Explain Robot Framework?

The Robot Framework was developed as generic test automation framework for two major tasks namely:

1. Acceptance testing and
2. ATDD or acceptance test driven development

- It makes use of the keyword driven testing approach for achieving the above mentioned two tasks. 

- It has got a very simple and unique tabular test data syntax that is quite easy to follow and this is what that makes robot framework so easy to be used. 

- All this makes the robot framework popular among the testers.

- Test libraries that can be implemented through either java or python can be used for extending the capabilities of the frame work. 

- The users have the choice of creating new keywords from the existing ones. 

- This can be done using the same syntax that is available for the creation of the test cases. 

- Robot framework is actually an open source software. 

- The license it possesses is the Apache license 2.0.

- The Nokia Siemens Networks supports the development of this framework and also owns its copyrights. 

Features of Robot Framework

The robot test automation framework is abundant of features. Its features are:

1. Its tabular syntax is easy to use and can be used for the creation of the test cases in a way that is uniform.
2. Robot framework can work up on three approaches namely:

- Keyword driven testing approach

- Behavior driven development approach or BDD

- Data driven testing approach or DDT.

3. It provides the facility for the creation of higher level keywords that are reusable for the already existing keywords.
4. The reports and logs it generates are quite easy to follow and are based up on HTML.
5. This test automation framework does not depend up on any platform or application.
6. The architecture of the frame work is quite modular in nature that helps in supporting the creation of the tests for even the software systems and applications that possess a number of interfaces all different from one another.
7. It comes with a library API that is quite simple and can be further used for the creation of other test libraries that can be customized.
8. The XML based outputs that the framework provides allow for integrating itself in to the build infrastructure that already exists. These are called continuous integration systems.
9. It also provides a command line interface for the same purpose as that of the XML based outputs.
10. It supports selenium tool for the following things:

Ø  Web testing

Ø  Java GUI testing

Ø  telnet

Ø  running processes

Ø  SSH and so on.

11. The framework comes with a remote library interface, thus enabling the implementation of the test libraries in any desired programming language and distributed testing.
12. The tagging feature provides helps in categorizing the tests and selecting them accordingly for the execution.
13. For variables, it comes with a special built – in support for regulating testing in different environments.

- Test cases can be written either in HTML or in plain text.

- Also, any editor can be used for editing the test cases. 

- The robot test automation framework comes with a graphical development tool called the RIDE or robot IDE. 

- The tool has got a number of features specific to the framework such as syntax highlighting, code completion and so on. 

- Selenium library is an extension to the robot test automation frame work and similarly there are a number of others. 

- However, there are some other languages that can be used for implementing the libraries such as perl, PHP, java script and so on. 

- However, these languages can be used only through a remote library interface.