Test Automation Overview
Test automation in Aethrix Studio lets you build, organize, and execute repeatable API test suites. Tests can run interactively in the IDE or headlessly via the aeth CLI for CI/CD integration.
Toolbar
The Test Automation toolbar provides the primary actions:
| Action | Icon | Description |
|---|---|---|
| New | add | Create a new automation project (.aprj). |
| Open | search | Open an existing .aprj project from disk. |
| Close | close | Close the selected project. |
| Save | save | Save the selected project. |
| Save As… | save | Save the selected project under a new name/location. |
| Run | play_arrow | Run the selected item (project, suite, case, or step). The label adapts to the selection. |
| Stop | stop | Stop the current run. |
| Run in terminal | terminal | Launch the run through the aeth CLI (only available for projects loaded from disk). |
| Show Report | description | Open the report for the last run of the selected item. |
| Clone | account_tree | Clone a Git repository and load its automation project. |
| Import Collection | download | Import a Postman, Bruno, or Insomnia collection as a project. |
Core Concepts
| Concept | File/Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Automation Project | .aprj file | Root container — holds suites, cases, reusable actions, code files, and settings |
| Test Suite | — | Logical group of test cases, often organized by feature or API service |
| Test Case | — | A single test scenario — a sequence of steps executed in order |
| Test Step | — | An individual action: send a request, run a script, assert a value, etc. |
| Environment | — | Named set of service endpoints, credentials, and variables (dev, staging, prod, etc.) |
| Data Source | — | External data (CSV, Excel, SQL, NoSQL, inline table) feeding a data-driven case |
| Assertion | — | A pass/fail condition evaluated against a response or variable |
Project Structure
Typical Workflow
- Create a project — from the Test Automation view, click add New to create a
.aprjfile, or Clone from Git / Import Collection. - Configure environments — open the Environment Management view to define service endpoints, authentication profiles, and variables.
- Add test suites — right-click the project and choose Append Test Suite (or Append Parallel Test Suite).
- Add test cases — right-click a suite and choose Add Test Case (or Add Data-Driven Test Case / Add Performance Test / Add Security Test Case...).
- Add test steps — right-click a case and use Add Test Step to build the flow.
- Run — execute a single step, a case, a suite, or the entire project.
- Review — open the report for pass/fail results, timing, and diagnostics.
Execution Modes
| Mode | Description |
|---|---|
| Interactive | Run tests in the IDE with real-time progress and diagnostics. |
| CLI | Execute .aprj files from the command line for CI/CD pipelines via aeth run. |
| Parallel | Run test cases concurrently within a ** Parallel Test Suite**. |
Step Types
Aethrix provides a broad set of test step types covering API calls, scripting, database queries, messaging, control flow, and service simulation. Select Add Test Step on a test case (or on a loop / conditional branch) to see the full catalog, ordered by category. Common categories include:
- API — Send Request
- Validation — Assert (HTTP Status Code, JSON Path, XPath, Contains, HTTP Header, Variable)
- Scripting — C# Script, Shell Script, JavaScript
- Database — SQL Query, NoSQL Query
- Auth — JWT, OAuth2 Get Token
- Data — Data Transfer, Data Generation
- Messaging — Send Mail, Receive Mail, Wait Message
- Control — Loop, Conditional, Wait, Run Action, Copy Files
- Infrastructure — Service Simulation Control, Service Simulation Update, Window Service Control
The exact list is generated from the available step classes at runtime; consult the Add Test Step menu in the UI for the complete, current set.