I have been trying to automate a process that downloads XLSX and PDF files from within Edge (Chromium).
We have used a combination of an object repository and keyboard shortcuts to capture many of the elements from the downloads bar, but keep finding issues of consistency with this method.
These overlay windows don’t appear to be identified by the bot in certain cases and we cannot pinpoint why these are not found in those cases.
The downloads menu is required as the file paths are required to be configured for each file.
Has anyone found a robust solution to navigate the downloads menu within Edge?
I have already enabled this, yet the window is still not always found.
I am using a Check App State on the full window, and if the target is not found, CTRL+J is used to force the option to appear. The issue is even after the download menu is occasionally not found even after being manually launched.
Not sure if Edge works the same as Chrome, but just set it not to prompt when downloading, and then watch the Downloads folder for the file to download. Once it downloads, move it to where you need it, rename etc.
Have also tried the wait for download activity. But that also appears to have a bug and retrieves the .tmp file regularly instead of the correct file. Unless there has been an update I haven’t tested
Note that this is a While, not a Do While. While processes the condition first, then executes the Body if it’s true. Do While executes the Body first. You should use While, not Do While, for this download check.
You probably also want to introduce a Delay of a second or two inside the Body, but that kind of stuff is up to you. You could also set up a counter and force a Throw if, say, it takes more than a certain amount of time for the file to appear.
The file is downloaded at runtime with a random string of characters. The temp file uses a separate string that is entirely unrelated to the original file.
The only solution I can think would be to record the time, start the download, if the file is a .tmp then grab the top file in downloads folder (filtered after the start time) and hope you only have one file in there that is correct.
Oh the random characters is an issue. At least the extension should be predictable. You could record the date/time down to the second when you clicked the download link/button, and look for any new file modified after that date/time that has the extension you’re waiting for.
