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Accessing Angular Inside Protractor Test

Protractor is a handy end-to-end testing framework for Angular applications. When it comes to testing your Angular app, Protractor is a robust tool that helps ensure everything works smoothly. However, there might be situations where you need to access Angular-specific elements within your Protractor tests. In this article, we'll dive into the steps to access Angular inside a Protractor test.

First, it's essential to understand that accessing Angular within Protractor is crucial to perform specific actions that interact directly with the Angular elements of your application. To achieve this, you can access the Angular-specific elements through the browser using the '_browser' object provided by Protractor.

To get started, you can use the following code snippet within your Protractor test:

Javascript

browser.waitForAngularEnabled(false);

By setting 'waitForAngularEnabled' to 'false,' you disable wait for Angular to be present; allowing you to interact with Angular elements directly. This is particularly helpful when dealing with non-Angular elements within your Angular application or communicating with APIs.

Once you've disabled waiting for Angular, you can then proceed to access Angular elements using regular Protractor commands like 'element,' 'by,' 'sendKeys,' and more. Here's an example of how you can accomplish this:

Javascript

element(by.model('yourModelName')).sendKeys('Your Text');

By utilizing these Protractor commands, you can seamlessly interact with Angular elements within your tests.

It's worth noting that after executing your desired actions on Angular elements, you might want to re-enable waiting for Angular. To do this, you can simply turn 'waitForAngularEnabled' back to 'true' as shown below:

Javascript

browser.waitForAngularEnabled(true);

This will restore the default behavior of Protractor to wait for Angular to be present, ensuring synchronization between Protractor and Angular elements.

In some scenarios, you may need to wait for specific Angular events or tasks to complete before proceeding with your test. Protractor provides the 'browser.wait' function, allowing you to wait for a particular condition to be met. This is incredibly useful when dealing with asynchronous tasks in your Angular application. Here's an example showcasing how you can use 'browser.wait' to wait for an Angular element to be visible:

Javascript

browser.wait(ExpectedConditions.visibilityOf(element(by.css('yourCssSelector'))), 5000, 'Element taking too long to appear');

By incorporating 'browser.wait' into your Protractor tests, you can efficiently handle asynchronous operations and ensure your tests run smoothly.

In conclusion, being able to access Angular inside your Protractor tests opens up a wide range of possibilities for testing and interacting with Angular-specific elements. By following the steps outlined in this article, you can effectively access Angular elements within your Protractor tests and enhance the overall testing experience of your Angular application.