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Katalon Studio Tracer

This document explains how you can use Katalon Studio Tracer to visually debug failures and flaky behavior across Katalon Studio (KS) and Katalon Runtime Engine (KRE).

note
  • Katalon Studio Tracer is currently available as a beta feature in the RC build of Katalon Studio 11.0.0 and will be included in the official 11.0.0 release.

Tracer is an execution tracing capability that records everything that happens during a WebUI test run and packages it into trace files that you can later view and troubleshoot. This allows you to understand exactly what the browser was doing at each step—eliminating guesswork when diagnosing failures.

katalon studio tracer in action

For each test step, Tracer captures:

  • The before/after DOM snapshots for each moment. This is especially useful for debugging flaky locators and dynamic web apps.

  • Network requests correlated with each action. This helps with understanding issues related to backend failures, slow APIs, or missing data.

  • Console logs & JavaScript errors, for troubleshooting.

  • Storage and browser state. This helps diagnose issues related to authentication, caching,…

Use Tracer in Katalon Studio​

requirements
  • Google Chrome browser (Tracer currently supports Chrome only)
  • (Optional) Project integrated with Katalon TestOps to upload and view trace files online
  1. Enable Tracer

In Katalon Studio (KSE), you can enable Tracer in Project Settings > Execution > Tracer.

katalon studio tracer configuration

  1. Configure Tracer modes and Captured data types. These are modes you can choose from:

    • on (always record) – Record a trace for every test case

    • on-first-retry – Record a trace only for the first retry of a failed test

    • on-all-retries – Record traces for all retry attempts

    • on-first-failure – If the test fails, record a trace for the fail and skip recording for subsequent retries. Delete traces if the test passes.

    • on-failure – If the test fails, record traces for both the fail and retries. Delete traces if the test passes.

  2. Execute a WebUI test suite/test suite collection, and open the report-containing folder to find Tracer files for each test case (<project>/Reports/traces/ktracer_files). Trace files are automatically uploaded to TestOps if integration is available.

katalon studio tracer folder in report

  1. View tracer files:

    • Upload the file to https://trace.playwright.dev/ for online viewing on the browser.

    • Run the following command: npx playwright show-trace file-path to view the file locally. You might be asked to install the playwright package if not already installed (manually install with npx playwright install).

Use Tracer in Katalon Runtime Engine​

requirements
  • An active Katalon Runtime Engine (KRE) license.
  • Google Chrome browser (Tracer currently supports Chrome only)
  • (Optional) Project integrated with Katalon TestOps to upload and view trace files online

In KRE, Tracer behavior is controlled using the command‑line parameter -trace.mode. Use -trace.mode=<value> to specify when Tracer should record execution traces. For example:

katalon
    -executeTests
    -testSuitePath="Test Suites/TS1"
    -trace.mode=on

You can replace <value> with the following:

  • off – Disable tracing (default)
  • on – Record a trace for every test case
  • on-first-retry – Record a trace only for the first retry of a failed test
  • on-all-retries – Record traces for all retry attempts
  • on-failure – If the test fails, record a trace for the failed run, and skip recording for subsequent retries. Delete traces if the test passes.
  • on-first-failure – If the test fails, record traces for both the fail run and retries. Delete traces if the test passes.

You should then find the reports on your local machine or on TestOps. View them on the web at https://trace.playwright.dev/ or with the command linenpx playwright show-trace file-path.

Beta Limitations​

The initial beta version of Tracer has the following limitations. These capabilities will be expanded in future releases:

  • Attachments (videos, custom logs, artifacts)

  • Firefox, Edge, Safari browser support (currently Chrome-only)

  • Run with Tracer in Debug Mode

  • Built-in trace viewer (video/play button in Katalon Studio)

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