Automation Testing Mock Interview: 20 Questions in 50 Minutes

A test framework offering annotations, grouping, prioritisation, parallel runs, data providers and reports, which structure and scale Selenium tests.

WebDriver sends commands over HTTP (W3C protocol) to a browser-specific driver such as chromedriver, which controls the actual browser.

A .gitignore lists files Git should not track. In a Java automation project ignore target/, test-output/, allure-results/, reports, screenshots, logs, IDE folders like .idea and .vscode, *.iml, OS files like .DS_Store, and local config files holding secrets. Ignoring generated output keeps the repository small and avoids noisy diffs and conflicts.

BeforeSuite, BeforeTest, BeforeClass, BeforeMethod, Test, AfterMethod, AfterClass, AfterTest and AfterSuite.

close() closes the current window; quit() closes all windows and ends the driver session.

Use multipart: given().multiPart("file", new File("src/test/resources/report.pdf"), "application/pdf").formParam("type", "invoice").when().post("/upload").then().statusCode(200). REST Assured sets the multipart/form-data content type automatically. Verify both the status and the response, such as the returned file id or size, and test edge cases like empty, oversized and wrong-type files.

Use headers such as Bearer tokens, basic auth, API keys or OAuth flows; fetch a token in a setup step and reuse it.

Implement IRetryAnalyzer with a retry count and attach it through the test annotation or a listener to rerun flaky tests.

given().baseUri(url) .when().get("/users/1") .then().statusCode(200).body("id", equalTo(1));

Store each driver in a ThreadLocal so every thread gets its own instance and tests do not interfere.

A subclass redefines a parent method. Frameworks use it to customise base behaviour, such as overriding a wait or click method in a base page class.

Maven project → POM with a BasePage → driver factory with ThreadLocal → config files → data-driven utilities (Excel/JSON) → TestNG or Cucumber runner → logging → Extent reports with screenshots on failure → Jenkins pipeline.

Headless mode or screen resolution, timing issues, environment data, missing dependencies, browser–driver version mismatch or parallel conflicts. Check logs and failure screenshots and make waits robust.

Look for shared state between methods: instance or static fields changed by earlier tests, data created or deleted by another test, cookies or logged-in session kept in the same browser, and priority or order assumptions. Run the class in a different order to confirm. Fix by resetting state in @BeforeMethod, creating unique data per test and avoiding static fields.

This is almost always shared memory exhaustion, because Docker's default /dev/shm of 64 MB is too small for Chrome. Set shm_size: 2gb in Compose or --shm-size=2g in docker run. Also check the container's memory limit and the number of sessions per node, since several browsers in one container multiply memory use. Heavy pages or memory leaks in long sessions can also crash tabs, so restart sessions between test classes.

Compare what differs: configuration URLs, test data, feature flags, user permissions, network or proxy, browser versions and timing due to slower servers. Check logs and screenshots from staging and rerun one failing test with verbose logging. Often the issue is missing data or a flag. Fix by making environment settings explicit and creating required data in test setup.

Situation: I moved from manual testing into an automation team using Java. Task: become productive within a month. Action: I practised core Java daily, focusing on OOP, collections and exceptions, solved small coding problems, and read the existing framework code with a senior's help. Result: in four weeks I was writing page objects and tests that passed review, and I kept learning streams afterwards.

Situation: a new product had no automation and a three-month release target. Task: I was asked to set up the framework and guide two juniors. Action: I chose Java, TestNG, Selenium with POM and REST Assured, set up Maven, Jenkins and Allure, wrote conventions and reviewed every pull request early on. Result: we had 250 stable tests in CI before release, and the juniors could extend it independently.

Situation: our suite had duplicated locators across 200 tests and each UI release broke many of them. Task: reduce maintenance effort. Action: I introduced page objects and components for the top ten pages, added data-testid attributes with the developers and wrote a short guide. Result: fixing a UI change went from half a day to under an hour, and new joiners wrote tests faster.

Situation: tools change fast, and my team was still on older Selenium and Java versions. Task: keep myself and the framework current. Action: I follow release notes, try new features in a small personal project, and present one useful change to the team each quarter, such as moving to java.time or Selenium 4 relative locators. Result: we upgraded smoothly and I became the go-to person for upgrades.