="830" data-id="3560" src="https://testsigma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/7.jpg" alt="Test automation simplified with Testsigma,Test automation without coding, TryTestsigma" class="wp-image-3560"/></a></figure>
</figure>

Selenium 4.0(alpha) – What Test Automation Engineers can expect!

pros and cons of Selenium Automation Tools

Pros and Cons of Selenium as an Automation Testing tool

Selenium alternative for Automated Regression Testing

Top Limitations and Challenges in Selenium &  Solution

‘Cloud’ is not a new concept. Read <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="‘Cloud’ is not a new concept Read →. Today, applications are becoming cloud based aiming for better productivity with scalable resources. The cloud can overcome the existing QA infrastructure limitations and simulate real system behavior to eliminate system test dependencies and the need of setting up traditional testing environments.
 (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.computerweekly.com/feature/A-history-of-cloud-computing" target="_blank">→</a>. Today, applications are becoming cloud-based aiming for better productivity with scalable resources. The cloud can overcome the existing QA infrastructure limitations and simulate real system behaviour to eliminate system test dependencies and the need of setting up traditional testing environments. 



Cloud QA environments speed up the test automation process and accelerates software delivery and allows scaling up or down the resources any time. It also allows for parallel development with shared test environments and integration suites across teams without any geographical constraints.



If disparate teams are working on the same app, their progress can be easily monitored, reducing the potential for redundancies and errors in the system.



Cloud testing is ideal for DevOps as it boosts automation and allows for iterative deployments and, facilitate agile ideas like continuous integration. Being able to constantly test ensures that new pieces of code can be deployed much faster than ever before. The tests can be run in customized test environments without the pain of setting each combination for the individual user and this has no limit.







The era of cloud computing provides the ability to match automation with resource capacity as and when required. It is important to ensure that this capacity matches closely with business demands, thus eliminating the cost of unused resources between spikes in workloads. Doing this ensures an optimal workload and reduce the overall cost. 



Read to know the various <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/what-are-some-benefits-of-doing-automation-testing-on-the-cloud/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Benefits of Cloud-Based Automated Testing</a> Tools in detail.<gwmw style="display:none;">



Now, let us see how the <g class="gr_ gr_3 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_disable_anim_appear ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="3" data-gr-id="3">cloud-based</g>&nbsp;automation testing tool, <a href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Testsigma</a> addresses the problems of cloudless testing and how Testsigma offers a dedicated testing environment to testing teams for Continuous Delivery.







<a href="https://testsigma.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">What is Testsigma</a>?



A <g class="gr_ gr_4 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="4" data-gr-id="4">cloud-based&nbsp;Automation&nbsp;Testing tool on the </g><g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="5" data-gr-id="5">cloud</g>. Not just on the cloud, &nbsp;Testsigma allows for testing of your locally hosted applications as well as cloud applications. 



	What benefits does Testsigma offer: 



Get started on the go



<a href="https://testsigma.com/">Testsigma</a> requires near-zero initial time and cost investment to get started without any setup or installation hassle. You just need to login to your Testsigma account to get started. 



Testsigma provides a <a href="https://testsigma.com/features" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">test automation ecosystem</a> with all the elements required for continuous testing of your application. You need not vest time and energy setting up devices for every device out there! When there is an update, all of the devices are added automatically letting you focus on your tests. 



Testsigma makes it possible to seamlessly automate tests and allows for unlimited parallel executions on a wide variety of device/OS/browser combinations to save time and improve test quality. 



Scalability: 



This is the most valuable and predominant feature of cloud computing. Since the infrastructure is virtual, all your cloud resources can be scaled up easily with a few changes in the configuration.



Testsigma lets you increase your existing resources to accommodate increased business needs or changes. This will allow you to support your business growth without expensive changes to your existing situations. 



If you are searching for a <a href="https://testsigma.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="If you are searching for a scalable Test Automation Solution, Testsigma is here. (opens in a new tab)">scalable Test Automation Solution</a>, Testsigma is here.







Support for multiple test environments and platforms



Testing of applications using different browser/OS/device combinations has become easier with the advent of the cloud. Cloud makes it easier to carry out tests across different platforms in parallel at the same time.



With Testsigma, you can bid goodbye to your test lab with devices and internal Selenium grid. You can schedule your tests simultaneously in multiple execution environments and configure notifications for the status of execution.







Reduces error due to improper setup of Test Environments



It is identified that 30% of defects caused at the time of test automation is as a result of wrongly configured test environments. Setting up tests on different configurations to test against different browser/OS devices in-house is time-intensive and expensive. This also demands a lot of resources.



In such a scenario, the traditional/on-premise applications are tested by deploying them on the cloud.



You may run into any issues during test environment setup as it requires the installation of various device/OS drivers and plugins. Cloud-based automation testing tools provide the <g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="5" data-gr-id="5">virtual</g> infrastructure required for testing and such issues don’t stand a chance. 



In Testsigma, after creating your test cases for a certain platform (web, mobile, or APIs), simply select the operating system, OS version, browser types, and browser version and click on Create and Run. It’s that easy. 



24/7 access to resources



Cloud-based automated testing tools provide the flexibility to get the resources exactly as per need and you need to pay only for what you use. With the cloud, the user no longer has to maintain physical servers/devices instead, you pay a subscription to access an already developed test automation solution via a web browser. You need not worry about maintaining this solution but the vendor takes care of it. Testsigma is an ecosystem of all necessary components required to automate tests 24/7 and can be accessed from anywhere anytime.



You and your team members who are assigned to the project can use a common repository, shared reusable data at a time without any manual setup. 



Better Team Collaboration



Testsigma offers collaboration with your favourite instant communication tools like Slack to communicate uncertainties, track progress and performance of the tests regardless of the geographical constraints.



Testsigma’s scriptless English grammar statements let anyone including SMEs, BAs and stakeholders to be a part of the automation process and share insights. This is particularly important as <a href="https://dzone.com/articles/continuous-testing-functional-experts-agile">SMEs and QAs know</a> the application functionality and customer requirements better than the Automation Testing team. 



Enables comprehensive and thorough testing



Create executions with multiple test environments to run test suites simultaneously for fast feedback. Testsigma lets you use different test environments on the cloud with the same or different configuration to run all your tests for cross-browser, cross-device testing and reduces the feedback time by distributing tests to multiple test environments.



Every customer-facing application interface needs to be thoroughly tested with all possible input data sets that the customer is likely to provide to ensure an error-free customer experience. 



Testsigma&#8217;s Test Data Management system aids in storing and managing all your Test Data in one place to keep your tests clean, simple, readable and ready for data-driven testing. Clearly defined positive and negative Test Data Sets in each Test Data Profile helps you run the same scenario with all possible Test Data combinations. 



User Roles



You have multiple people working on your project and at different locations or maybe working remotely. In addition to actionable results, team collaboration is also important in DevOps. Cross-functional teams across different geographical locations need a common platform to communicate ambiguities in the automated testing process.



Testsigma brings together Testers, Managers, SMEs or Product owners to contribute to test automation and to share valuable inputs or feedback on a common platform to increase collaboration and productivity. Different access levels can be assigned to users across all your projects. 



Reports



Teams need clear actionable reports with every possible detail to analyze test cases. including test environment and environment configurations being used. Know all your test suite results across different environments in each run. 



Test reports are available inside the tool and authorized members of the team can generate reports and share them online. View the test results of each test environment for any execution. Find failed tests, drill down to the environment with failures and take a close look at the failed test suites and identify how your tests are performing with daily, weekly reports. 



Helps the application reach market faster



Cloud-based automation&nbsp;testing tool, Testsigma reduce the time-to-market to a great extent. The various perks it offers such as the in-built test automation ecosystem, easy <a href="https://testsigma.com/test-development" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">test development </a>, increased collaboration, real-time reports, etc speeds up the test automation process and help applications reach th<g class="gr_ gr_5 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="5" data-gr-id="5">e market</g> faster. 



<div class="cta-banner-v2">
<div class="title-with-description ">
Speed up Continuous Testing 10X across your Release Pipeline with Testsigma. No coding required. 
</div>
<a href="https://testsigma.com/signup" target="_blank" class="cta-btn-v1" rel="noopener">Try for free</a>
</div>



Cloud-based Testing is continually evolving and has made a strong impression in the field of Software Test Automation. Testsigma’s approach <g class="gr_ gr_6 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="6" data-gr-id="6">helps</g> Web and mobile dependent businesses to enjoy the full benefits of cloud-based test automation. <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/introducing-top-features-try-testsigma/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Testsigma is among the top</a> automation&nbsp;testing tools in the cloud today!







<div id="toc_container" class="no_bullets">Table Of Contents<ul class="toc_list"><li><a href="#Other_benefits_that_Testsigma_offers_include">1 Other benefits that Testsigma offers include:</a></li><li><a href="#Smart_Automation_Testsigma">2 Smart Automation. Testsigma.</a></li></ul></div>
<h3 id="other-benefits-that-testsigma-offers-include">Other benefits that Testsigma offers include: </h3>



<li>Unified platform for parallel execution of tests that otherwise require multiple platforms and environments</li>



<li>Dynamic locator strategy to automatically heal element changes on a web page saving maintenance efforts by 70%</li>



<li>AI that suggests the affected tests to look for the changes in the application under test</li>



<li>Dynamic reports to help identify errors or defects easily and fix them.<a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/importance-actionable-feedback-test-automation-continuous-delivery/"> Early actionable feedback</a> help reduce the cost to quality and produce efficient tests. It is difficult to generate a lot of data by examining sporadic test failures which Testsigma handles effortlessly for you</li>



<li>With a Shift-Left approach, Testsigma is ready for Continuous Testing while eliminating huge initial cost and ramp up time. <a href="https://dzone.com/articles/in-sprint-test-automation-at-agile-and-dev-ops-spe">Testsigma’s approach to early testing</a> even without the availability of the application is one noteworthy feature. Testsigma allows for instant onboarding and standard configurations across teams. This is especially important for teams looking to <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/test-automation-tool-ready-for-shift-left/">implement shift left test automation</a> in parallel with development.</li>



<li>Testsigma uses no scripting but simple English grammar to automate complex tests. This enables testers write automated tests 10x faster using <a href="https://testsigma.com/blog/natural-language-processing-nlp-based-test-automation/" target="_bank" rel="noopener noreferrer">natural language</a> with no additional automation resources.</li>



<li>Unified platform for both manual and automation testing of Web, Mobile applications and Web Services.</li>



<li>Test management within the automation testing tool to manage automated test cases better in a continuous testing environment</li>



<li>Enterprise-class Test Data Management with support for multiple Test Data sources</li>



<li>Team Collaboration with different access levels for each user to improve reusability and productivity.</li>



<li>A quick ROI guaranteed.</li>



<div class="cta-banner-v2">
<div class="title-with-description ">
Test an app&#8217;s compatibility across 3000+ platforms, OS, and browser combinations for mobile and web devices with Testsigma.
</div>
<a href="https://testsigma.com/signup" target="_blank" class="cta-btn-v1" rel="noopener">Try for free</a>
</div>



Research by Gartner highlights the potential of the cloud and streamlining business-oriented functional testing. Cloud enables you to build your custom infrastructure. You can obtain your own dedicated testing environment resources when you need them and only pay for what you use.



Today, every application is moving to the cloud for more benefits. Cloud-based Testing is continually evolving and has made a strong impression in Test Automation. Testsigma has the experience to help a client plan, test, and optimize IT environments for the successful deployment of enterprise-wide business initiatives.



<h3 id="smart-automation-testsigma">Smart Automation. Testsigma.</h3>