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Katalon Compact Utility for Katalon Studio

Important:

In restricted environments, unpacked extensions are disabled as a security feature. In that case, using the Spy, Record, and Smart Wait with Chrome might prompt this error: "Loading the unpacked extension is disabled by the administrators."

It is possible to use the packed extension Katalon Compact Utility as an alternative. The extension is available on Chrome Web Store and Microsoft Edge Add-ons.

This article shows you how to install the extension, configure your Profile, and use the Spy, Record, and Smart Wait in Katalon Studio.

Note:

  • This utility is associated with your Chrome/ Microsoft Edge Profile, which means you can only have one active session at any given time. Hence, before executing, make sure you log out of all your Chrome/ Microsoft Edge sessions.

Installing Katalon Compact Utility​

  1. Open Chrome/ Microsoft Edge. Make sure you use the Profile you want to use the Spy, Record, or Smart Wait with.

  2. Navigate to the extension page:

  3. Download and install Katalon Compact Utility.

  4. Make sure the extension is now active. You can find instructions to manage your extensions here:

Configuring and Using the Compact Utility with Chrome Profile​

The next steps help you associate your Chrome Profile with the Spy, Record, and Smart Wait functions in Katalon Studio.

To configure and use Katalon Compact Utility, you need to update the Desired Capabilities. Do as follows:

  1. Go to Project > Settings > Desired Capabilities.
  2. In the Desired Capabilities section, select Web UI > Chrome.
  3. Click Add to create a new capability named args, for which the type is List.

  4. To add elements to your list, in the Value column of the capability you've created, click on the ... button.

    element

  5. The List Properties Builder dialog appears. Click Add to create two elements as below. When you are done, click OK to save.

    list

    TypeValue
    StringFor Windows: user-data-dir=C:\Users\<your_username>\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data
    For macOS: user-data-dir=/Users/<your_username>/Library/Application Support/Google/Chrome
    Stringprofile-directory=<your_profile_name>
    Tip:

    Finding your Chrome Profile in the User Data Directory

    There are multiple Profiles in a given User Data Directory. To find the name of a Chrome Profile, do as follows:

    • Open Chrome with the Profile you previously used to install Katalon Compact Utility. In the address bar, type chrome://version and press Enter.
    • The line Profile Path displays the path to your active Profile. For example: C:\Users\your_username\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\your_profile_name.
  6. To save the Chrome configuration, click Apply and Close.
    You can now use the Spy, Record, and Smart Wait features with the default Chrome option.
    Note:

    • Using Katalon Compact Utility with Chrome version 103 sometimes my cause the error: unknown error: cannot determine loading status from unknown error: unexpected command response. This issue is addressed in ChromeDriver release notes, and it will be fixed in Chrome version 104 onwards. You can still close the error dialog in Katalon Studio and save your script as normal. To learn more, see ChromeDriver documentation: Current Releases.

    .

Configure the Compact Utility with Microsoft Edge Profile​

The next steps help you link your Microsoft Edge Profile with the Spy, Record, and Smart Wait functions in Katalon Studio.

To configure and use Katalon Compact Utility, you need to update the Desired Capabilities. Do as follows:

  1. Go to Project > Settings > Desired Capabilities.
  2. In the Desired Capabilities section, select Web UI > Edge Chromium.

  3. Click Add to create a new capability:

    edge-desired-capabilities

    • Name: ms:edgeOptions
    • Type: Dictionary

    • Value: Click on the ... button of the value cell, the Dictionary Properties Builder dialog appears. Click Add and input these fields:

      add dictionary

      • Name: args
      • Type: List

      • Value: Click on the ... button of the value cell, the List Properties Builder dialog appears.

        list

        Click Add to create two elements as below. When you are done, click OK to save.

        TypeValue
        StringFor Windows: user-data-dir=C:\Users\<your_username>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Edge\User Data
        For macOS: user-data-dir=/Users/<your_username>/Library/Application Support/Microsoft Edge
        Stringprofile-directory=<your_profile_name>
        Tip:

        Find your Microsoft Edge Profile in the User Data Directory

        There are multiple Profiles in a given User Data Directory. To find the name of a Microsoft Edge Profile, do as follows:

        • Open Microsoft Edge with the Profile you previously used to install Katalon Compact Utility. In the address bar, type edge://version and press Enter.
        • The line Profile Path displays the path to your active Profile. For example: /Users/your_username/Library/Application Support/Microsoft Edge/Default.

  4. To save the configuration, click Apply and Close.

    You can now use the Spy, Record, and Smart Wait features with the default Microsoft Edge option.

Disable XPath visibility​

From Katalon Studio version 8.2.5 onwards, you can enable/disable the XPath visibility while recording actions on your app under test. Do as follows:

  1. For Chrome: Open Chrome, then click on the Extension icon. Click on the More icon of the Katalon Compact Utility, then choose Options.

    For Microsoft Edge: Open Microsoft Edge, then click on the More icon and choose Extension > Manage Extension. Click on Details of the Katalon Compact Utility.

  2. Click on the XPath Visibility toggle to enable/disable XPath visibility.

    xpath visibility

Attention:
  • For web pages saved as HTML local files, Katalon Compact Utility cannot spy and capture objects, while unpacked extensions (from the native Spy and Record utility) can do that.

See also: