Use Katalon plugins for Jenkins integration on Ubuntu

This tutorial walks you through basic steps to run Katalon Studio tests using Katalon plugin for Jenkins on a headless Ubuntu machine i.e. a machine without any display. You can find the plugin on Jenkins here: Katalon.

If you are interested in using Docker images instead, you can refer to our sample project on GitHub: ci-samples.

Install Jenkins on Ubuntu

To install Jenkins, follow the instructions in this Jenkins document: Debian/Ubuntu.

Install Google Chrome

wget -O google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb https://dl.google.com/linux/direct/google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb
sudo apt -y -f install

Install Xvfb

From Wikipedia:

"Xvfb or X virtual framebuffer is a display server implementing the X11 display server protocol. In contrast to other display servers, Xvfb performs all graphical operations in virtual memory without showing any screen output. From the point of view of the client, it acts exactly like any other X display server, serving requests and sending events and errors as appropriate. However, no output is shown. This virtual server does not require the computer it is running on to have any kind of graphics adapter, a screen or any input device. Only a network layer is necessary."

sudo apt install -y xvfb

Install the Katalon plugin on Jenkins

To run Katalon tests on Jenkins, you need to install the Katalon plugin on Jenkins. Do as follows:

1. Sign in to Jenkins and go to Manage Jenkins > Manage Plugins.
   The Plugin Manager page appears.
2. Click on the Available tab and search for the Katalon plugin.
   
3. Select the plugin and choose Install without restart.

Create and configure a new Jenkins project

To keep it simple, I will use Freestyle project.

The sample Katalon Studio project can be cloned from Github.

Next, add and configure the build step Execute Katalon Studio tests provided by Katalon plugin for Jenkins.

• Katalon Studio will be downloaded and installed automatically based on the version you specify.
• Leave out -runMode in the arguments list.
• If you want to learn more about xvfb-run configuration please see its manual. If you are not sure, only change the resolution 1024x768x24 and leave other options as-is.

If for some network conditions the Katalon Studio package cannot be downloaded, you can install it manually and specify its location.

me@ubuntu:~$ sudo su
root@ubuntu:~$ su jenkins
jenkins@ubuntu:~$ wget https://github.com/katalon-studio/katalon-studio/releases/download/v5.10.1/Katalon_Studio_Linux_64-5.10.1.tar.gz
jenkins@ubuntu:~$ tar -xzf Katalon_Studio_Linux_64-5.10.1.tar.gz
jenkins@ubuntu:~$ cd Katalon_Studio_Linux_64-5.10.1 && pwd

The last command will print the location you need (/var/lib/jenkins/Katalon_Studio_Linux_64-5.10.1).

Run the Jenkins job

Go to the Jenkins project page (e.g. at http://localhost:8060/jenkins/job/test/ if its name is “test”), click Build Now.

After it is complete, you can find the report in the Last Successful Artifacts section.

Note:

• Katalon Studio sample test execution

Troubleshoot: Unable to init server: Could not connect: Connection refused

When you run your test with Jenkins on Ubuntu using the Katalon plugin, you might encounter the error: "Unable to init server: Could not connect: Connection refused"

To resolve this error, make sure your Ubuntu machine uses OpenJDK 8. You can verify the version of the JDK using the command: java -version

Troubleshooting: java.io.IOException: Permission denied

When you run your test with Jenkins on Ubuntu using the Katalon plugin for Jenkins, you might encounter the error: "java.io.IOException: Permission denied"

This error occurs because Jenkins requires permission to read, write, and execute the Katalon project folders.

To resolve this error, run the following command to grant permission for Jenkins to read, write, and execute files:

$sudo chmod -R 777 <path to your Katalon project folder>

For example:

$sudo chmod -R 777 /home/ubuntu/Katalon\ Studio/testingisfun/