Support the nativeAutomation mode for the BrowserStack browser provider

[patrickathompson]

What is your Scenario?

When running latest version of TestCafe with nativeAutomation enabled and using browserstack remote browser provider, the following error occurs:

Error: The "browserstack" do not support the Native Automation mode. Remove the "native automation" option to continue.

What are you suggesting?

Add a configuration option to support this new mode, or release a new module that supports it.

What alternatives have you considered?

AWS DeviceFarm, Docker localhost headless

Additional context

I have created another issue here:

DevExpress/testcafe-browser-provider-browserstack#199

I felt it was necessary to mention, however, since the code to throw the error and block native automation in browsertstack was added to testcafe and not the browser provider itself.

[AlexKamaev]

Hello,

At present, TestCafe supports the Native Automation mode only for local Chromium-based browsers. Please refer to the following help topic to learn more about Native Automation mode limitations: https://testcafe.io/documentation/404237/guides/intermediate-guides/native-automation-mode#limitations.

[patrickathompson]

This is a new feature request. Are you saying that you are not going to support native automation in remote browsers moving forward? If you plan on supporting this feature then you should probably leave the issue open.

[AlexKamaev]

Currently, we do not have plans to support remote browsers. We are fully focused on Chrome-based native automation mode. Our plans can change in the future. However, at present, there is no need to keep this issue opened.

[AlexKamaev]

We discussed the issue with the team once again and decided to keep it open in order to track user interest.

[Klaster1]

The lack of remote browser support further complicates the visual regression testing story in TestCafe. To test reliably, you need a 100% reproducible environment, both hardware and software (i.e. the Docker image). Right now, the options are managing your own browser pool or using a third-party browser pool, like Browserstack. Lack of the remote browser support makes the second option impossible. TestCafe users have to choose between improved test stability brought by the NA mode, supporting more infrastructure or forgoing the visual regression testing,

In addition to that, I had to switch from the "testcafe/testcafe" image to the "browserless/chrome" when migrating to 1.19 because of various issues in the default image DevExpress provides. These might have been fixed or not, but either way I'd have to re-arrange the test pipeline again.

[wombatka]

any updates about planning to support remote browsers? we are using selenium grid for testcafe tests run , we have several issue related to proxy and using native automation would be really important to us

[Dvoreth]

We also need native automation for remote browsers, specifically Browserstack.

[AlexKamaev]

@wombatka
At present, we cannot give any precise estimates on when TestCafe will support any other browsers except Chromium-based.

[vasilyevi]

We also need native automation for remote browsers, specifically Browserstack.