WaitAliasChild taking way longer than specified timeout to return exists = false

[vthomeschoolmom]

var sessionPresence = Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.WaitAliasChild("panLogin", ProjectSuite.Variables.TinyWaitTimeout); // 0 represents immediate return.

So I have this line of code which is intended to wait for the panel specified by the alias. I then check the Exists property to decide what to do if it is there. TinyWaitTimeout suite variable is set to 200. 

When the panel is present, it is found quickly and the sessionPresence is identified as existing and everything is lovely. If the panel is not present, the code delays for WAAAAAY more than TinyWaitTimeout. I tried

aqUtils.Delay(ProjectSuite.Variables.TinyWaitTimeout);
var sessionPresence = Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.WaitAliasChild("panLogin", 0); // 0 represents immediate return.

for giggles and still that line waits for a very long time.

When I set a break point there, and step over the line, the wait is executed perfectly, waits the right amoung of time to give up and return Exists true or false. 

This is going to slow my runtime since this line is executed with every single test in my quite large (and getting larger) suite as it has to do with handling a login gone wrong. While I always prioritize stability over run time speed, this one makes no sense. 

Does anyone have any idea how to make this Wait execute for the correct time out period? Honeslty, I think I am missing something obvious because I use this kind of technique All The Time.

Thanks

[tristaanogre]

The problem may not be with the specific panel but with the parent.  Can you confirm that wndWindowContent is available as well?  Because the waiting may not be for  the child object itself but for the parent.

[vthomeschoolmom]

Yes I can confirm that wndWindowContent is present.  This is a very top level element that is pretty much always present. For giggles I stopped the execution of a test at this point in code and confirm with the highlight element that it is present and very quickly identified.

[AlexKaras]

Hi,

> Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.WaitAliasChild("panLogin", ProjectSuite.Variables.TinyWaitTimeout);

> wndWindowContent is present.  This is a very top level element [...]

This might be the reason depending how panLogin alias is mapped.

Guessing that if it is mapped using Advanced Find, then TestComplete will drill-down complete objects tree in order to check if the sought for alias exists.

The more definite and precise identification criteria and search path are defined in NameMapping, the more fast .WaitXXX() method will work.

[vthomeschoolmom]

So I am guessing by Advanced Find you mean extended search? It WAS using extended search. And it did not need to. I removed the selection of extended search on wndWindowContent. I confirm that it is still found properly. That element is used all over the place and does not take a long time to find. panLogin, when present, is found immediately. When NOT present, the timeout is not being honored. That is the crux of my issue.

Thanks

[vthomeschoolmom]

I replaced the WaitAliasChild with FindChild and properties. It is much faster. Still kinda wonder why WaitAliasChild is taking so long. I want it to timeout when I want it to! I don't love the FindChild in this case since it mimimizes the effectiveness of reuse of a well constructed NameMapping. Ah well. Such is life.

[tristaanogre]

Can you screenshot your NameMapping of the relevant section, making sure you expand to show the "Extended Find" column?  Also, a bit more of your workflow/automation in a screenshot would be helpful.  Obviously, there's a reason why you're waiting at that point... but I wonder if there might be something else that needs to be considered.  If this is a web page, there could be other Active components and loads and things that are happening that calling WaitAliasChild at that point is causing other things to trigger.

This could also be a caching thing. Have you tried calling "RefreshNameMapping" on the parent object before you call WaitAliasChild?

[vthomeschoolmom]

So this code that I have shown is on the OpenStandard procedure that is used in all the tests. Picture the desired workflow

- Open browser.

- Login.

- Do test stuff.

- Logout.

- Close browser.

Where bolded is the intent of StandardOpen()

If the test that preceeded the current one barfed for whatever reason, the browser is closed without logging out. So the next time login occurs, the page prompts do you want to resume the last session. The standard open then becomes

- Open browser.

- Login.

- If the login panel is present, you are seeing the session resumption prompt. Select to resume previous session.

- Logout ending session

- Login

	Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.RefreshMappingInfo();
	var sessionPresence = Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.WaitAliasChild("panLogin", ProjectSuite.Variables.TinyWaitTimeout);

	if (sessionPresence.Exists)
	{
		sessionPresencedialog = Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.panLogin.WaitAliasChild("selSession", ProjectSuite.Variables.TinyWaitTimeout);
	}

The WaitAliasChild here (re-added the code so it might not be precisely the same) is taking a loooooooong time to return the object with the exists stub only when the object does not exist. When it does, it returns right away. All is well.

	var propNames = new Array("ObjectType", "ObjectIdentifier");
	var propValues = new Array("Panel", "ng_login_container");
	var sessionPresence = Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.FindChild(propNames, propValues, 10);
	

This works well. But, I happen to be in the middle of a big port to our app under test's new UI. One of the reasons it is going super well is that the NameMapping was pretty well organized. So I don't LOVE using Find. But this is not a hill I am going to die on. It really is just one function. That said, I sure would like to know what is going on for my greater understanding.

[vthomeschoolmom]

More info.

function OpenStandard()
{

	var userName = Project.Variables.UserName;
	var password = Project.Variables.Password;
  
	CloseBrowserWithConfirm();
	
	Browsers.Item(ProjectSuite.Variables.BrowserUnderTest).Run(Project.Variables.Url);
	Aliases.browser.BrowserWindow(0).Maximize();
	Login(userName, password);
	
	var propNames = new Array("ObjectType", "ObjectIdentifier");
	var propValues = new Array("Panel", "ng_login_container");
	var sessionPresence = Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.FindChild(propNames, propValues, 10);
	
	
	if (sessionPresence.Exists)
	{
		sessionPresencedialog = Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.panLogin.WaitAliasChild("selSession", ProjectSuite.Variables.TinyWaitTimeout);
	}
	
	if (sessionPresence.Exists)
	{
		Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.panLogin.btnContinue.Click();
		aqUtils.Delay(ProjectSuite.Variables.TinyWaitTimeout);
		LogoutEndSession();
		Login(userName, password);
	}
  
}

[AlexKaras]

Hi,

Thank you for the screenshot of your NameMapping/Aliasing.

Aliases is the means to provide you with more convenient and stable logical structure of your tested application's UI. Aliases are based on NameMapping which corresponds to the physical organization of application's UI. (Consider NameMapping as a translation table between physical and logical UI layouts.)

With the above in mind, my current understanding of your problem is this:

-- While aliased name of the sought for control is

Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.panLogin,

the physical layout (from NameMapping) is

Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.panel.panLogin;

-- It is my guess that if panLogin does not exist, its parent panel object does not exist as well;

-- If my guess is correct, then, when you ask TestComplete to wait for the panLogin aliased object, TestComplete internally first looks for the panel object. And if this object does not exist, then TestComplete waits for it using default project timeout.

I hope that this is the reason of the delay you are observing.

As a way to speed things up, you may try to add a panel object from NameMapping as another Aliased element and put it on the same level as panLogin one (in order to keep your existing code unchanged). For better usability you may rename the alias for this panel to, say, panLoginPanel.

Then, change your code line to this:

var sessionPresence = Aliases.browser.pageMain.wndWindowContent.WaitAliasChild("panLoginPanel", ProjectSuite.Variables.TinyWaitTimeout);

and keep the rest of your code as it is.

Does this help?