Open a plugin inside your automated test
Plugins extend the capabilities of your DoesQA flows by letting you integrate with auxiliary interfaces or tools directly from within your automation. The Open Plugin step allows your test to interact with plugin content without leaving your flow. This means you can automate not just core application behaviour, but also the interactions and checks that involve embedded tools or external interfaces.
Whether your workflow requires enhanced visibility, context-aware actions, or specific extensions, opening a plugin inside your test expands what your automation can do.
Bring contextual tools into your flow
Plugins can represent a wide range of auxiliary features that complement your core test logic. Examples include:
Embedded content inspectors
Third-party UI components
In-app helper tools
Custom interfaces
Feature toggles or configuration panels
With Open Plugin, you can launch these interfaces and interact with them just like a real user would. This makes your automation more holistic, covering not only the primary application but also the surrounding context where users perform valuable actions.
Typical scenarios for plugin interaction
The Open Plugin step is most often used when your flow needs to:
Validate plugin provided content
Check rendering or output inside a plugin UI
Interact with tool-provided form elements
Link plugin behaviour back to the main application
Assert plugin-specific state changes
By including this step, you can verify that plugin interactions are correctly integrated into your product experience.
Seamless movement between contexts
Tests often switch between application UI and plugin interfaces. Without a clear step to bring a plugin into focus, automation can become brittle or confusing.
With this action, you can:
Trigger plugin menus or extensions
Interact with plugin interfaces
Validate plugin results
Return focus to your main application
This ensures your flow remains readable and predictable.
Combine with other steps for richer coverage
Once a plugin is open, you can follow it with any number of interactions such as:
Clicking elements inside the plugin
Filling fields or selecting options
Performing assertions on plugin output
Extracting values for later use
Switching back to the main UI and continuing the flow
This follows real user behaviour where plugins and auxiliary tools are part of the interactive experience.
Reduce gaps in automation
Some behaviours or checks only exist inside plugins or embedded tools. Without the ability to open a plugin in automation, these parts would be skipped or manually verified.
By including the Open Plugin step, your test coverage becomes more complete, validating not just standalone workflows, but the full interactive experience users have with tools that extend the core application.
This ensures your automation reflects the behaviour of actual users, not just idealised paths, and gives you deeper confidence in release quality.