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Published January 5, 2024

Selenium ChromeDriver C# (How it Works For Developers)

In this tutorial, we will dive into the powerful combination of Selenium ChromeDriver and Selenium WebDriver for automating tasks in the Google Chrome browser and IronPDF for converting web content into PDFs. This guide is tailored for beginners, aiming to provide a solid foundation in both technologies.

Selenium ChromeDriver is a key component in web automation, especially for Google Chrome users. It's a standalone server that enables automated control of Chrome version sessions, making it an essential tool for testing and automating web browsers with or without headless mode. With Selenium ChromeDriver, tasks like opening new tabs, navigating to URLs, and interacting with web elements become programmable and repeatable.

IronPDF offers the capability to transform online pages into PDF documents. Whether you're looking to capture the state of a web page for documentation, reporting, or archiving purposes, IronPDF provides a seamless solution. It integrates effortlessly with Selenium, allowing you to convert the automation results into a fixed format.

Setting Up Selenium ChromeDriver

Selenium ChromeDriver is essential for web automation in C#. This section guides you through the installation process and initial configuration, setting the foundation for automated Chrome browser interactions.

Installation Steps

NuGet Package: Install Selenium WebDriver and ChromeDriver through NuGet in Visual Studio. Search for 'Selenium.WebDriver' and 'Selenium.WebDriver.ChromeDriver' and add them to your project.

Matching Chrome Version: Ensure you have the correct and latest ChromeDriver version, which can automatically download the version matching your Chrome browser through NuGet.

Basic Configuration

System Path: After installation, ChromeDriver.exe is located in your project's bin folder. You may need to add this separate executable to your system's path.

Default Settings: In C#, instantiate a new ChromeDriver object which will enable automation. This launches a new Chrome browser instance with default configurations. This instantiation uses the default configuration version of ChromeDriver, which is sufficient for most basic automation tasks.

Example: Launching Chrome

using OpenQA.Selenium.Chrome;
public class ChromeAutomation
{
    public void StartChrome()
    {
        var driver = new ChromeDriver();
        driver.Navigate().GoToUrl("https://www.ironpdf.com");
    }
}

using OpenQA.Selenium.Chrome;
public class ChromeAutomation
{
    public void StartChrome()
    {
        var driver = new ChromeDriver();
        driver.Navigate().GoToUrl("https://www.ironpdf.com");
    }
}

Imports OpenQA.Selenium.Chrome
Public Class ChromeAutomation
	Public Sub StartChrome()
		Dim driver = New ChromeDriver()
		driver.Navigate().GoToUrl("https://www.ironpdf.com")
	End Sub
End Class

This code snippet demonstrates how to launch Chrome using Selenium WebDriver, a fundamental step in web automation.

Basic Automation with ChromeDriver

Once you have set up Selenium ChromeDriver in your C# project, the next step is to automate interactions with web pages. This basic automation will demonstrate how you can use ChromeDriver to navigate, search, and interact with elements on a web page.

Launching and Navigating in Chrome

Opening a URL: Use the Navigate().GoToUrl() method to open web pages.

Interacting with Web Elements: Locate elements using various methods like FindElement() and perform actions like clicking or entering text.

Example: Searching on a Web Page

using OpenQA.Selenium;
using OpenQA.Selenium.Chrome;
public class WebSearch
{
    public void PerformSearch()
    {
        var driver = new ChromeDriver();
        driver.Navigate().GoToUrl("https://www.google.com");
        var searchBox = driver.FindElement(By.Name("q"));
        searchBox.SendKeys("Selenium ChromeDriver");
        searchBox.Submit();
    }
}

using OpenQA.Selenium;
using OpenQA.Selenium.Chrome;
public class WebSearch
{
    public void PerformSearch()
    {
        var driver = new ChromeDriver();
        driver.Navigate().GoToUrl("https://www.google.com");
        var searchBox = driver.FindElement(By.Name("q"));
        searchBox.SendKeys("Selenium ChromeDriver");
        searchBox.Submit();
    }
}

Imports OpenQA.Selenium
Imports OpenQA.Selenium.Chrome
Public Class WebSearch
	Public Sub PerformSearch()
		Dim driver = New ChromeDriver()
		driver.Navigate().GoToUrl("https://www.google.com")
		Dim searchBox = driver.FindElement(By.Name("q"))
		searchBox.SendKeys("Selenium ChromeDriver")
		searchBox.Submit()
	End Sub
End Class

In this example, Chrome Driver navigates to Google, finds the search box, enters a query, and submits the search. This demonstrates a simple yet common automation task.

It is the output Google Chrome browser:

Introduction to IronPDF

IronPDF is a versatile library in C# that allows for the conversion of HTML content to PDF documents. Its integration into Selenium ChromeDriver workflows enables the capturing and conversion of web pages into PDF format, making it an ideal tool for documentation and reporting.

Install IronPDF Library

Install with NuGet

Install-Package IronPdf

nuget.org/packages/IronPdf/

or

Download DLL

Download DLL

Manually install into your project

Install Using NuGet Package Manager

To Integrate IronPDF into your Selenium ChromeDriver C# project using the NuGet Package manager, follow these steps:

1. Open Visual Studio and in the solution explorer, right click on your project.
2. Choose “Manage NuGet packages…” from the context menu.
3. Go to the browse tab and search IronPDF.
4. Select IronPDF library from the search results and click install button.
5. Accept any license agreement prompt.

If you want to include IronPDF in your project via Package manager console, then execute the following command in Package Manager Console:

Install-Package IronPdf

It’ll fetch and install IronPDF into your project.

Install Using NuGet Website

For a detailed overview of IronPDF, including its features, compatibility, and additional download options, visit the IronPDF page on the NuGet website at https://www.nuget.org/packages/IronPdf.

Install Via DLL

Alternatively, you can incorporate IronPDF directly into your project using its dll file. Download the ZIP file containing the DLL from this link. Unzip it, and include the DLL in your project.

Example: Basic PDF Creation

using IronPdf;
public class PdfCreation
{
    public void CreatePdfFromHtml()
    {
        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        var PDF = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<h1>Hello, IronPDF!</h1>");
        PDF.SaveAs("HelloIronPDF.pdf");
    }
}

using IronPdf;
public class PdfCreation
{
    public void CreatePdfFromHtml()
    {
        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();
        var PDF = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<h1>Hello, IronPDF!</h1>");
        PDF.SaveAs("HelloIronPDF.pdf");
    }
}

Imports IronPdf
Public Class PdfCreation
	Public Sub CreatePdfFromHtml()
		Dim renderer = New ChromePdfRenderer()
		Dim PDF = renderer.RenderHtmlAsPdf("<h1>Hello, IronPDF!</h1>")
		PDF.SaveAs("HelloIronPDF.pdf")
	End Sub
End Class

In this example, a simple HTML string is converted into a PDF document using IronPDF, illustrating the ease with which web content can be transformed into a fixed document format.

Integrating Selenium ChromeDriver with IronPDF

In this section, we integrate Selenium ChromeDriver with IronPDF in C#, a combination that allows for automated web content capture and its conversion into PDF format. This integration is particularly useful for creating reports, archiving web pages, or gathering data from various websites.

Automating Web Browsing with ChromeDriver

Web Page Navigation: Use Selenium ChromeDriver to navigate to and interact with web pages. This could involve filling out forms, navigating through search results, or accessing specific URLs.

Converting Web Content to PDF with IronPDF

Capturing Web Pages as PDFs: After navigating to the desired web content using ChromeDriver, use IronPDF to convert the current web page view into a PDF document.

Example: Web to PDF Conversion

using OpenQA.Selenium.Chrome;
using IronPdf;
public class WebPageToPdf
{
    public void ConvertToPdf(string url)
    {
        var driver = new ChromeDriver();
        driver.Navigate().GoToUrl(url);
        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();;
        var PDF = renderer.RenderUrlAsPdf(url);
        PDF.SaveAs("WebContent.pdf");
        driver.Quit();
    }
}

using OpenQA.Selenium.Chrome;
using IronPdf;
public class WebPageToPdf
{
    public void ConvertToPdf(string url)
    {
        var driver = new ChromeDriver();
        driver.Navigate().GoToUrl(url);
        var renderer = new ChromePdfRenderer();;
        var PDF = renderer.RenderUrlAsPdf(url);
        PDF.SaveAs("WebContent.pdf");
        driver.Quit();
    }
}

Imports OpenQA.Selenium.Chrome
Imports IronPdf
Public Class WebPageToPdf
	Public Sub ConvertToPdf(ByVal url As String)
		Dim driver = New ChromeDriver()
		driver.Navigate().GoToUrl(url)
		Dim renderer = New ChromePdfRenderer()
		Dim PDF = renderer.RenderUrlAsPdf(url)
		PDF.SaveAs("WebContent.pdf")
		driver.Quit()
	End Sub
End Class

In this example, ChromeDriver navigates to a specified URL, and IronPDF captures the webpage and converts it into a PDF. This demonstrates how to automate web browsing and document generation.

Conclusion

As we wrap up this tutorial, you've learned how to harness the power of Selenium ChromeDriver for automating web interactions in the Chrome browser and IronPDF for converting web content into PDF documents in C#. This combination unlocks a multitude of possibilities for automated reporting, data archiving, and content management within your C# applications. Explore IronPDF's capabilities with a free trial, followed by licenses starting at just $749.