Solving the Firefox Download Dialog Issue with Robot Framework and Selenium

Discover how to disable the Firefox download dialog using the `Robot Framework` and `Selenium`. Easily customize your Firefox profile for a smooth automation experience.
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This video is based on the question https://stackoverflow.com/q/71131208/ asked by the user 'marquillo' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/14131240/ ) and on the answer https://stackoverflow.com/a/71147026/ provided by the user 'marquillo' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/14131240/ ) at 'Stack Overflow' website. Thanks to these great users and Stackexchange community for their contributions.

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Solving the Firefox Download Dialog Issue with Robot Framework and Selenium

Automating browser tasks can sometimes lead to unexpected issues, such as the Firefox download dialog appearing even when we want to suppress it. If you're using the Robot Framework in conjunction with Selenium, you might have run into this specific problem: despite updating Firefox preferences, the dialog still shows up during the test runs. In this guide, we’ll explore how to tackle this issue and ensure that downloads happen seamlessly.

The Problem

You might have implemented a Python function to disable the download dialog in Firefox, but instead of the expected outcome, the download window comes up, asking for confirmation each time. This can interrupt automated tests and make the process inefficient. Here's a look at the initial attempts:

Initial Function Overview

Your initial function, which sets Firefox preferences, might look something like this:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

When called in your Robot Framework test, you might use code like this:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Despite following the correct setup, you find that the dialog still appears during the test execution. So, what went wrong?

The Solution

After further investigation, it turns out that there were two missing preferences that needed to be set. By adjusting your function to include them, you can successfully suppress the download dialog.

Updated Function

Here is the revised version of your disable_download_dialog function that incorporates the necessary preferences:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Explanation of New Preferences

browser.helperApps.alwaysAsk.force: This preference ensures that Firefox does not prompt with a dialog about the file type, allowing concise downloads without interruptions.

pdfjs.disabled: By setting this to True, you disable the built-in PDF viewer. This means that Firefox will treat PDFs as downloadable files directly instead of opening them in the browser, which effectively eliminates the dialog.

Conclusion

By implementing the adjustments outlined above, you should now be able to use the Robot Framework and Selenium with Firefox without the annoying download dialog popping up. This not only enhances the flow of your automated tests but also provides a more seamless experience in managing files.

If you encounter further issues or have questions about setting up other browser preferences, feel free to reach out in the comments!