Getting Started

Configuration

Configure discovery, browser display, retries, CI behavior, reports, and environment-specific settings.

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Documentation goal: this page is written as practical product documentation, with enough context to help a real QA engineer decide how to use the feature in a maintainable test suite.

Configuration goals

Configuration should make the suite predictable, not complicated. Start with defaults and only add settings when the project needs them: custom test directories, retries, workers, CI mode, browser display, or report behavior.

Local versus CI settings

Local runs are usually optimized for fast feedback and visible debugging. CI runs should be deterministic, headless, sharded when needed, and configured to upload artifacts when tests fail.

Recommended defaults

Keep retries low, use explicit timeouts for slow flows, and make Smart Report or trace capture available on failure. Avoid hiding important test behavior inside configuration when it belongs in the test itself.

module.exports = {
  testDir: 'tests',
  testMatch: ['**/*.test.js', '**/*.spec.js'],
  workers: process.env.CI ? 2 : 1,
  retries: process.env.CI ? 1 : 0,
  testTimeout: 30000,
  browser: { display: process.env.CI ? 'hide' : 'auto' },
  smartReport: process.env.CI ? 'on-failure' : false
};

Practical checklist

Keep the workflow readable enough that a QA engineer, developer, or product teammate can understand the intent without opening application source code.
Prefer user-visible names, stable configuration, and clear evidence over hidden assumptions or brittle implementation details.
Run the smallest useful check locally before adding it to CI, then verify that failures produce screenshots, logs, traces, or reports that explain what happened.
Review this part of the suite regularly so outdated examples, stale setup, and obsolete workarounds do not reduce trust in the automation.

Common mistakes to avoid

Do not add automation only to increase test count. Each page and test should protect a clear user journey, release risk, or debugging need.
Do not hide important behavior inside helpers so deeply that the test no longer explains what the user is doing.
Do not rely on fixed sleeps when the application can expose a meaningful ready state such as visible text, URL change, element availability, or completed evidence capture.
Do not ignore failing artifacts. A report, screenshot, trace, or log entry should feed back into better product code, better waits, or clearer test data setup.

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