Automating Android Feature Testing with GitHub Actions

Introduction

In today’s fast-paced software development world, ensuring the quality of our mobile applications is paramount. Automating testing processes is a key practice to achieve this, and GitHub Actions provides an excellent platform for implementing continuous integration (CI) and continuous delivery (CD) pipelines. In this blog post, we will focus on the testing aspect of GitHub Actions for Android applications.

Why Automated Testing Matters

Before diving into GitHub Actions, let’s briefly discuss why automated testing is crucial for Android app development:

1. Quality Assurance: Automated tests help identify and fix issues early in the development process, ensuring a higher level of software quality.
2. Regression Prevention: Continuous testing prevents the introduction of new bugs when new features or changes are added to the app.
3. Faster Development: Automated tests provide rapid feedback to developers, enabling faster development iterations.
4. Confidence: Test suites that pass consistently provide confidence that the application behaves as expected.

Setting up GitHub Actions for Testing

GitHub Actions allows you to automate the testing of your Android app by defining workflows in YAML files. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to set up GitHub Actions for testing a specific feature of your Android app:

Step 1: Identify the Feature to Test

Start by identifying the specific feature or functionality in your Android app that you want to test. Ensure you have a clear understanding of what the feature should do and what the expected outcomes are.

Step 2: Write Test Cases

Write test cases that focus on the feature you want to test. Depending on the type of feature and the testing framework you’re using (e.g., JUnit, Espresso, UI Automator), these may be unit tests, integration tests, UI tests, or other types of tests. Make sure your test cases cover various scenarios and edge cases related to the feature.

Step 3: Create a Test Configuration

You may need to create a specific test configuration or suite that includes the test cases related to the feature. This helps isolate the testing of that feature.

Step 4: Configure GitHub Actions Workflow

Update your GitHub Actions workflow YAML file (usually named .github/workflows/android_build.yml) to include a job that runs the tests for the specific feature. Here's an example of how you can create a job specifically for testing a feature:

Here’s an example of how you can create a job specifically for testing a feature:

name: AndroidBuild

on:
  pull_request :
    branches : [ master ]
  push :
    branches : [ master ]

jobs:
  test-feature:
    runs-on: macOS-latest

    needs: build

    steps:
      - name: Checkout code
        uses: actions/checkout@v4.1.0
      - name: Set up JDK 11
        uses: actions/setup-java@v3.13.0
        with:
          distribution: 'adopt'
          java-version: '17'

      - name: Grant execute permissions for gradlew
        run: chmod +x ./gradlew

      - name: Run Tests with Gradle
        run: ./gradlew test

In this example, the job is named test-feature, and it runs the testFeature task or test suite. Adjust the build and test commands to match your project's structure and testing framework.

Step 5: Trigger the Workflow

You can trigger the GitHub Actions workflow by pushing code changes related to the feature or by creating a pull request that includes those changes. The workflow will run automatically based on the configured triggers in your workflow file.

Step 6: Review Test Results

After the workflow runs, you can review the test results in the GitHub Actions tab on your repository’s page. Ensure that the tests related to the specific feature have passed successfully.

Conclusion

Automating feature testing in your Android app with GitHub Actions is a powerful way to maintain software quality and catch issues early in the development process. By following the steps outlined in this blog post, you can set up an automated testing pipeline that helps you ensure that your app’s features work as expected. This, in turn, leads to a more reliable and robust Android application.

With GitHub Actions, you can continuously verify that your Android app’s features meet the defined requirements and provide a seamless experience for your users. Happy testing!

Follow to get more and improve your android development skills.