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Publishing Focused Test Packages

Learn how to share specific test scenarios from your E2E suite using subpackages.

The Problem​

You have a comprehensive E2E suite with dozens of tests, but you want to:

  • Share only specific, relevant tests with the community
  • Let others test compatibility with your critical flows
  • Keep your internal tests private while sharing key scenarios

The Solution: Subpackages​

QIT's subpackages feature lets you publish multiple focused test packages from a single codebase.

Quick Example​

Step 1: Define Subpackages in Your Manifest​

Update your tests/e2e/qit-test.json:

{
  "package": "your-extension/e2e",
  "description": "Complete E2E test suite",
  "test": {
    "phases": {
      "globalSetup": ["./scripts/setup.sh"],
      "run": ["npx playwright test"]
    },
    "results": {
      "ctrf-json": "./results/ctrf.json"
    }
  },
  "subpackages": {
    "your-extension/checkout": {
      "description": "Checkout flow tests for compatibility testing",
      "tags": ["checkout", "critical"],
      "test": {
        "phases": {
          "run": ["npx playwright test --project=checkout"]
        }
      }
    },
    "your-extension/cart": {
      "description": "Cart operations tests",
      "tags": ["cart"],
      "test": {
        "phases": {
          "run": ["npx playwright test --project=cart"]
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

Step 2: Configure Playwright Projects​

Align your Playwright projects with your subpackages:

// playwright.config.js
export default {
  testDir: './tests',
  
  projects: [
    {
      name: 'checkout',
      testMatch: /checkout\/.*.spec.js/,
    },
    {
      name: 'cart',
      testMatch: /cart\/.*.spec.js/,
    },
    {
      name: 'all',
      testMatch: /.*.spec.js/,
    }
  ],
  
  // ... rest of config
};

Step 3: Publish All Packages​

# This publishes the parent and all subpackages with the same version
qit package:publish tests/e2e latest

# Creates:
# - your-extension/e2e:latest (full suite)
# - your-extension/checkout:latest (checkout tests only)
# - your-extension/cart:latest (cart tests only)

How Others Use Your Packages​

Other developers can now test against specific parts of your suite:

# Test checkout compatibility
qit run:e2e their-plugin --test-package=your-extension/checkout:latest

# Test multiple areas (subpackages must use the same version)
qit run:e2e their-plugin \
  --test-package=your-extension/checkout:2.0.0 \
  --test-package=your-extension/cart:2.0.0  # ✅ Same version required

Real-World Example​

Here's how WooCommerce Stripe might structure their packages:

{
  "package": "woocommerce-stripe/e2e",
  "description": "WooCommerce Stripe Gateway E2E tests",
  "test": {
    "phases": {
      "globalSetup": ["./setup-stripe.sh"],
      "run": ["npx playwright test"]
    }
  },
  "subpackages": {
    "woocommerce-stripe/checkout": {
      "description": "Stripe checkout flow tests",
      "tags": ["payments", "checkout"],
      "test": {
        "phases": {
          "run": ["npx playwright test --project=checkout"]
        }
      }
    },
    "woocommerce-stripe/3ds": {
      "description": "3D Secure authentication tests",
      "tags": ["payments", "security"],
      "test": {
        "phases": {
          "run": ["npx playwright test --project=3ds"]
        }
      }
    },
    "woocommerce-stripe/webhooks": {
      "description": "Webhook handling tests",
      "tags": ["api", "webhooks"],
      "test": {
        "phases": {
          "run": ["npx playwright test --project=webhooks"]
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

Other plugins can then test compatibility:

qit run:e2e my-checkout-plugin \
  --test-package=woocommerce-stripe/checkout:latest \
  --test-package=woocommerce-stripe/3ds:latest

What to Share vs Keep Private​

Good Candidates for Subpackages​

  • Critical user flows: Checkout, cart, account management
  • Integration points: Payment processing, shipping calculations
  • API endpoints: REST/GraphQL endpoints others might use
  • Data structures: Order formats, customer data structures

Keep Private​

  • Internal admin workflows
  • Business logic tests
  • Performance benchmarks
  • Security test scenarios
  • Experimental features

Key Benefits​

  1. Single codebase: Maintain one test suite, publish multiple packages
  2. Version consistency: All subpackages version together, ensuring compatibility
  3. Selective sharing: Share what's useful, keep the rest private
  4. Easy consumption: Others use subpackages like any other test package

Important Notes​

  • Subpackages always version together with their parent
  • They share the same global setup/teardown
  • Each subpackage runs in isolation with database restore between them
  • QIT optimizes by downloading the shared artifact only once

Learn More​

For advanced subpackage concepts and constraints, see Subpackages Concepts.

Summary: Subpackages let you publish focused test sets from your main E2E suite, making it easy to share critical test scenarios while keeping your full test suite to yourself.