Playwright Browser Automation

General-purpose browser automation skill. Write custom Playwright code for any automation task and execute it via the universal executor.

IMPORTANT - Path Resolution: This skill can be installed in different locations. Before executing any commands, determine the skill directory based on where you loaded this SKILL.md file, and use that path in all commands below. Replace $SKILL_DIR with the actual discovered path.

Common installation paths:

•Plugin system: ~/.claude/plugins/marketplaces/playwright-skill/skills/playwright-skill
•Manual global: ~/.claude/skills/playwright-skill
•Project-specific: <project>/.claude/skills/playwright-skill

CRITICAL WORKFLOW - Follow these steps in order:

•
Auto-detect dev servers - For localhost testing, ALWAYS run server detection FIRST:
bash
```
cd $SKILL_DIR && node -e "require('./lib/helpers').detectDevServers().then(servers => console.log(JSON.stringify(servers)))"
```
- •If 1 server found: Use it automatically, inform user
- •If multiple servers found: Ask user which one to test
- •If no servers found: Ask for URL or offer to help start dev server
•
Write scripts to /tmp - NEVER write test files to skill directory; always use /tmp/playwright-test-*.js
•
Use visible browser by default - Always use headless: false unless user specifically requests headless mode
•
Parameterize URLs - Always make URLs configurable via environment variable or constant at top of script

How It Works

•User describes what they want to test/automate
•Auto-detect running dev servers (or ask for URL if testing external site)
•Write custom Playwright code in /tmp/playwright-test-*.js (won't clutter project)
•Execute via: cd $SKILL_DIR && node run.js /tmp/playwright-test-*.js
•Results displayed in real-time, browser window visible for debugging
•Test files auto-cleaned from /tmp by OS

Setup (First Time)

bash

cd $SKILL_DIR
npm run setup

This installs Playwright and Chromium browser. Only needed once.

Execution Pattern

Step 1: Detect dev servers (for localhost testing)

bash

cd $SKILL_DIR && node -e "require('./lib/helpers').detectDevServers().then(s => console.log(JSON.stringify(s)))"

Step 2: Write test script to /tmp with URL parameter

javascript

// /tmp/playwright-test-page.js
const { chromium } = require('playwright');

const TARGET_URL = 'http://localhost:3001';

(async () => {
  const browser = await chromium.launch({ headless: false });
  const page = await browser.newPage();

  await page.goto(TARGET_URL);
  console.log('Page loaded:', await page.title());

  await page.screenshot({ path: '/tmp/screenshot.png', fullPage: true });
  console.log('Screenshot saved to /tmp/screenshot.png');

  await browser.close();
})();

Step 3: Execute from skill directory

bash

cd $SKILL_DIR && node run.js /tmp/playwright-test-page.js

Common Patterns

Test a Page (Multiple Viewports)

javascript

const { chromium } = require('playwright');
const TARGET_URL = 'http://localhost:3001';

(async () => {
  const browser = await chromium.launch({ headless: false, slowMo: 100 });
  const page = await browser.newPage();

  await page.setViewportSize({ width: 1920, height: 1080 });
  await page.goto(TARGET_URL);
  await page.screenshot({ path: '/tmp/desktop.png', fullPage: true });

  await page.setViewportSize({ width: 375, height: 667 });
  await page.screenshot({ path: '/tmp/mobile.png', fullPage: true });

  await browser.close();
})();

Test Login Flow

javascript

const { chromium } = require('playwright');
const TARGET_URL = 'http://localhost:3001';

(async () => {
  const browser = await chromium.launch({ headless: false });
  const page = await browser.newPage();

  await page.goto(`${TARGET_URL}/login`);
  await page.fill('input[name="email"]', 'test@example.com');
  await page.fill('input[name="password"]', 'password123');
  await page.click('button[type="submit"]');
  await page.waitForURL('**/dashboard');
  console.log('Login successful, redirected to dashboard');

  await browser.close();
})();

Fill and Submit Form

javascript

const { chromium } = require('playwright');
const TARGET_URL = 'http://localhost:3001';

(async () => {
  const browser = await chromium.launch({ headless: false, slowMo: 50 });
  const page = await browser.newPage();

  await page.goto(`${TARGET_URL}/contact`);
  await page.fill('input[name="name"]', 'John Doe');
  await page.fill('input[name="email"]', 'john@example.com');
  await page.fill('textarea[name="message"]', 'Test message');
  await page.click('button[type="submit"]');
  await page.waitForSelector('.success-message');
  console.log('Form submitted successfully');

  await browser.close();
})();

Check for Broken Links

javascript

const { chromium } = require('playwright');

(async () => {
  const browser = await chromium.launch({ headless: false });
  const page = await browser.newPage();
  await page.goto('http://localhost:3000');

  const links = await page.locator('a[href^="http"]').all();
  const results = { working: 0, broken: [] };

  for (const link of links) {
    const href = await link.getAttribute('href');
    try {
      const response = await page.request.head(href);
      if (response.ok()) results.working++;
      else results.broken.push({ url: href, status: response.status() });
    } catch (e) {
      results.broken.push({ url: href, error: e.message });
    }
  }

  console.log(`Working links: ${results.working}`);
  console.log(`Broken links:`, results.broken);
  await browser.close();
})();

Test Responsive Design

javascript

const { chromium } = require('playwright');
const TARGET_URL = 'http://localhost:3001';

(async () => {
  const browser = await chromium.launch({ headless: false });
  const page = await browser.newPage();

  const viewports = [
    { name: 'Desktop', width: 1920, height: 1080 },
    { name: 'Tablet', width: 768, height: 1024 },
    { name: 'Mobile', width: 375, height: 667 },
  ];

  for (const viewport of viewports) {
    await page.setViewportSize({ width: viewport.width, height: viewport.height });
    await page.goto(TARGET_URL);
    await page.waitForTimeout(1000);
    await page.screenshot({ path: `/tmp/${viewport.name.toLowerCase()}.png`, fullPage: true });
  }

  console.log('All viewports tested');
  await browser.close();
})();

Inline Execution (Simple Tasks)

For quick one-off tasks, execute code inline:

bash

cd $SKILL_DIR && node run.js "
const browser = await chromium.launch({ headless: false });
const page = await browser.newPage();
await page.goto('http://localhost:3001');
await page.screenshot({ path: '/tmp/quick-screenshot.png', fullPage: true });
await browser.close();
"

Available Helpers

javascript

const helpers = require('./lib/helpers');

const servers = await helpers.detectDevServers();
await helpers.safeClick(page, 'button.submit', { retries: 3 });
await helpers.safeType(page, '#username', 'testuser');
await helpers.takeScreenshot(page, 'test-result');
await helpers.handleCookieBanner(page);
const data = await helpers.extractTableData(page, 'table.results');

Custom HTTP Headers

bash

PW_HEADER_NAME=X-Automated-By PW_HEADER_VALUE=playwright-skill \
  cd $SKILL_DIR && node run.js /tmp/my-script.js

Tips

•CRITICAL: Detect servers FIRST - Always run detectDevServers() before writing test code
•Use /tmp for test files - Write to /tmp/playwright-test-*.js, never to skill directory
•Parameterize URLs - Put detected/provided URL in a TARGET_URL constant
•DEFAULT: Visible browser - Always use headless: false unless user explicitly asks for headless
•Slow down: Use slowMo: 100 to make actions visible
•Wait strategies: Use waitForURL, waitForSelector, waitForLoadState instead of fixed timeouts
•Error handling: Always use try-catch for robust automation

Troubleshooting

•Playwright not installed: cd $SKILL_DIR && npm run setup
•Module not found: Ensure running from skill directory via run.js wrapper
•Browser doesn't open: Check headless: false and ensure display available
•Element not found: Add wait: await page.waitForSelector('.element', { timeout: 10000 })