Components of Selenium

Selenium is a powerful tool for controlling web browsers through programs. It is functional for all browsers, works on all major OS, and its scripts are written in various languages i.e., Python, Java, C#, etc. Selenium has four major components Selenium IDE, Selenium RC, Selenium Web driver, and Selenium GRID.

Read More: Selenium – Components, Features, Uses and Limitations

Here are the points that we will discuss in detail.

Components of Selenium

Selenium has been in the industry for a long time and used by Automation Testers all around the globe. Let's check the four major components of Selenium.

1. Selenium IDE 
2. Selenium Remote Control (RC)
3. Selenium WebDriver
4. Selenium Grid

1. Selenium IDE

Selenium IDE is an Open-Source Tool that is widely used in conducting automated web testing and Browser Automation. This tool is intended mainly for Web Application testers and developers to develop, edit, and run automated test cases for Web Applications.

Selenium IDE lets you easily playback and record interactively web application activities during test automation on the browser-based interface.

Features of Selenium IDE:

Features of Selenium IDE are as follows:

1. Language Support: Selenium supports multiple Programming Languages like Java, Python, C#, Ruby, Perl, etc., for writing Test Scripts thus making testers write their own set of automation test scripts in their preferred language.
2. Multi-Browser Compatibility: Selenium supports multiple web browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Internet Explorer, allowing cross-browser testing.
3. Flexible language: Once the test cases are prepared, they can be executed on any operating system like Linux, Macintosh, MAC, etc.
4. Parallel Test Execution: Selenium enables running test cases in parallel, reducing execution time and increasing its efficiency.
5. Handling of Pop-ups and Alerts: Selenium provides methods to handle pop-ups and alerts that may appear during the execution of test cases.

2. Selenium RC (Remote control)

Selenium Remote Control (RC) was one of the earliest Selenium tools, preceding WebDriver. It allowed testers to write automated web application tests in various programming languages like Java, C#, Python, etc. The key feature of Selenium RC was its ability to interact with web browsers using a server, which acted as an intermediary between the testing code and the browser.

WebDriver is often considered the better choice over Selenium RC for several reasons are follows:

1. Improved API: WebDriver offers a more straightforward and intuitive API (Application programming Interface) compared to Selenium RC, making it easier for developers and testers to write and maintain automated tests.
2. Better Performance: WebDriver interacts directly with the browser, bypassing the need for an intermediary server like Selenium RC, which leads to faster test execution and improved performance.
3. Support for Modern Web Technologies: WebDriver has better support for modern web technologies such as HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript frameworks, ensuring compatibility with the latest web applications.

3. Selenium Web Driver

Selenium WebDriver is a robust Open-Source Framework for Automating Web Browsers, primarily aimed at easing the testing and verification of Web Applications. As an important part of the Selenium Components, WebDriver offers a programming interface to interact with web browsers, allowing developers and testers to automate browser actions seamlessly.

Features of Selenium Web:

Features of Selenium Web Driver are as follows:

1. Direct Communication with Browsers: Unlike Selenium RC, WebDriver interacts directly with the browser’s native support for automation, leading to more stable and reliable testing.
2. Support for Parallel Execution: WebDriver allows for parallel test execution, enabling faster test cycles and efficient utilization of resources.
3. Rich Set of APIs: WebDriver provides a comprehensive set of APIs for navigating through web pages, Interacting With Web Elements, managing windows, Handling Alerts, and etc.

4. Selenium GRID

Selenium Grid is a server that allows tests to use web browser instances running on remote machines. With Selenium Grid, one server acts as the hub. Tests contact the hub to obtain access to browser instances.

Features of Selenium GRID:

Features of Selenium GRID are as follows:

1. Selenium Grid allows running tests in parallel on multiple machines and managing different browser versions.
2. The ability to run tests on remote browser instances is useful to spread the load of testing across several machines.
3. Run tests in browsers running on different platforms or operating systems.

Conclusion

Selenium is a dynamic tool for automation web browsers, which offer the components like Selenium IDE, RC, WebDriver, and Grid for more information of web testing. it is a support for various languages and parallel execution which makes it a powerful choice for automation testers.