How can I execute code beforeall test suites in Cypress?

General Discussions
#1

How can I execute code beforeall test suites in Cypress?

#2

While executing code before all tests can be convenient, this approach lacks flexibility for future variations in your individual test files, such as:

  • Seeding the database differently for one test.
  • Logging in as a different user with different permissions.
  • Performing an action in onBeforeLoad once.

Therefore, I recommend placing the login command in a before hook within each individual spec file. Additionally, to avoid sharing any state between tests, I further recommend placing your login command in a beforeEach hook.

#3

You can place the login code in the cypress/support/index.js file. This way, the login process runs once before all tests.

Create a custom command for login in cypress/support/commands.js:

Cypress.Commands.add('login', () => {
    cy.request({
        method: 'POST',
        url: '/login', // your login endpoint
        body: {
            username: 'your-username',
            password: 'your-password'
        }
    }).then((resp) => {
        window.localStorage.setItem('authToken', resp.body.token);
    });
});

Call the custom login command in cypress/support/index.js:

before(() => {
    cy.login();
});

The above approach helps you tests suite with Cypress beforeall.

#4

You can also use Cypress plugins to execute code once before running all tests. Modify the cypress/plugins/index.js file to include your login logic.

Setup the login process in cypress/plugins/index.js:

module.exports = (on, config) => {
    on('before:run', () => {
        // Perform the login process
        return cy.request({
            method: 'POST',
            url: '/login', // your login endpoint
            body: {
                username: 'your-username',
                password: 'your-password'
            }
        }).then((resp) => {
            config.env.authToken = resp.body.token;
            return config;
        });
    });
};

Ensure you set the authorization header using the token from the environment variable in your tests.

Cypress.Commands.add('setAuthToken', () => {
    cy.window().then((win) => {
        win.localStorage.setItem('authToken', Cypress.env('authToken'));
    });
});

beforeEach(() => {
    cy.setAuthToken();
});

This helps you achieve a single login process running all your tests with the beforeall method while maintaining flexibility for individual test variations.