StackOverflow2013

Note that there are some explanatory texts on larger screens.

plurals

PO
text
Body
copied!<blockquote> <h3>Contents</h3> <ol> <li>Which browsers have to be tested? <ul> <li>Rules of thumb: Which browsers should be included?</li> </ul></li> <li>Preparation <ul> <li>Windows XP</li> <li>Windows 7+ (for IE9+)</li> <li>Browser downloads <ul> <li>Internet Explorer</li> <li>Firefox</li> <li>Opera</li> <li>Chrome</li> <li>Safari</li> <li>Adobe Flash Player</li> </ul></li> <li>Download summary</li> </ul></li> <li>Sandboxie <br/><br/><a href="https://stackoverflow.com/questions/10541225/cross-browser-testing-all-major-browsers-on-one-machine#10541484"><strong>Part 2: Installation and configuration</strong></a></li> <li>Internet Explorer</li> <li>Firefox</li> <li>Opera</li> <li>Chrome</li> <li>Safari</li> <li>Developer tools (and shortcuts)</li> <li>Measured set-up time and disk space <ul> <li>Time needed per browser (install & config)</li> </ul></li> <li>Optimal usage <ul> <li>Homepage at <code>http://10.0.2.2:8888/</code></li> </ul></li> </ol> </blockquote> <hr> <blockquote> <h1>1. Which browsers have to be tested?</h1> </blockquote> <p>Statistics are quickly outdated. For this reason, I refer to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_statistics#Summary_table" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Usage share of web browsers</a> on Wikipedia, and the following sites for the latest browser <strong>version</strong> information. Each site is suffixed by a brief usage guide.</p> <ul> <li><a href="http://caniuse.com/usage_table.php" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Can I use</a> - Browser usage table, based on data from StatCounter and other sources.</li> <li><a href="http://gs.statcounter.com/#browser_version-ww-monthly-201205-201205-bar" rel="nofollow noreferrer">StatCounter</a> - Statistic: Browser version | Time period: Last month <sup><a href="https://i.stack.imgur.com/HS59c.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer" title="Screenshot: Setting options in StatCounter">screenshot</a></sup>.</li> <li><a href="http://www.w3counter.com/globalstats.php?year=2012&month=4" rel="nofollow noreferrer">W3Counter</a> - View archived reports: <code>January 2012</code> (Choose the last month). <sup><a href="https://i.stack.imgur.com/aHSUI.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer" title="Screenshot: Choosing the report in W3Counter">screenshot</a></sup>.</li> <li><a href="http://stats.wikimedia.org/archive/squid_reports/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Wikimedia</a> - Go to the bottom to open the latest report, SquidReportClients.</li> <li><a href="http://www.getclicky.com/marketshare/global/web-browsers/versions/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Clicky</a> - This site offers statistics for individual versions <sup><a href="https://i.stack.imgur.com/ByiQq.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer" title="Screenshot: Show browsers' individual statistics">screenshot</a></sup>.</li> </ul> <h2>Rules of thumb: Which browsers should be included?</h2> <ul> <li><a href="http://www.getclicky.com/marketshare/global/web-browsers/firefox/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Firefox</a>: Latest <a href="https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/faq/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">ESR release</a> + latest stable major version. <sup><a href="https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/releases/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Release notes</a> | <a href="https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Mozilla/Firefox/Releases" rel="nofollow noreferrer">For developers</a> | <a href="https://wiki.mozilla.org/RapidRelease/Calendar" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Rapid release schedule</a></sup></li> <li><a href="http://www.getclicky.com/marketshare/global/web-browsers/opera/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Opera</a>: 12.x + Latest stable version. <sup><a href="http://www.opera.com/docs/history/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Version history</a></sup><br> Since Opera 15, Opera uses the same engine as Chrome. Quite a lot of users are still using Opera 12 though (when Opera 15 was released, the UX significantly changed).</li> <li><a href="http://www.getclicky.com/marketshare/global/web-browsers/safari/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Safari</a>: 5.1.7 (Windows) + Latest version. <sup><a href="https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/2576/is-there-anywhere-i-can-get-a-complete-list-of-historical-safari-release-notes">Release notes</a></sup><br> Unfortunately, Apple dropped support for Windows, so you need to get a Mac or run OS X in a VM to test pages in Safari.</li> <li><a href="http://www.getclicky.com/marketshare/global/web-browsers/google-chrome/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Chrome</a>: Latest stable version. <sup><a href="http://googlechromereleases.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Release notes</a></sup></li> <li><a href="http://www.getclicky.com/marketshare/global/web-browsers/internet-explorer/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Internet Explorer</a>: IE8+. <sup><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Features_of_Internet_Explorer#History" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Feature history</a></sup><br> This actually depends on your clients. This guide teaches how to get IE6 and 7 as well, but these browsers are already dead, or close to dead. IE8 is the last supported version of Internet Explorer on Windows XP, which is still used a lot.</li> </ul> <h2>Remark</h2> <p>These days, most web browsers use some form of rapid releases with automated updates. When this guide was written, the releases were not as frequent, and thus it was useful to set up a set of browsers without having to look back.<br> Unless you intentionally want to test applications in old browsers, just get the latest version of the browser and let the auto-updater take care of managing the version.</p> <p>If you don't need too much flexibility, and quickly want to test a page, I recommend to take a look at <a href="http://www.browserstack.com/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">BrowserStack.com</a>. After signing up, you can get a 30-minute free trial that grants you access to a lot of desktop and mobile browsers, directly within your browser.</p> <hr> <blockquote> <h1>2. Preparation</h1> </blockquote> <p>Before setting up the machine, download all necessary files (see "Download summary" at the end of this section). All files are going to be shared with the virtual machine through a shared folder<sup><a href="http://www.techsmartlife.com/2012/01/09/share-and-write-files-between-host-and-guest-os-on-virtualbox/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">What? How?</a></sup>.</p> <ul> <li>Virtualization software (<a href="https://www.virtualbox.org/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">VirtualBox</a> is recommended, it is free even for commercial use. The instructions below are written with <a href="https://www.virtualbox.org/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">VirtualBox</a> in mind.)</li> <li><strong>Windows XP</strong> <ul> <li>Download the IE6 XP image for VirtualBox from the <a href="http://www.modern.ie/en-us/virtualization-tools#downloads" rel="nofollow noreferrer">modern.IE</a> website. Extract the <code>.ova</code> file inside and run it to import it into VirtualBox. (Images are also available for other virtualization products such as VMware, Parallels, Virtual PC and Hyper-V) <ul> <li><a href="https://az412801.vo.msecnd.net/vhd/IEKitV1_Final/VirtualBox/Windows/IE6_XP_Signed/IE6.WinXP.For.WindowsVirtualBox.exe" rel="nofollow noreferrer">IE6 XP image for VirtualBox on Windows</a> <sup>about 764MB</sup></li> <li><a href="https://az412801.vo.msecnd.net/vhd/IEKitV1_Final/VirtualBox/OSX/IE6_WinXP.ova.zip" rel="nofollow noreferrer">IE6 XP image for VirtualBox on Mac</a> <sup>about 717MB</sup></li> <li><a href="https://az412801.vo.msecnd.net/vhd/IEKitV1_Final/VirtualBox/Linux/IE6_XP/IE6.WinXP.For.LinuxVirtualBox.sfx" rel="nofollow noreferrer">IE6 XP image for VirtualBox on Linux</a> <sup>about 771MB</sup></li> </ul></li> <li>Preparing the image for use: <ul> <li><strong>VirtualBox settings</strong>: Enable the network adapter, but do <strong>not</strong> connect the VM to a real network.</li> <li><strong>VirtualBox settings</strong>: Create a read-only shared folder. This folder is going to be used to transfer data between the Host OS and the guest OS.</li> <li>Run <code>net use x: \\vboxsvr\WinShared</code> (assuming that the shared folder is called <code>WinShared</code>. This will bind the network directory to the <code>x:</code> drive).</li> <li><em>Optional</em>: Install <strong><a href="http://www.google.com/search?q=Antiwpa-V3.4.6_for_X64_and_X86.zip+download" rel="nofollow noreferrer">AntiWPA</a></strong> to disable the activation check if you will use the image for more than 30 days.</li> <li><em>Optional</em>: <strong>Disable the paging file</strong> (Computer > Properties > Advanced > Performance > Advanced > Virtual Memory > Change > No paging > Set [confirm]).</li> <li><em>Optional</em>: Disable <a href="http://www.blackviper.com/2008/05/19/black-vipers-windows-xp-x86-32-bit-service-pack-3-service-configurations/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">unnecessary services</a> via <code>Start > Run ></code> <strong><code>services.msc</code></strong><br> Order the rows by column <code>Startup Type</code>, and switch all "Automatic" services to "manual", according to the image. Whenever you want to install a MSI package, run <strong><code>net start msiServer</code></strong> ("Windows Installer"):<br> <img src="https://i.stack.imgur.com/lRTQq.png" alt="Windows XP - services.msc" title="services.msc; only the necessary services are shown"></li> <li><em>Optional</em>: <a href="http://support.microsoft.com/kb/320154" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Disable Desktop clean-up wizard</a>: <code>Desktop > Properties > Desktop > Customize Desktop > Disable "Desktop Cleanup wizard every 60 days"</code></li> <li><em>Optional</em>: Install and configure <strong>Sandboxie</strong> (used for running IE7 and IE8 in the same IE6 virtual machine)</li> <li><em>Optional</em>: Install <a href="http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner" rel="nofollow noreferrer">CCleaner</a>, run it to configure it and clean junk.</li> <li><em>Optional</em>: Install <a href="http://www.7-zip.org/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">7-Zip</a> (used for multiple Chrome's)</li> <li>Shutdown the system via the guest OS (WinXP).</li> <li><strong>VirtualBox settings</strong>: Connect the VM to a real network.<br> <em>(Only Internet Explorer requires Internet during installation)</em></li> <li><em>Optional</em>: Create a snapshot of your VM, so that you can restore when you mess up in the next step.</li> </ul></li> </ul></li> <li><strong>Windows 7+ (for IE9+)</strong> <ul> <li>Download pre-built virtual machine images from the <a href="http://www.modern.ie/en-us/virtualization-tools#downloads" rel="nofollow noreferrer">modern.IE</a> website.<br> These images are time-bombed, they expire 30 days after first use. When the images are expired, they shut down after an hour of use. If you do not wish to re-create the images every time, change the hardware clock of your VM before activating the image.<br> In VirtualBox, for example, you can use <code>VBoxManage modifyvm NAME_OF_VM --biossystemtimeoffset +3600000000</code> to set the time to 1000 hours in the future (use minus if you want to set it to some point in the past).</li> </ul></li> <li><strong>Browsers downloads</strong> <ul> <li>Internet Explorer: <ul> <li>Recommended method if you want IE 6-8 on a single machine: <ul> <li><strong>Requires <a href="http://sandboxie.com/index.php?DownloadSandboxie" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Sandboxie</a></strong> (I recommend <a href="http://www.sandboxie.com/index.php?RegisterSandboxie" rel="nofollow noreferrer">paying</a> for the full version, or <a href="http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=sandboxie%2032-bit%20multiple%20sandboxes" rel="nofollow noreferrer">look on YouTube</a>).</li> <li><strong>IE6 - Pre-installed in XP VM</strong></li> <li><a href="http://download.microsoft.com/download/3/8/8/38889dc1-848c-4bf2-8335-86c573ad86d9/IE7-WindowsXP-x86-enu.exe" rel="nofollow noreferrer">IE7</a> and <a href="http://download.microsoft.com/download/C/C/0/CC0BD555-33DD-411E-936B-73AC6F95AE11/IE8-WindowsXP-x86-ENU.exe" rel="nofollow noreferrer">IE8</a> full offline installer</li> <li><a href="http://download.microsoft.com/download/1/6/4/164E1C78-A660-4C25-86E9-3C95EB0C537C/IEDevToolBarSetup.msi" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Internet Explorer Developer toolbar</a> (<a href="http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=18359" rel="nofollow noreferrer">release information</a>) (for IE6+7)</li> </ul></li> <li><strong>IE9+</strong> - Use a pre-built images from <a href="http://www.modern.ie/en-us/virtualization-tools#downloads" rel="nofollow noreferrer">modern.IE</a>).</li> </ul></li> <li>Firefox: <ul> <li><a href="https://developer.mozilla.org/en/Profile_Manager" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Profile Manager</a> <sup>To easily manage multiple profiles</sup></li> <li><strong>Download the latest version from <a href="https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Mozilla.org</a></strong>.</li> <li>Download old versions from <a href="https://ftp.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/firefox/releases/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">ftp.mozilla.org</a> (if you're only interested in recent old versions, see <a href="http://releases.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/firefox/releases/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">releases.mozilla.org</a>).</li> <li>or, use <a href="http://utilu.com/UtiluMFC/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Utilu Mozilla Firefox Collection</a>.</li> </ul></li> <li>Opera: <ul> <li><strong>Download any Opera version from <a href="http://www.opera.com/browser/download/?custom=yes" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Opera.com</a>.</strong></li> </ul></li> <li>Chrome: <ul> <li>Download <a href="http://www.7-zip.org/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">7-zip</a> to extract Chrome installers.</li> <li><strong>Download a specific version at <a href="http://www.filehippo.com/download_google_chrome/history/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">FileHippo.com</a>. Make sure that you select "FileHippo" mirror to get the archived version.</strong> Otherwise you will be redirected to the latest version from Google's servers.</li> </ul></li> <li>Safari: <ul> <li>Download the latest version from <a href="http://www.apple.com/safari/download/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Apple.com</a>.</li> <li><strong>Download other versions from <a href="http://www.oldapps.com/apple_safari.php" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Oldapps.com</a>.</strong></li> </ul></li> <li><a href="http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/otherversions/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Adobe Flash Player</a> <ul> <li>Download <a href="http://blogs.adobe.com/asset/2012/03/an-update-for-the-flash-player-updater.html#comments" rel="nofollow noreferrer">version 10.3</a><sup>3 MB</sup> if flash has to work in IE6. Otherwise, download <a href="https://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/otherversions/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">the latest version</a>.</li> <li>Download the latest plugin <a href="https://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/otherversions/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">for other browsers</a>.</li> </ul></li> </ul></li> </ul> <h3>Download summary</h3> <p>For convenience, it's wise to have all installation files in the shared folder. Here's a brief (complete) list of all necessary files (ordered per step):</p> <ul> <li><a href="https://az412801.vo.msecnd.net/vhd/IEKitV1_Final/VirtualBox/Windows/IE6_XP_Signed/IE6.WinXP.For.WindowsVirtualBox.exe" rel="nofollow noreferrer">IE6 XP image for VirtualBox on Windows</a> <sup>about 764MB</sup></li> <li><a href="https://az412801.vo.msecnd.net/vhd/IEKitV1_Final/VirtualBox/OSX/IE6_WinXP.ova.zip" rel="nofollow noreferrer">IE6 XP image for VirtualBox on Mac</a> <sup>about 717MB</sup></li> <li><a href="https://az412801.vo.msecnd.net/vhd/IEKitV1_Final/VirtualBox/Linux/IE6_XP/IE6.WinXP.For.LinuxVirtualBox.sfx" rel="nofollow noreferrer">IE6 XP image for VirtualBox on Linux</a> <sup>about 771MB</sup></li> <li><a href="http://www.google.com/search?q=Antiwpa-V3.4.6_for_X64_and_X86.zip%20download" rel="nofollow noreferrer">AntiWPA</a> <sup>24 KB; <a href="https://www.virustotal.com/file/d8275a1c165842181215a8d05f91654a61b23584c6e0174fc613d3100b090da3/analysis/" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><em>false</em> positives</a>; md5: e5a14c47e9c26e78fccb22ee71fedd51</sup>, <a href="http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner/download/standard" rel="nofollow noreferrer">CCleaner</a> <sup>3.5 MB</sup>, <a href="http://sandboxie.com/index.php?DownloadSandboxie" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Sandboxie</a> <sup>2.3 MB</sup></li> <li>Browsers (<a href="http://releases.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/firefox/releases/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Firefox</a> + <a href="ftp://ftp.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/utilities/profilemanager/1.0/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Profile manager</a>, <a href="http://www.opera.com/browser/download/?custom=yes" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Opera</a>, <a href="http://www.filehippo.com/download_google_chrome/history/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Chrome</a>, <a href="http://www.oldapps.com/apple_safari.php" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Safari</a>)<br> IE7 XP and IE8 XP installers can be downloaded here: <a href="http://download.microsoft.com/download/3/8/8/38889dc1-848c-4bf2-8335-86c573ad86d9/IE7-WindowsXP-x86-enu.exe" rel="nofollow noreferrer">IE7</a>, <a href="http://download.microsoft.com/download/C/C/0/CC0BD555-33DD-411E-936B-73AC6F95AE11/IE8-WindowsXP-x86-ENU.exe" rel="nofollow noreferrer">IE8</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.7-zip.org/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">7-zip</a> <sup>1.1 MB</sup> to extract Chrome's installers.</li> <li><a href="https://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/kb/archived-flash-player-versions.html#Flash%20Player%20archives" rel="nofollow noreferrer">ActiveX 10.3</a> for IE6+, <a href="https://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/otherversions/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">latest plugin version</a> for other browsers.</li> <li><a href="http://download.microsoft.com/download/1/6/4/164E1C78-A660-4C25-86E9-3C95EB0C537C/IEDevToolBarSetup.msi" rel="nofollow noreferrer">IE Developer toolbar</a> for IE6 and 7 <sup>626 KB</sup></li> </ul> <hr> <blockquote> <h1>3. Sandboxie</h1> </blockquote> <p><a href="http://sandboxie.com/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Sandboxie</a> is a lightweight tool which runs applications in a sandbox. It can also be used to install <strong>multiple versions of IE/Safari</strong> on a single Windows machine.</p> <ul> <li><strong>Download</strong>: <a href="http://sandboxie.com/index.php?DownloadSandboxie" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://sandboxie.com/index.php?DownloadSandboxie</a></li> <li><strong>Patch</strong>: The extended version is <strong>required</strong> to enable multiple sandboxes at a time. <a href="http://www.sandboxie.com/index.php?RegisterSandboxie" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Pay</a> them or <a href="http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=sandboxie%2032-bit%20multiple%20sandboxes" rel="nofollow noreferrer">visit YouTube</a>.<br> Running multiple IE/Safari versions simultaneously requires the extended version. If you don't mind testing one IE/Safari version at a time, the standard version is sufficient. <br/><br/> Post-install:</li> <li><strong>Disable tips</strong>: "Configure > Tips > Hide All Tips"</li> <li>By default, a yellow border appears around sandboxed applications. If you don't like this, go to <strong>Configure base</strong>: "Sandbox > DefaultBox > Sandbox Settings > Appearance". <br/><br/>For each new IE/Safari version, you have to follow the following steps:</li> <li><strong>Create</strong>: "Sandbox > Create New Sandbox" - Enter a name, eg "IE8" and confirm.</li> <li><strong>Install</strong>: "IE8 > Run Sandboxed > Run Any Program"<br> Select the desired installer, and press OK.</li> <li><strong>Shortcut</strong>: Upon finishing installation, use "IE8 > Explore contents", locate the binary and create a Desktop shortcut to the application.</li> </ul> <p>All sandboxed file/registry changes are saved in <code>C:\Sandbox</code>. Applications in this directory start in a sandbox by default. Other programs can easily be started in a sandbox via the contextmenu: "Run Sandboxed" <em>or</em> "Send To > Sandboxie > IE8".</p> <p><strong>Cleaning up using CCleaner</strong>: Run CCleaner in the main environment, then in the individual sandboxes.</p> <p>Navigate to: <a href="https://stackoverflow.com/questions/10541225/cross-browser-testing-all-major-browsers-on-one-machine#10541484">Part 2</a></p>

Querying!

Guidance

An individual column

Larger individual text columns get their own page to allow for proper reading.

SQuiL has stopped working due to an internal error.

If you are curious you may find further information in the browser console, which is accessible through the devtools (F12).

Reload