FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is a "visual test suite"?

A: This is a term we use to describe a tool that interacts with its test subject via on-screen visual cues - i.e. bitmap pattern matching. This mechanism provides the logic that is used to make decisions, and guides test flow. This contrasts with other test suites which are API-driven and rely on tight synchronization with the software itself. Iris knows nothing about a test subject's underlying code and APIs. It only manipulates it in the ways that a typical user would.

Q: Does Iris have a CI test environment?

A: Currently, a partial solution. Because Iris uses a virtual screen and keyboard, this has proven to be a challenge with virtualized environments. We have a Travis CI system that runs core code, and are working on a virtual solution that will be able to run the entire test tool functionality.

Q: Can I use Iris to test other web browsers? Or other pieces of software?

A: Iris is not just a tool that can test web browsers. It can be used to interact with - and test - any software on the desktop. As long as it can be manipulated by user keyboard/mouse, Iris should be able to do so as well.

Q: Does Iris have OCR support?

A: At installation, you will be asked if you would like to install libraries to enable OCR, which will download and compile the open-source Tesseract project. If you choose not to enable OCR, you can still use Iris, but features that search for text on screen will be disabled.

Q: Who uses Iris?

A: Iris was created for use within QA teams at Mozilla as a stand-alone tool, to automate Firefox tests that are currently being performed manually. However, in version 2.0, it has been expanded with extensibility to test any desktop application.

Q: What configurations does Iris support?

A: Iris supports the following operating systems and locales, officially.

	Configurations
Platforms	Windows 7, Windows 10, Mac OS 10.13, Ubuntu 16.04
Locales	ar de en-GB en-US es-ES fr it ja ko pl pt-BR pt-PT ro ru tr vi