When a visual smoke test runs in the cloud, the test output includes the following:

• Screenshots and logs: Similar to browser test output, visual smoke tests update the Test Output page with screenshots and logs in real time.
• Visual changes: Mabl processes each screenshot to detect visual changes. If mabl detects a visual change for a particular page in the test, the visual change appears on the Test Output page.

While mabl is still calculating visual changes, a banner appears on the Test Output page: Scanning for visual changes; refresh for latest results.

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Running visual smoke tests

When a visual smoke test runs in the cloud, it counts as one browser test run.

Screenshots and logs

Every time a visual smoke test runs in the cloud, the mabl-generated flow "Visual Smoke Test" visits each URL and completes the following actions:

• Capture a screenshot of the page
• Collect test diagnostics:
  • Check that the page returns a 200 response
  • Capture network activity on the page
  • Capture a DOM snapshot

Visual changes

It takes two runs for mabl to identify visual changes in a visual smoke test.

• On the first plan run, mabl establishes a visual baseline.
• On subsequent runs, mabl compares each page to its visual baseline.

The comparison to the visual baseline is a static comparison. If the page in the current run is not identical to its visual baseline, mabl does the following:

• Highlight the regions of the page that appear different
• Flag the step as a visual change in the test output
• Report a visual change insight in your workspace

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Updating visual smoke tests

If you make any updates to the list of URLs to visit, mabl establishes new visual baselines for all pages on the next plan run.