Ranorex Tutorial – A Powerful Test Automation you Need to Learn

Ranorex Studio is a powerful automation test tool for everyone, either he belongs to a technical background or not. It is suitable to record automation tests step-by-step for desktop, mobile, and web apps, etc.

Embedding quality is the ultimate goal for any software system. In the modern world, everything needs to be fast and efficient. The time crunch can be seen everywhere. In such cases, manual testing does not give sufficient results. This is where automation comes to the picture.

Automation testing is a crucial step for complex apps where test cases can be executed automatically. Based on the requirements of a software product, the tool should be chosen wisely. Ranorex Studio is one such a wise selection when it comes to powerful automation tool.

What is the Ranorex Studio?

Ranorex Studio is a powerful tool to automate test cases for web apps, standalone apps, and mobile apps. It can be used by anyone, even non-coders who don’t know how to create test cases for any software product. It is good for all popular technologies like .Net, Java, Flex, HTML, etc. and it can be used for different browsers like Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, etc, and it can be used for different mobile apps like Android, IOS, etc.

The major components of Ranorex Studio can be given as – Ranorex Recorder, Ranorex Spy, Object Repository, Code Editor, and Debugger, etc. in this blog, we will focus on important topics that include Ranorex License, Studio, Spy, Repository, how to create your first project using Ranorex Studio, creating recording modules, and executing tests. Let us discuss them in brief one by one.

Ranorex License

Before we start working with the Ranorex Studio, it should be downloaded and installed on the machine. A trial version is also available on the website to start your practice. For this purpose, you first have to register at the website with your business Email ID.

Once you are registered, a download link will be sent to your business ID, and you install the trial version on your PC. If a business ID is not available then you can contact the sales team, and they can help you in downloading the trial version too.

However, to make use of all features of Ranorex studio beyond 30 days or trial period, one should buy the license. It is available in two premium licenses.

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1. Node-locked
2. Floating

Both licenses have the same features except that a floating license can be shared among multiple users and it can be used on virtual environments too. There is also one premium license called the Runtime License that allows users to run tests on multiple machines at the same time using the same license.

System Settings

System settings for the tool are very simple, and you don’t have to worry about additional components because the Ranorex Studio package itself installs most of the software needed for its working. It is quite easy to install the wizard, and it can be understood quickly. One has to follow step by step instructions to install the wizard and you are done. The tool supports almost all Windows Operating System either they are 32-bit or 64-bit editions.

Ranorex Studio – Download & Install

• Visit the Official web page of Ranorex for the free trial: https://www.ranorex.com/free-trial/ 
• In the second step, give you name, email address (business ID), Company Name, etc as shown in the screenshot. Once you have added all mandatory credentials, click the “Download Now” button in the end.
• Check your Inbox now. One downlink will be given on your business email ID.
• Click the link to start the downloading process.

Ranorex Studio Wizard Setup

• Once the tool is downloaded successfully, start the setup and start following instructions one by one.
• Don’t forget to accept the license agreement.
• Keep in mind that don’t deselect any feature when prompted. 

Finish the Ranorex Studio Installation

• Keep an eye on the installation progress.
• You can see a message on the screen that the installation is successful.
• Click Finish to exit the setup wizard and launch the Ranorex Studio. 

Trail vs. Paid License

Select and enter the license information for the Ranorex Studio Wizard.

You will get a full-featured Ranorex wizard for 30 days and afterward, you have to purchase a license to continue using this tool. 

Launch the Ranorex Studio

The Ranorex Studio will launch up automatically as soon as the installation is done. Here are the steps to launch this wizard manually:

• Open the Start Menu of Windows.
• Search for the Ranorex Studio Program and click it. A shortcut is available on the desktop as soon as the installation is done. 
• When you are opening the wizard for the first time, or there are no projects available in it then it will take you to the start page of the Wizard. 
• Select one of these options, and the RocketStart solution wizard will guide you through the process of creating a solution for the specified testing goal.
• Click to close the RocketStart solution wizard and display the Ranorex Studio start page instead. 

Congratulations, with these few simple steps, you are done with the download and installation of the Ranorex Studio Wizard. When you are sure of system requirements, licensing, and installation process, let us learn how to use this wizard to create your first project.

Ranorex Studio Views

The tool can be accessed in three views – Project View, Module View, and the File View. The project View will display all files of the current project. The Module View displays all modules of the current project. The File View allows you to save settings for the current opened file. We will be discussing each of them in detail in later sections.

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Ranorex Recorder

Like any other automation tool, this tool also allows you to record steps as actions for Application Under Test that can be played back later. The recorded steps are fine tuned, and they can be modified anytime as per the requirement. You can maintain all recordings with the help of Ranorex Object Repository.

Ranorex Spy

Almost every automation test tool is associated with an object recognition tool. It is a process of identifying objects on the screen. One of the best parameters that helps you in verifying how good an automation tool is object recognition property and how well it may interact with objects under test.

The Ranorex Spy is designed with the same purpose that identifies the UI elements for objects under test. It shows a graphical representation of the element. It can be used to display the Xpath of UI elements. XPath is similar to expression in Ranorex Studio. The adapter gives you information about the application and attributes identifies the element type.

<adapter>[@<attribute>=<value>]
/Button[@controlname='Enter']

It is possible to identify a special type of element by changing its XPath. You can use logical operators like AND, OR along with the XPath to zero down a particular UI element. For example, if you want to check all buttons with entering text on it then you can use the following command:

/form[@controlName='FirstForm']//Button[@text='Enter']

It will display all button with Enter text in the First Form.

Ranorex Repository

To create a logical mapping between UI elements, you can use the Ranorex Repository. All UI elements for Application Under Test can be accessed through this repository. As soon as a test project is created, the repository is created by default, and it can be represented by “.rxrep” extension.

Each repository has two columns, Items, and Path. Item is the UI element and Path defines the logical mapping between UI elements. These details can be used with code files or recordings as well as each repository creates a .NET source code file automatically. Objects can be used quickly for the automation test code.

Read: How To Become An Automation Testing Expert?

How to create your first project in Ranorex?

As we have discussed on all essential features of the wizard, it is the right time to start with first project in Ranorex. As soon as the Ranorex is installed and launched, it will take you to the home page as discussed earlier. At the home page, you may check all necessary information and features of the tool.

You can start with the new project by clicking the “New Test Solution” or “New Test Solution using Wizard” options. If you are completely new to the platform then choose the second option to make things easier for you. Here is a step-by-step guide for your reference:

• Choose the “New Test Solution using Wizard” option.
• Choose Desktop, Mobile, Web, or Blank option as per the requirement. The blank option is suitable for cross-platform apps. 
• Consider, you have chosen the Blank option, the following window will appear in front of you. 

Give a name to the new test solution and define location where you want to save the project. Click on Arrow to display the additional settings. By default, the project name is similar to the solution name. Choose the preferable language either C# or VB.NET as per the requirement. Tick the “Create directory for solution” option to make the directory in the folder you created above. Click Continue.

• Once you have added the basic data, in the next step, you have to add information about the Application Under Test. You can choose any app from the list of running apps. If desired app is not available in the list the browse for application and finds the executable file, tick the checkbox to launch the Application Under Test automatically, once the wizard finishes.
• In the next step, you have to define the behavior of the application. 

For this purpose, choose the “Focus on single application” option. This option is suitable If you want that Ranorex studio should interact with the AUT only. You can choose “Focus on Multiple applications” options if you want to access more processes along with AUT. Choose “no focus applied” option to interact with all running processes in the list. Click continue, and you can see the Project View, Module View, and the File View, once the project solution is created successfully.

Few considerations to keep in mind:

• A Ranorex project can be identified through “rxtst” extension.
• There is one “rxrec” recording file where all actions can be added.
• “FirstProjectRepository.rxrep” is the Ranorex repository files which are a logical representation of all the UI elements of an object under test.
• Usually, recording file has two files under it. The CS file and the UserCode file.
• The user code file is used when features provided by recording module is not enough.
• The .cs file can be modified by the user when needed.
• The test suite already has a Recording module, so you can start recording by simply clicking over it.

Summary

• Ranorex Studio is a licensed tool for automating test cases for mobile, web, and desktop apps.
• It can be used for almost all technologies like Dotnet, Java, HTML, AJAX, etc.
• The workspace of Ranorex Studio encompasses all other necessary components.
• Ranorex Spy is an object recognition tool that defines the hierarchy of UI elements.
• Ranorex Recorder allows recording of test steps and replying the same,
• The Ranorex Repository has all UI paths, and it defines logical mapping among them.

With this discussion, now you have an idea of Ranorex Studio and its components. You can download and install it on your system with the help of a few simple steps. Also, the blog will help you in creating the first project using the Ranorex Studio. To get hands-on expertise on tool and learn to work on real-time projects by joining our QA Testing certification program at JanBask Training. We wish you luck for a successful career in the testing space with us!