Allow calling setPath('userData', path) before app.start()

[DutchKevv]

Maybe its impossible cause of the structure off Electron,

But when I run tests, I want to use a 'temp' userData folder, instead of the 'official' one, so that data from tests does not mix with installed application data.

Is this possible?

Right now its only possible to call app.electron.remote.app.setPath('userData', path); after app.start, cause otherwise app.electron is not defined, and thus to late.

Thanks!

[vanessayuenn]

Hi @DutchKevv, you're correct that app.electron isn't available until after app.start is called. However, you can pass in environment variables as you bootstrap the app with Spectron, e.g.:

const app = new Application({
  path: '<electron app path here>',
  env: {
    SPECTRON_TEMP_DIR: tempPath
  }
})

You can then modify your electron app code to override the userData path based on the environment variable being passed in.

[lukehaas]

If anyone else has this same issue, it can actually be solved by using chromeDriverArgs like this:

const app = new Application({
  path: '<electron app path here>',
  chromeDriverArgs: ['user-data-dir=/your path']
})