How to use common/shared "blocks" between cucumber features?

Question

I'm new to cucumber, but enjoying it.

I'm currently writing some Frank tests, and would like to reuse blocks of cucumber script across multiple features - I'd like to do this a the cucumber level if possible (not inside the ruby).

For example, I might have 4 scripts that all start by doing the same login steps:

  given my app has started
     then enter "guest" in "user-field"
     and enter "1234" in "password-field"
     and press "login"
  then I will see "welcome"
  then *** here's the work specific to each script ***

Is there any way to share these first 5 lines across multiple scripts? Some kind of "include" syntax?

Answer 1

Generally there are 2 approaches:

Backgrounds

If you want a set of steps to run before each of the scenarios in a feature file:

Background:
     given my app has started
     then enter "guest" in "user-field"
     and enter "1234" in "password-field"
     and press "login"
     then I will see "welcome"

Scenario: Some scenario
    then *** here's the work specific to this scenario ***

Scenario: Some other scenario
    then *** here's the work specific to this scenario ***

Calling steps from step definitions

If you need the 'block' of steps to be used in different feature files, or a Background section is not suitable because some scenarios don't need it, then create a high-level step definition which calls the other ones:

Given /^I have logged in$/ do
    steps %Q {
         given my app has started
         then enter "guest" in "user-field"
         and enter "1234" in "password-field"
         and press "login"
         then I will see "welcome"
    }
end

---

Also, in this case I'd be tempted not to implement your common steps as separate steps at all, but to create a single step definition: (assuming Capybara)

Given /^I have logged in$/ do
    fill_in 'user-field', :with => 'guest'
    fill_in 'password-field', :with => '1234'
    click_button 'login'
end

This lends a little bit more meaning to your step definitions, rather than creating a sequence of page interactions which need to be mentally parsed before you realise 'oh, this section is logging me in'.