Java Selenium - ScreenshotUtil

What is ScreenshotUtil?

ScreenshotUtil is a reusable Selenium utility that standardizes screenshot capturing across automation frameworks. It helps testers capture browser, element-level, and failure screenshots for debugging, reporting, and audit purposes.

📸 Java - ScreenshotUtil Base Class

Central utility class to capture screenshots using Selenium WebDriver.

import org.openqa.selenium.*;
import org.openqa.selenium.io.FileHandler;

import java.io.File;
import java.io.IOException;
import java.text.SimpleDateFormat;
import java.util.Date;

public class ScreenshotUtil {

    private static final String SCREENSHOT_DIR = "screenshots/";

    private static String getTimestamp() {
        return new SimpleDateFormat("yyyyMMdd_HHmmss").format(new Date());
    }

    private static File createDirectoryIfNotExists() {
        File dir = new File(SCREENSHOT_DIR);
        if (!dir.exists()) {
            dir.mkdirs();
        }
        return dir;
    }

    public static String captureBrowserScreenshot(WebDriver driver, String name) {
        createDirectoryIfNotExists();
        String path = SCREENSHOT_DIR + name + "_" + getTimestamp() + ".png";
        File src = ((TakesScreenshot) driver).getScreenshotAs(OutputType.FILE);
        try {
            FileHandler.copy(src, new File(path));
        } catch (IOException e) {
            e.printStackTrace();
        }
        return path;
    }
}

🎯 Java - Element Screenshot Capture

Capture screenshot of a specific WebElement.

public static String captureElementScreenshot(WebElement element, String name) {
    String path = "screenshots/" + name + "_" + getTimestamp() + ".png";
    File src = element.getScreenshotAs(OutputType.FILE);
    try {
        FileHandler.copy(src, new File(path));
    } catch (IOException e) {
        e.printStackTrace();
    }
    return path;
}

Screenshot Naming Strategy:

• <suite>_<testName>_<timestamp>.png

❌ Selenium - Screenshot on Test Failure (TestNG)

import org.testng.ITestListener;
import org.testng.ITestResult;

public class TestListener implements ITestListener {

    @Override
    public void onTestFailure(ITestResult result) {
        WebDriver driver = (WebDriver) result.getTestContext()
                .getAttribute("driver");

        ScreenshotUtil.captureBrowserScreenshot(
                driver,
                result.getMethod().getMethodName()
        );
    }
}

🔴 Selenium - Screenshot on Test Failure (JUnit 5)

import org.junit.jupiter.api.extension.ExtensionContext;
import org.junit.jupiter.api.extension.TestWatcher;

public class ScreenshotWatcher implements TestWatcher {

    @Override
    public void testFailed(ExtensionContext context, Throwable cause) {
        WebDriver driver = DriverManager.getDriver();
        ScreenshotUtil.captureBrowserScreenshot(
                driver,
                context.getDisplayName()
        );
    }
}

🔗 Java - Base64 Screenshot (API / Test Reports)

Capture screenshots in Base64 format for API responses, Allure, Extent Reports, or JSON payloads without saving files on disk.

import org.openqa.selenium.OutputType;
import org.openqa.selenium.TakesScreenshot;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;

public class ScreenshotUtil {

    /**
     * Capture screenshot as Base64 string
     */
    public static String captureBase64Screenshot(WebDriver driver) {
        if (driver == null) {
            System.err.println("WebDriver is null. Base64 screenshot skipped.");
            return null;
        }
        return ((TakesScreenshot) driver)
                .getScreenshotAs(OutputType.BASE64);
    }
}

When to use:

• API-based test reports
• Allure attachments
• Extent Reports screenshots
• Cloud executions (no local file access)

Example usage (Allure):

Allure.addAttachment(
    "Failure Screenshot",
    "image/png",
    new ByteArrayInputStream(
        Base64.getDecoder().decode(
            ScreenshotUtil.captureBase64Screenshot(driver)
        )
    ),
    ".png"
);

⚠️ Java - Failure Only Conditional Screenshots

Capture screenshots only when a test fails to reduce noise, execution time, and storage usage.

import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
import org.testng.ITestResult;

public class ScreenshotUtil {

    /**
     * Capture screenshot only on test failure
     */
    public static void captureOnFailure(
            ITestResult result,
            WebDriver driver
    ) {
        if (result.getStatus() == ITestResult.FAILURE && driver != null) {
            captureBrowserScreenshot(
                driver,
                result.getMethod().getMethodName()
            );
        }
    }
}

Recommended for:

• Large regression suites
• CI pipelines
• Parallel executions
• Clean reporting

---

TestNG Listener Usage

@Override
public void onTestFailure(ITestResult result) {
    WebDriver driver = (WebDriver) result
            .getTestContext()
            .getAttribute("driver");

    ScreenshotUtil.captureOnFailure(result, driver);
}

Benefits:

• Faster execution
• Less disk usage
• Only meaningful screenshots stored

🔧 CI/CD - Screenshot Persistence Tips

• Archive screenshots directory
• Upload as pipeline artifacts
• Attach to reports

🚨 Common Pitfalls

• Do not overwrite screenshots
• Ensure driver availability in listeners
• Persist workspace in CI