Playwright E2E Test Guide

Development setup

bash

pnpm install-browsers:local # in playwright directory
pnpm build:docker # from root first to test against local changes

Quick Start

bash

pnpm test:all                 									# Run all tests (fresh containers, pnpm build:docker from root first to ensure local containers)
pnpm test:local           											# Starts a local server and runs the E2E tests
N8N_BASE_URL=localhost:5068 pnpm test:local			# Runs the E2E tests against the instance running

Separate Backend and Frontend URLs

When developing with separate backend and frontend servers (e.g., backend on port 5680, frontend on port 8080), you can use the following environment variables:

N8N_BASE_URL: Backend server URL (also used as frontend URL if N8N_EDITOR_URL is not set)
N8N_EDITOR_URL: Frontend server URL (when set, overrides frontend URL while backend uses N8N_BASE_URL)

How it works:

Backend URL (for API calls): Always uses N8N_BASE_URL
Frontend URL (for browser navigation): Uses N8N_EDITOR_URL if set, otherwise falls back to N8N_BASE_URL

This allows you to:

Test against a backend on port 5680 while the frontend dev server runs on port 8080
Use different URLs for API calls vs browser navigation
Maintain backward compatibility with single-URL setups

Test Commands

bash

# By Mode
pnpm test:container:sqlite      # SQLite (default)
pnpm test:container:postgres    # PostgreSQL
pnpm test:container:queue       # Queue mode
pnpm test:container:multi-main  # HA setup

pnpm test:performance						# Runs the performance tests against Sqlite container
pnpm test:chaos									# Runs the chaos tests


# Development
pnpm test:all --grep "workflow"           # Pattern match, can run across all test types E2E/cli-workflow/performance
pnpm test:local --ui            # To enable UI debugging and test running mode

Test Tags

typescript

test('basic test', ...)                              // All modes, fully parallel
test('postgres only @mode:postgres', ...)            // Mode-specific
test('chaos test @mode:multi-main @chaostest', ...) // Isolated per worker
test('cloud resource test @cloud:trial', ...)       // Cloud resource constraints
test('proxy test @capability:proxy', ...)           // Requires proxy server capability
test('enterprise feature @licensed', ...)           // Requires enterprise license (container-only)

Tag Reference

Tag	Description	When to Use
`@mode:X`	Infrastructure mode (postgres, queue, multi-main)	Tests requiring specific DB or architecture
`@capability:X`	Container services (email, proxy, oidc, source-control, observability)	Tests needing external services
`@licensed`	Enterprise license features	Tests for features behind license flags at startup
`@cloud:X`	Resource constraints (trial, enterprise)	Performance tests with memory/CPU limits
`@chaostest`	Chaos engineering tests	Tests that intentionally break things
`@auth:X`	Authentication role (owner, admin, member, none)	Tests requiring specific user role
`@db:reset`	Reset database before each test (container-only)	Tests that need fresh DB state per test (e.g., MFA tests)

Worker Isolation (Fresh Database)

Tests that need their own isolated database should use test.use() with a unique capability config. This gives the test file its own container with a fresh database:

typescript

// my-isolated-tests.spec.ts
import { test, expect } from '../fixtures/base';

// Unique value breaks worker cache → fresh container with clean DB
test.use({ capability: { env: { TEST_ISOLATION: 'my-test-name' } } });

test.describe('My isolated tests', () => {
  test.describe.configure({ mode: 'serial' }); // If tests depend on each other's data

  test('test with clean state', async ({ n8n }) => {
    // Fresh container with reset database
  });
});

How it works: The capability option is scoped to the worker level. When you pass a unique value via test.use(), Playwright creates a new worker with a fresh container. Each container starts with a clean database automatically.

Per-Test Database Reset (@db:reset)

If tests within the same file need a fresh database before each test (not just the file), add @db:reset to the describe block. Note: This tag is container-only - tests with @db:reset won't run in local mode.

typescript

// my-stateful-tests.spec.ts
import { test, expect } from '../fixtures/base';

test.use({ capability: { env: { TEST_ISOLATION: 'my-stateful-tests' } } });

test.describe('My stateful tests @db:reset', () => {
  test('test 1', async ({ n8n }) => {
    // Fresh database (reset before this test)
  });

  test('test 2', async ({ n8n }) => {
    // Fresh database again (reset before this test too)
  });
});

When to use @db:reset: When tests modify shared state that would break subsequent tests (e.g., enabling MFA, creating users, changing settings). Since resetting the database would affect all parallel tests in local mode, these tests are excluded from local runs and only execute in container mode where each worker has its own isolated database.

Enterprise Features (@licensed)

Use the @licensed tag for tests that require enterprise features which are only available when the license is present at startup. This differs from features that can be enabled/disabled at runtime.

When to use:

Features behind @BackendModule({ licenseFlag: LICENSE_FEATURES.X }) decorators
API endpoints that only exist when the module loads with a valid license
Features like log streaming, SSO, LDAP where routes aren't registered without license

Example:

typescript

// The @licensed tag ensures this only runs in container mode with a valid license
test.describe('Log Streaming @licensed', () => {
  test.beforeEach(async ({ n8n }) => {
    // enableFeature() works for runtime checks, but module must be loaded first
    await n8n.api.enableFeature('logStreaming');
  });

  test('should show licensed view', async ({ n8n }) => {
    await n8n.navigate.toLogStreaming();
    // ...
  });
});

Note: @licensed tests are skipped in local mode (test:local) and only run in container mode where a license is available.

Enterprise license for testing: To run @licensed tests or manually test enterprise features, set N8N_LICENSE_TENANT_ID and N8N_LICENSE_ACTIVATION_KEY in your environment. The containers package reads these variables automatically. Ask in Slack for the sandbox license key.

Fixture Selection

base.ts: Standard testing with worker-scoped containers (default choice)
cloud-only.ts: Cloud resource testing with guaranteed isolation
- Use for performance testing under resource constraints
- Requires @cloud:* tags (@cloud:trial, @cloud:enterprise, etc.)
- Creates only cloud containers, no worker containers

typescript

// Standard testing
import { test, expect } from '../fixtures/base';

// Cloud resource testing
import { test, expect } from '../fixtures/cloud-only';
test('Performance under constraints @cloud:trial', async ({ n8n, api }) => {
  // Test runs with 384MB RAM, 250 millicore CPU
});

Tips

test:* commands use fresh containers (for testing)
VS Code: Set N8N_BASE_URL in Playwright settings to run tests directly from VS Code
Pass custom env vars via N8N_TEST_ENV='{"KEY":"value"}'

Project Layout

composables: Multi-page interactions (e.g., WorkflowComposer.executeWorkflowAndWaitForNotification())
config: Test setup and configuration (constants, test users, etc.)
fixtures: Custom test fixtures extending Playwright's base test
- base.ts: Standard fixtures with worker-scoped containers
- cloud-only.ts: Cloud resource testing with test-scoped containers only
pages: Page Object Models for UI interactions
services: API helpers for E2E controller, REST calls, workflow management, etc.
utils: Utility functions (string manipulation, helpers, etc.)
workflows: Test workflow JSON files for import/reuse

Writing Tests with Proxy

You can use ProxyServer to mock API requests.

typescript

import { test, expect } from '../fixtures/base';

// The `@capability:proxy` tag ensures tests only run when proxy infrastructure is available.
test.describe('Proxy tests @capability:proxy', () => {
  test('should mock HTTP requests', async ({ proxyServer, n8n }) => {
    // Create mock expectations
    await proxyServer.createGetExpectation('/api/data', { result: 'mocked' });

    // Execute workflow that makes HTTP requests
    await n8n.canvas.openNewWorkflow();
    // ... test implementation

    // Verify requests were proxied
    expect(await proxyServer.wasGetRequestMade('/api/data')).toBe(true);
  });
});

Recording and replaying requests

The ProxyServer service supports recording HTTP requests for test mocking and replay. All proxied requests are automatically recorded by the mock server as described in the Mock Server documentation.

Recording Expectations

typescript

// Record all requests (the request is simplified/cleansed to method/path/body/query)
await proxyServer.recordExpectations('test-folder');

// Record with filtering and options
await proxyServer.recordExpectations('test-folder', {
  host: 'googleapis.com',           // Filter by host (partial match)
  dedupe: true,                     // Remove duplicate requests
  raw: false                        // Save cleaned requests (default)
});

// Record raw requests with all headers and metadata
await proxyServer.recordExpectations('test-folder', {
  raw: true                         // Save complete original requests
});

// Record requests matching specific criteria
await proxyServer.recordExpectations('test-folder', {
  pathOrRequestDefinition: {
    method: 'POST',
    path: '/api/workflows'
  }
});

Loading and Using Recorded Expectations

Recorded expectations are saved as JSON files in the expectations/ directory. To use them in tests, you must explicitly load them:

typescript

test('should use recorded expectations', async ({ proxyServer }) => {
  // Load expectations from a specific folder
  await proxyServer.loadExpectations('test-folder');

  // Your test code here - requests will be mocked using loaded expectations
});

Important: Cleanup Expectations

Remember to clean up expectations before or after test runs:

typescript

test.beforeEach(async ({ proxyServer }) => {
  // Clear any existing expectations before test
  await proxyServer.clearAllExpectations();
});

test.afterEach(async ({ proxyServer }) => {
  // Or clear expectations after test
  await proxyServer.clearAllExpectations();
});

This prevents expectations from one test affecting others and ensures test isolation.

Debugging

Keepalive Mode

Use N8N_CONTAINERS_KEEPALIVE=true to keep containers running after tests complete. Useful for:

Inspecting n8n instance state after a failure
Exploring configured integrations (email, OIDC, source control)
Manual testing against a pre-configured environment

bash

N8N_CONTAINERS_KEEPALIVE=true pnpm test:container:sqlite --grep "@capability:email" --workers 1

After tests complete, connection details are printed:

=== KEEPALIVE: Containers left running for debugging ===
    URL: http://localhost:54321
    Project: n8n-stack-abc123
    Cleanup: pnpm --filter n8n-containers stack:clean:all
=========================================================

Clean up when done: pnpm --filter n8n-containers stack:clean:all

Victoria Export on Failure

When tests fail with observability enabled, logs and metrics are automatically exported as Currents attachments:

Attachment	Description
`container-logs`	Human-readable logs grouped by container
`victoria-logs-export.jsonl`	Raw logs in JSON Lines format
`victoria-metrics-export.jsonl`	All metrics in JSON Lines format

Importing into a local Victoria instance

Download the .jsonl attachments from Currents
Import into running Victoria containers (e.g., from keepalive mode):

bash

node scripts/import-victoria-data.mjs victoria-metrics-export.jsonl victoria-logs-export.jsonl

Or start standalone containers first with --start:

bash

node scripts/import-victoria-data.mjs --start victoria-metrics-export.jsonl victoria-logs-export.jsonl

Query locally:
- Metrics UI: http://localhost:8428/vmui/
- Logs UI: http://localhost:9428/select/vmui/

Janitor (Static Analysis)

Janitor enforces test architecture patterns via static analysis. It runs as a pre-commit hook and blocks new violations from being introduced.

Existing violations are tracked in a baseline file (.janitor-baseline.json) and don't block commits. Only new violations in your changed files will fail.

Quick Commands

bash

# Run all rules on entire codebase
pnpm janitor

# Run on a specific file
pnpm janitor --file=tests/e2e/my-test.spec.ts

# Run a specific rule
pnpm janitor --rule=dead-code
pnpm janitor --rule=selector-purity

# Dead code auto-removal
pnpm janitor:fix --rule=dead-code

# List all rules
pnpm janitor --list

# Verbose output (shows suggestions)
pnpm janitor --verbose

Rules

Rule	Severity	What it enforces
`selector-purity`	error	Tests/flows use page objects, not raw locators
`scope-lockdown`	error	Page locators scoped to their container
`boundary-protection`	error	Pages don't import other pages
`no-direct-page-instantiation`	error	Access pages through the facade, not `new XPage()`
`dead-code`	warning	No unused methods/properties [fixable]
`no-page-in-flow`	warning	Flows use page objects, not `page` directly
`api-purity`	warning	Tests use API services, not raw HTTP calls
`deduplication`	warning	Same test ID defined in one page object only

Janitor Blocked My Commit - Now What?

When the pre-commit hook blocks your commit, you'll see output like:

Found 2 violation(s)

tests/e2e/my-test.spec.ts (2)
   [ERR] L15: [selector-purity] Raw locator in test: page.getByTestId('save-button')
   [ERR] L22: [selector-purity] Chained locator call: n8n.canvas.getNode('X').locator('.status')

Steps to fix:

Read the rule name and message - it tells you exactly what's wrong
Move the selector into a page object - the fix is almost always "put this in a page object method instead"
Re-run janitor on your file to verify: pnpm janitor --file=<your-file>
Commit again

Common fixes by rule:

Rule	Problem	Fix
`selector-purity`	`page.getByTestId('x')` in test	Add a getter to the page object, call it from the test
`selector-purity`	`someLocator.locator('.child')` in test	Add a method to the page object that returns the specific element
`scope-lockdown`	`this.page.getByTestId('x')` in a component	Use `this.container.getByTestId('x')` instead
`boundary-protection`	Page importing another page	Move the composition to a flow/composable
`dead-code`	Unused method in page object	Delete it (or run `pnpm janitor:fix --rule=dead-code`)

False positive? If you believe the violation is wrong, raise it with the QA team. Don't bypass the hook.

Impact Analysis

Find which tests are affected by a file or method change:

bash

# File-level: which tests use this page object?
pnpm janitor impact --file=pages/CanvasPage.ts

# Method-level: which tests call this specific method?
pnpm janitor method-impact --method=CanvasPage.addNode

# Pipe to playwright to run only affected tests
pnpm janitor impact --file=pages/CanvasPage.ts --test-list | xargs pnpm test:local

Inventory (Codebase Discovery)

bash

pnpm janitor inventory                    # Full inventory
pnpm janitor inventory --summary          # Summary counts
pnpm janitor inventory --category=pages   # Single category

Writing Tests

For guidelines on writing new tests, see CONTRIBUTING.md.