Use a Dedicated ChromeDriver for Better Web Test Execution Stability

How to use a specific version of ChromeDriver for Automation.

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Since Selenium v4.12, Selenium Manager automatically provides the automated driver and browser management for Selenium. This simplifies the web test automation setup, which is very convenient. However, this does leave the possibility that the Chrome browser + ChromeDriver combination (installation not managed by you) could lead to test execution stability issues in your test scripts. That said, the quality release of ChromeDriver has been great recently. However, when it happens (as seen in the past), it can be frustrating and time-consuming to identify the cause.

In this article, I will show a way that can lock Chrome and ChromeDriver to a specific version for a web test automation testing lab.

For starters, let me share proof. Below is a screenshot of the Chrome browser on Build Agent#2 (a 2012 Mac Mini) in my father’s testing lab.

Yes, the OS (macOS v10.15) is the three major versions behind, and the Chrome browser (the latest possible for the OS) is 6 versions behind 😅. Yet, it has been testing well all these years, even today.