Difference between Selenium 3 and Selenium 4

In this essay, I will contrast the Selenium 3 and Selenium 4 architectures before highlighting a few Selenium 4 benefits. I will also go over the new features added to Selenium IDE, Selenium WebDriver, and Selenium Grid in Selenium 4.

The fundamental cause for Selenium Automation Testing upgrading is the W3C WebDriver Protocol, which is the most significant difference between Selenium 3 and Selenium 4. The World Wide Online Consortium, or W3C, is a global organisation that creates web standards. The behaviour of a web browser is managed via the WebDriver Protocol.

The article is broken out as follows:

Architecture for Selenium 3

Architecture for Selenium 4

Benefits of Selenium 4

Architecture for Selenium 3

The JSON Wire Protocol is a component of the Selenium 3 architecture. The JSON Wire Protocol is not included in Selenium 4, which is the difference between Selenium 3 and Selenium 4. JavaScript Object Notation, or JSON.

Information must be sent over HTTP from the client to the server using the JSON Wire Protocol. The abbreviation HTTP stands for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol. The Selenium Client and WebDriver Language Bindings component both send a Selenium request. The JSON Wire Protocol Over HTTP subsequently receives the request, which is then secured by the Browser Driver.

The request command is then sent to a web browser, where automation is performed. A response is sent back to the Browser Driver, JSON Wire Protocol, and Selenium Client & WebDriver Language Bindings once the automation is finished. This illustration shows the Selenium 3 architecture:

  Architecture for Selenium 4

Selenium 4 has direct client-server connection, as opposed to Selenium 3. While Browser Drivers are the server, the client still consists of two components: the Selenium Client and WebDriver Language Bindings.

The Selenium Client issues a command execution request.

An action-driven code library is called WebDriver Language Bindings.

After receiving the request and automating a response, browser drivers Web browser runs the test script:

Each language has its own distinct bindings, and these bindings are part of the Selenium Client & WebDriver architecture. Because of bindings, the same commands that are written for one language are also written for another. For instance, the Java programming language contains a set of commands that have been created for C#, Python, JavaScript, and Ruby.

The built-in automation support of each Web browser is utilised by WebDriver to operate the Browser Drivers and Web Browsers. The Chrome browser is managed by a Browser Driver like ChromeDriver.

The drivers have changed in Selenium 4. While RemoteWebDriver is ChromiumDriver's parent, ChromeDriver and EdgeDriver extend it. Here are a few screenshots demonstrating how each driver is related to the others:

Benefits of Selenium 4

Selenium 4 acquired at least three benefits in succession as a result of the upgrade. The benefits are:

• Standards
• Stability
• Updated Actions API

Because of the standards, our Test Scripts function more consistently across all browsers. There is a standard used by all browser vendors. Since Selenium 4 is W3C WebDriver compatible, the request's encoding and decoding are no longer necessary.

Another benefit of backward compatibility is stability. The Selenium Server and the Java Bindings both offer a way to use the outdated JSON Wire Protocol. The Actions API for keyboard and mouse events has been updated. It allows the ability to perform multiple actions simultaneously, such as pushing two keys.

New Features in Selenium 4

Selenium IDE, Selenium WebDriver, and Selenium Grid are the new features in Selenium 4.

• We can record, playback, edit, and debug our test using Selenium IDE.
• An API called Selenium WebDriver automates an application under test by running our test in a browser (AUT).
• Our test is run using Selenium Grid on several computers, operating systems, and browsers.

Backup Element Selectors and Control Flows were gained by Selenium IDE. For each element, the Backup Element Selectors keep track of numerous locators. In Selenium IDE, Control Flows help with statement execution. Conditionals and loops make up the control flows.

Conditionals

• if
• else-if
• else
• end

Loops

• do-repeat if
• while
• times
• forEach

Selenium WebDriver now provides new capabilities including Chrome DevTools, Relative Locators, several ways to take screenshots, and window management in addition to the W3C WebDriver Protocol. Setting up a foundation of operating systems and browsers is made easier using Selenium Grid. Although the original grid was released in 2011, it is now more up to date. To delve deeper into the Selenium 4 New Features for Selenium IDE, Selenium WebDriver, and Selenium Grid, three chapters were developed.

Conclusion

By the end of this blog, I am sure that you must have not only developed a fair idea of who is a Selenium Tester, but also would be convinced of the overwhelming advantages which accompany a Selenium Tester Job. Besides a considerable Selenium Automated Testing, Selenium Tester Jobs command a lion’s share of the Automation Testing market.

For someone aspiring for the position of a Software Development Engineer in Test (SDET), knowledge of Selenium is almost considered to be a technical necessity. We, at Syntax Technologies, provide you with the dual benefit of developing expertise in the field of SDET as well as acquire hands-on experience in handling prominent Automation Tools like Selenium.