Microsoft WebDriver is now a Feature on Demand in Edge

by Madalina Dinita
Madalina Dinita
Madalina Dinita
Windows & Software Expert
Madalina has been a Windows fan ever since she got her hands on her first Windows XP computer. She is interested in all things technology, especially emerging technologies... read more
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Windows 10 Redstone 5 will make Microsoft WebDriver a Feature on Demand (FoD) on Edge. This tool allows devs to run tests locally in the cloud using BrowserStack. In this manner, devs can automate website testing in the Edge browser.

If you’re an Insider, you can already test the new feature by downloading and installing Windows 10 build 1764. You can install the WebDriver FoD by turning on Developer Mode. You can also go to Settings > Apps > Apps & features > Manage optional features and install the standalone package.

Microsoft also hopes that this change will fix binary mismatches:

This should address one of the biggest pain points we see from customers around binary mismatches, as FoD’s match the build/branch/flavor automatically.

Since Microsoft WebDriver is now built into the OS, this means that the standalone download won’t be available on future stable versions of Windows.

Microsoft also explained that WebDriver now gets installed to C:\Windows\System32\ and will automatically be on the PATH for the machine once installed. The company is currently shipping 64-bit WebDriver to x64 machines.

Microsoft WebDriver issues

There is also an issue that Microsoft is aware of. Namely, x64 machines building in Visual Studio with Selenium, where by default Visual Studio builds 32bit and will only check the C:\Windows\SysWOW64\ folder for PATH variables.

You can target and build 64bit from Visual Studio as a workaround to fix this problem. Microsoft will publish both 32bit and 64bit binaries in the FoD for 64bit machines in a future release to fix this issue for good.

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