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magnus919_agent-skills/playwright/references/07-accessibility-and-debugging.md
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Magnus Hedemarkandfactory-droid[bot] <138933559+factory-droid[bot]@users.noreply.github.com> b0845776a1 chore(docs): pin npx package versions in skill docs (Fixes #381)
Pin copy-pasteable npx invocations to explicit versions so agents
executing them verbatim get reproducible behavior:

- playwright docs: npx playwright@1.62.1 (SKILL.md, README.md,
  references 02-selectors / 05-ci-integration / 07-accessibility)
- mermaid-diagrams: @mermaid-js/mermaid-cli@11.16.0 (SKILL.md,
  references/pdf-rendering-pipeline.md)
- hugo-theme seo-outputs-testing: @axe-core/cli@4.13.0
- agent-skills using-scripts.md: strengthen version-pinning bullet
  into a normative rule for copy-pasteable commands

Reword the anydoc cli-reference "Version pinning" prose so the
anti-pattern is explained didactically without presenting an unpinned
command as a recipe; the @0.1.6 house pin is unchanged.

Co-authored-by: factory-droid[bot] <138933559+factory-droid[bot]@users.noreply.github.com>
2026-08-22 22:07:49 -04:00

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# Accessibility and Debugging
> **Last Updated:** 2026-08-03
Two workflows that share one tool feature set: asserting accessibility via the
accessibility tree, and debugging tests with the inspector, codegen, and
traces.
## Accessibility snapshot checks
### Full scans with axe-core
`@axe-core/playwright` runs the axe engine against the rendered page:
```ts
import AxeBuilder from '@axe-core/playwright';
const results = await new AxeBuilder({ page }).analyze();
// results.violations: [{ id, impact, nodes, ... }]
expect(results.violations.filter((v) => v.impact === 'critical' || v.impact === 'serious'))
.toEqual([]);
```
- Scan every route that matters, ideally in CI; scan the full page or use
`.include()` / `.exclude()` to scope.
- Triage by `impact`: fix critical/serious; track moderate/minor in a backlog.
- False positives happen (e.g., contrast rules on known-brand colors) — scope
them out deliberately, never with a blanket `disableRules(['color-contrast'])`.
### Aria snapshots (snapshot-based accessibility assertions)
`expect(page).toMatchAriaSnapshot()` asserts against the **accessibility tree**,
not the DOM:
```ts
await expect(page).toMatchAriaSnapshot(`
- heading "Store front" [level=1]
- button "Add to cart"
`);
```
- These read like spec assertions ("the heading is X, the button is Y") and
catch regressions in structure, labels, and semantics — not just contrast.
- They are stable: inline text changes show up as a reviewable diff.
- **Update deliberately.** Run `npx playwright@1.62.1 test --update-snapshots` only
after inspecting what changed; never blind-update to make CI green (hard
boundary in `SKILL.md`).
- Requires Playwright 1.49+ (see `00-source-index.md` for version notes).
## Headed debugging
When a test fails or a locator matches nothing:
1. **Read the failure first**`scripts/pwrun report --report <json> --json`
gives the failing spec and the error message from the last retry.
2. **Run headed with slow-mo** to watch the actual page:
```bash
npx playwright@1.62.1 test <spec> --headed --slow-mo 300
```
3. **The inspector** (`--debug` or `PWDEBUG=1`) pauses before each action and
shows the current locator; `page.pause()` drops a breakpoint mid-test.
4. **Codegen** to prototype a flow quickly:
```bash
npx playwright@1.62.1 codegen https://example.com
```
Generate starter tests, then harden the emitted selectors into user-facing
locators (`02-selectors.md`).
5. **Traces** are the evidence record: with `trace: 'on-first-retry'` (or
`--trace on`), every failed run produces a trace you can open in the Trace
Viewer — network, DOM snapshots, console, and the failing action, frame by
frame. This is the primary artifact to attach to a bug report.
## Debugging checklist
| Symptom | First move |
|---|---|
| Locator resolves to 0 elements | `--debug`; check async render — assert on a container first |
| Locator matches 2+ elements | Narrow with `filter({ hasText })` or scope to a container |
| Timeout on `click()` | Trace: is something covering the element (overlay)? is it disabled? |
| Passes locally, fails CI | Compare env: browser deps (`install --with-deps`), `baseURL`, shard isolation |
| Flaky across retries | `--repeat-each=5 --workers=1` to measure; then fix the selector |
| Console errors before failure | Trace console tab; check for unhandled rejections the test should assert |
## Related
- Authoring and assertions: `01-e2e-authoring.md`.
- Selector repair loop: `02-selectors.md`.
- CI trace/artifact wiring: `05-ci-integration.md`.