UI Automation cannot control embedded browser

Question

This is about testing a desktop application. I have been trying to click a hyperlink on an embedded browser of a Windows form. I could move the mouse anywhere if the component (buttons, or whatever) is part of the form, but elements inside the browser, i can't seem to control at all....sigh.....yes, I could move the mouse if I use the screen coordinates but I plan to control the embedded browser using Watin, etc..without opening a new IE....Using Microsoft's UISpy tool (when I hover the cursor to the link..it shows a Pane ControlType)....the hyperlink is part of the tree structure but only the name property is available...some of the parent's properties are blank....

I tried extending the example from the link below

http://archive.msdn.microsoft.com/uiautomation

and this is where i'm stuck (I have tried FindChildByName and other related methods too...sigh..no luck):

var commontab=AutomationElement.RootElement.FindFirstChildHavingDescendantWhere(new[] { new PropertyCondition(AutomationElement.NameProperty, "Search")});
Mouse.MoveTo(menutab.GetClickablePoint().ToDrawingPoint()); 
Mouse.Click(MouseButton.Left);

Somehow the mouse cannot find the 'Search' hyperlink...sigh...please guys...any ideas??

Answer 1

Would it not be a simpler idea to split this into 2 testing strategies? The first is testing the desktop UI, buttons etc. as you are. The second is to test the html which is to be placed within the embedded browser frame.

You shouldn't be testing that the embedded browser works, that's Microsofts job. The only testing that you may want to do on the frame is to ensure that it's content is loaded, that the call is to the correct (internal) url etc.