How to use Slack Bug Reporting while Testing

Enterprise test automation in software testing has been picking up speed as it has been widely adopted as the present and future for the industry. Combined with a robust cloud testing infrastructure, you can leverage even more features and capabilities while project management and collaborative tools like Slack.

With a long list of intuitive features, setting up the correct workflow for Slack bug tracking can be intimidating for some users. This guide will walk you through effortless but effective automation with Slack bug reporting using BrowserStack Automate.

Why use Slack for Reporting Bugs?

Slack for team management has become exceptionally popular due to file sharing, and integrations with other remote working tools such as Jira and Google Calendar for Slack bug tracking. Opting for BrowserStack’s Slack bug reporting, integrate seamlessly for bug tracking  without leaving your test window.

Features

• In-Context Reporting: Share screenshots with your team members including all the metadata test information such as Browser, OS, Screen Resolution, nad View port
• One-Click Reproduce: Reproduce your issues with a one-click button directly from Slack.
• File Annotated Screenshots: Annotate your screenshots directly in BrowserStack by pointing out the exact position of the issue.

P.S – You do not need a paid account to use the Slack bug tracking integration on BrowserStack. 

Integrate Slack with BrowserStack

How to use Slack Bug Reporting with BrowserStack?

Since specific use cases might have specific needs, we can’t say that this will be sufficient for most scenarios. Still, with the range of possible BrowserStack integrations, you can always extend the setup to include any additional requirements.

• Run automation scripts on local environment or cloud.
• Integrate with BrowserStack platform to monitor through the dashboard.
• Get test fail reports and daily summaries on Slack issue tracker channels.

What you will need to get started:

• A website or mobile application that you want to test.
• Knowledge of writing automation scripts on frameworks like Selenium and Cypress
• A BrowserStack account
• A Slack account and channels set up.

Start by signing up for a BrowserStack account and logging in to the dashboard. You will find the Quick Integration guide with steps and stages in an interactive format.

Setup the Right Scripting Environment

Your first test could be a new script, or it could be part of an existing suite of tests that you are already working on. if you do not have a workflow for writing scripts already set up you can begin by downloading and installing the IDE of your choice.

Create a folder to contain all the scripts. The way your scripts are named, structured and arranged is something that you have to standardize. A good setup has the following qualities:

• Easy to read and understand: when working with the team, it is important to make sure that all the work is understandable to other team members. 
• Easy to maintain: changes in the test plans will occur routinely so making sure that the test scripts are updated without breaking workflows and compromising with the syntactical standards is also essential.
•  Easy to debug: one of the main reasons for arranging properly is to ensure the source can be located precisely and effectively without wasting time in case of breakage. 
• Easy to extend: many times, more than one way of automation has to be implemented with specific strategies targeting specific application functions for proper testing. 

So ensure that the syntax and methodology of scripting include the possibility for extension with changes in the future.

Works effectively: The script’s main purpose is to test the application as part of a wider test plan for a business case. So ensuring it is doing that effectively is of the utmost importance.

Seamlessly integrates with that testing workflow : At the leadership level, the whole process is being monitored from a high-altitude perspective. So make sure that a test case integrates with your overall workflow adhering to standards on test quality, execution speed, test coverage etc.

Here is a simple folder structure for a test suite written in Python:

├── run_tests.py # main file to run all tests from command line
├── test_suite # folder containing all test scripts
│ ├── __init__.py # makes sure python knows this is a package
│ └── test_sample.py # sample test script
├── test_helper # folder containing helper functions for tests
│ ├── __init__.py # makes sure python knows this is a package
│ └── utils.py # helper functions used by tests

• Helper functions are usually used for mocking external dependencies, data sources or performing other in-depth operations.
• It is easier for other people to understand what your code does if you use descriptive structure and names for your files and folders. 
• Execute your first script to trigger the sample build on BrowserStack Dashboard. 
• Once the server detects it, you will see the dashboard shows a notification, and the option to view the result is enabled.

Connect Slack

The integrations page shows you several options for bug reporting setup. Slack bug tracking is one of them. 

To get started click on the connect button and enter the name of your Slack domain.

After which, you will get an authentication popup through which you can approve the integration request between the apps. 

Once successfully authorized the integration, the next step is configuring slack channels for reporting bugs.

On the configurations popup you have the option to add 4 channels for Daily Summary and Bug Reporting on Automate and App automate tests respectively.

Once you have selected the channels, you can complete the setup and move to testing the integration.

Read more about the integration on Slack’s website

Test the Integration

Simplest way to test the Slack bug reporting integration is to complete the above mentioned set up and then carry on with execution of a number of tests.

Once you have a test executed on BrowerStack dashboard, it will be processed.

Failed tests will directly be sent to Slack channels with the following options:

• Go to Session: Link to session on the dashboard.
• Public Session Dashboard: Link to the same session accessible outside the dashboard, making collaboration possible with members without access to BrowserStack Dashboard.
• See Video: A link to the video recording of the session, again publicly shareable enhancing collaboration across teams.

If you are getting failed tests logged in the channels, then your integration is complete.

At the end of the day you will get another update on the daily summary, if the channel for it is selected in the Slack configuration window, on the accounts page.

Benefits of Slack Integration while Testing

• Easy set up for a lean workflow allows for more creative expansion on the use-case side.
• Extensibility on the platform permits elaboration of setup as needed.
• Developers can be kept in loop directly as issues are detected in testing workflows.
• Using already popular and widely adopted tools help easily onboard team members for collaboration.
• Having the ability to share video and public link enhances debugging between teams.

• Daily summary is an added feature to get updates on Slack, usually a daily email with a similar report is also sent.
• This setup works with the free plan.
• Can be combined with more powerful CRMs like Jira, Trello to make the bug reporting part more stable.
• Easily configurable process, destination channels for reporting can be updated easily through the integrations dashboard.
• A long list of existing integrations helps you plan advanced workflows.
• The ability to suggest integrations lets you get involved and provide valuable feedback on possible additions.

Summary 

Whether you’re tracking an issue or reporting bugs using Slack, you can count on BrowserStack’s Live for Teams. Your teams or users can test from anywhere and is  ideal for remote testers because it forsters collaborations with integrations like Slack, Jira,  GitHub, and Trello. 

Additionally, Live for Teams provides:

• SSO: Simplified login and sign up experience for easy integration with your existing identity provider for authentication.
• Unlimited User Addition: Add as many users as you like and grant access to as many users. No need to share accounts.
• Advanced Access Control: Create sub-teams, customize dashboard views, and allocate parallel threads to teams based on their testing needs.

With instant access to 3000+ real devices & browsers, QA teams can focus on testing without worrying about device fragmentation.

With a project management  tools such as Slack, testers can report bugs, track issues, and keep track of their entire bug lifecycle. With your Slack bug reporting integrated with BrowserStack, you can raise issues straight from all your testing sessions. 

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