Docker is an open source platform for building and running distributed applications using Linux containers. Popular headless browsers for test automation include PhantomJS, HtmlUnit, and ZombieJS, but these can be difficult to work with and don't behave exactly like real browsers. Selenium Standalone and Selenium Grid with Docker allow tests to run on real Firefox and Chrome browsers within Docker containers instead of headless browsers, avoiding issues with headless browsers while keeping tests portable with Docker.

1. Selenium & Docker
in Test Automation
Mustafa Topcuogullari

2. What is Docker?
Docker is an open source platform to build, ship and run distributed applications
based on Linux containers.

3. Test Automations and Headless Browsers
The most populer ones:
- PhantomJS
- HtmlUnit
- ZombieJS
Why Headless Browsers?
- Main reason: Remote Servers without desktop gui
- To get results quickly. (I don’t think so.)

4. How to develop with Headless Browsers?
- First, develop your code based on real browser.
- Then improve your code according to Headless Browser to able to run
successfully.
Certainly, getting problem while running on Headless Browsers despite it is
working successfully on real browsers.
- ajax, javascript, loading wait, timing for asserts, rendering etc…
After all these struggles, your test won’t have run on any real browser! :(

5. Headless browser? No thanks...
Because Selenium dockerized real browsers Firefox and Chrome.
- Selenium Standalone: Firefox and Chrome
- Selenium Grid: Selenium hub and nodes of Firefox and Chrome.

7. Let’s do some short demo for each of
them!
- webdriverJS will be used for simple demo automated tests.

8. Selenium Standalone Chrome

9. Selenium Grid: Hub and Nodes

10. Outcomes
- Tests will be running on (dockerized) REAL browsers as headless instead using
pure headless browsers.*
- No struggling to suit your codes for headless browsers.
- Reducing dependencies to only one thing. Docker.*

11. Full independent test framework*

12. That’s all folks ! :)