The Benefits of Automated Testing in Power Platform & Dynamics 365 — and How to Get Started

1. Catch Regressions Early

Even a small change to a form, view, or flow can have ripple effects. Automated tests help you detect issues before they hit production.

2. Faster Release Cycles

Without automated tests, every deployment requires time-consuming manual testing. Automation lets you ship faster and more frequently.

3. Confidence for Large Teams

When multiple developers work on the same solution, automated tests reduce the “fear of breaking things.”

4. Consistent Testing Standards

Manual testing varies by person. Automated tests run the same way every time.

5. Cost Savings

While automated testing requires upfront effort, it saves significant costs by avoiding production bugs, support escalations, and rework.

✅ Unit Tests

• Test logic in custom plug-ins, JavaScript, PCF controls.
• Example: A C# unit test ensuring a plugin throws the right exception when a required field is missing.

✅ API / Integration Tests

• Test Dataverse Web API calls directly.
• Validate that tables, views, and business rules behave as expected.
• Example: Confirm that creating a record triggers downstream automation via flow.

✅ UI / End-to-End Tests

• Simulate user interactions with model-driven apps, portals, or canvas apps.
• Example: A test that logs into a portal, fills out a form, and confirms the success message appears.

✅ Performance Tests

• Stress-test heavy operations to identify bottlenecks.
• Less common in Power Platform but valuable for high-volume apps.

🧰 EasyRepro (link to website)

• Microsoft’s open-source UI automation library for Dynamics 365.
• Written in C# and built on Selenium.
• Can automate:
  • Form entry
  • Button clicks
  • Navigation
  • Data validation

Pros:
✅ Free and open-source
✅ Built for Dynamics UI patterns
✅ Works well in DevOps pipelines

Cons:
❌ Mostly for model-driven apps
❌ Requires .NET/C# skills

🧰Playwrite (link to website)

• A modern end-to-end testing framework from Microsoft.
• Supports:
  • Web UI testing for portals
  • Headless browser testing
  • Parallel test execution

Pros:
✅ Fast and modern
✅ Works with multiple languages (JS, Python, .NET, Java)
✅ Great for testing Power Pages or embedded canvas apps

Cons:
❌ Needs custom scripts for authentication (esp. AAD)
❌ Steeper learning curve for non-devs

🧰 Test Studio / Selenium (link to website)

• General-purpose UI automation tools that work with Dynamics 365 or portals.

Pros:
✅ Flexible
✅ Large community

Cons:
❌ Higher maintenance for UI tests
❌ Prone to breaking with UI changes

🧰 FakeXrmEasy (link to website)

• C# library for unit testing plugins and code.
• Lets you mock Dataverse context and data.

Pros:
✅ Fast unit testing without needing an actual Dataverse instance
✅ Ideal for testing business logic

Cons:
❌ Only useful for code-level testing, not UI

✅ Step 1: Configure Build Pipelines

• Compile your solutions and plugin assemblies.
• Run unit tests automatically as part of your build.

✅ Step 2: Add UI or Integration Tests

• Configure test tasks in Azure DevOps pipelines:
  • EasyRepro tests (.NET Core tasks)
  • Playwright tests (npm or .NET runners)
• Set up variables for environment URLs and credentials.

✅ Step 3: Report Results

• Publish test results back to Azure DevOps.
• Visualize test pass/fail rates across builds.

✅ Step 4: Gate Deployments

• Add pre-deployment gates:
  • “Deploy only if all tests pass.”
• This ensures only stable solutions reach production.

🚀 Real-World Example

Recently, I helped a client deploying a large Dynamics 365 Customer Service app:

• Unit tests verified plug-in logic.
• EasyRepro scripts simulated real user actions across key forms.
• Tests ran automatically in DevOps pipelines.
• We caught various issues during testing that would have impacted live agents.

Result:
Deployments were faster and safer, and confidence across the team increased.

Start small:

• Write unit tests for critical business logic.
• Automate one or two user flows with EasyRepro or Playwright.
• Integrate tests into your pipeline.