Troubleshooting Sitepager: Solve Common Website Testing Issues

Sitepager is designed to help you catch visual inconsistencies, broken links, and other website issues with automated checks.

However, certain situations may require troubleshooting to ensure you get the expected results. This guide addresses common issues users face and provides solutions to resolve them efficiently.

If you are experiencing unexpected behavior, check the relevant section below or refer to our documentation for more details.

Why are some pages missing from my check results?

There are a few reasons why pages might not appear in your check results:

• Not linked from the starting URL: Sitepager crawls pages that are accessible from the provided starting URL. If a page is not linked, it will not be included in the check.

• Excluded by configuration settings: If your check configuration includes an Exclude URL pattern, pages matching that pattern will be omitted.

• Using an Include list without enabling crawling: If you have specified an Include list and want to crawl the pages beyond the listed URLs, ensure that the Crawl included URLs option is enabled in your configuration.

For a more detailed guide on how Sitepager crawls pages, visit our documentation: Understanding Sitepager’s Crawling Behavior.

Why is my animation not showing up in the screenshots?

Sitepager captures your website by rendering it in a browser, scrolling through the entire page to load all content, and then scrolling back to the top to take a full-page screenshot.

This ensures that all visible elements are accurately captured in their final state at the time of the screenshot. So, if an element is hidden (opacity: 0, visibility: hidden, display: none) at the moment of capture, it will not appear in the screenshot.

If your animation is not appearing in the screenshots, it could be due to the following reasons:

• Scroll-Based Animations: If an animation is triggered by scrolling and the element is hidden after scrolling out of view, it will not be captured. Ensure elements remain visible at the time of capture by keeping them in their final visible state (opacity: 100%, visibility: visible).

• Hover and Click-Based Animations: Animations requiring user interactions (hover, click) are not triggered by default. Use Hover Menu Items or Click Menu Items to specify elements that should be interacted with before capture. These settings allow Sitepager to simulate user interactions and capture the resulting state of the animation.

• Animations with Delays or JavaScript Rendering: If an animation starts after a delay or relies on JavaScript execution, it may not be fully rendered when Sitepager captures the screenshot. Consider increasing the Page Load Wait Time to allow the animation to complete. However, note that increasing the wait time applies to the entire test run. If only specific pages require additional time, consider running them separately to prevent slowing down other tests.

For a detailed guide on capturing animations effectively, see our documentation: Capturing Animations in Visual Tests.

Why can't I clone my config?

Each configuration in Sitepager is unique. To clone a configuration, at least one property must be changed before saving. This ensures that every config represents a distinct test setup.

Why are my hover or click effects missing in screenshots?

Sitepager does not apply hover effects by default. To test hover states:

1. Use Hover Menu Items or Click Menu Items to specify elements that should be interacted with before capturing the screenshot.

2. Verify your selectors in Chrome as explained below.

See the doc for step-by-step instructions on How to Use Selectors for Hover and Click Actions.

You can also consider using generic classes for testing click and hover interactions and excluding dynamic content. Learn more in our guide on Using Generic Classes for Testing Interactions and Dynamic Content.

How do I check if my selectors are correct for testing interactions and dynamic content?

If Sitepager is not excluding or interacting with the correct elements, verifying your selectors in Chrome can help:

1. Open your website in Google Chrome.

2. Right-click the element you want to check and select Inspect.

3. In the Elements panel, locate the element and check its CSS selectors (ID or class names).

4. Copy the selector and test it in the Console tab by running document.querySelector('your-selector').

5. If the element is correctly selected, the output will show the corresponding element details.

6. Use this verified selector in Sitepager’s Hover Menu Items or Click Menu Items settings to ensure correct interaction, or in the Dynamic Content Selectors to exclude these elements from your checks and focus on the static sections.

Why is my external link monitoring not detecting issues?

• Sitepager only checks if external links return an error (e.g., 404, 500); it does not crawl the external site.

• If an external page returns a working status but has problems, Sitepager won’t flag it.

For further details about testing external links, check out our guide on How to Check Broken External Links.

Why are my test results different from what I see in the browser?

• The browser settings (e.g., viewport size, user agent) in Sitepager might differ from your local setup.

• Sitepager captures screenshots at a specific point in time; dynamic content may load later.

• If JavaScript errors occur during loading, the page may not fully render before capture.

Why is my site not loading in Sitepager’s checks?

• Check if the site is blocking automated tools (some sites restrict bots from accessing content).

• Ensure that the starting URL is correct and publicly accessible.

• If the site requires authentication, Sitepager may not be able to access gated content.

Why are my visual differences flagged even though I didn’t change anything?

• Small shifts in rendering (e.g., fonts, shadows, dynamic content) can cause differences.

• Check if any dynamic elements (ads, timestamps) are altering content between runs.

• Adjust the sensitivity threshold to reduce minor change detections.

For further assistance, reach out to support via in-app chat or check our documentation for more details.