Hooks in Cucumber | Learn BDD Cucumber

Hooks in Cucumber Framework are a powerful feature that allows developers to define pre- and post-execution actions that apply to specific scenarios or entire feature files. 

Hooks can set up pre-conditions or execute post-validation actions, such as cleaning up test data or logging results.

In Cucumber, there are two types of hooks: Before hooks and After hooks. 

• Before hooks are executed before the start of each scenario. 

•  After hooks are executed after the completion of each scenario. Both types of hooks can be defined at the feature or scenario level.

Before hook at the feature level in Cucumber:

import cucumber.api.java.Before;
 
public class MyHooks {
 
    @Before
 
    public void setUp() {
 
        // Code to set up preconditions before each scenario in the feature
 
    }
 
}

In this example, the @Before annotation marks the method as a hook. The setUp() method will be executed before each scenario in the feature. 

The MyHooks class can be defined in the same package as your step definitions, or in a separate package.

After hook at the scenario level in Cucumber:

import cucumber.api.java.After;
 
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
 
import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;
 
 
 
public class MyHooks {
 
    private WebDriver driver;
 
 
 
    @Before
 
    public void setUp() {
 
        System.setProperty("webdriver.chrome.driver", "/path/to/chromedriver");
 
        driver = new ChromeDriver();
 
    }
 
 
 
    @After
 
    public void tearDown() {
 
        driver.quit();
 
    }
 
}

The @After annotation marks the tearDown() method as a hook in this example. The tearDown() method will be executed after each scenario in the feature. 

This example also shows how hooks can be used to set up and tear down resources that are used by your step definitions, such as a Selenium WebDriver instance.

Hooks can also be tagged with specific tags, allowing you to apply them only to scenarios or features with the corresponding tags. 

For example:

import cucumber.api.java.Before;
 
 
 
public class MyHooks {
 
    @Before("@web")
 
    public void setUpWeb() {
 
        // Code to set up preconditions for web scenarios
 
    }
 
 
 
    @Before("@api")
 
    public void setUpApi() {
 
        // Code to set up preconditions for API scenarios
 
    }
 
}

In this example, two @Before hooks are defined, each tagged with a different tag. The setUpWeb() method will be executed only before scenarios with the @web tag, and the setUpApi() method will be executed only before scenarios with the @api tag.

Conclusion: Hooks in Cucumber provides a powerful way to define pre- and post-execution actions that apply to specific scenarios or entire feature files. By using hooks, you can set up preconditions, tear down resources, and perform other actions that help to ensure that your tests run smoothly and produce accurate results.