How to Handle Spring Security in Spring Boot Integration Tests for @WebMvcTest

Introduction:

When writing integration tests for Spring Boot applications that use Spring Security, you may encounter situations where you need to handle security configurations to properly test your endpoints. In this post, we'll explore different approaches to handle Spring Security in integration tests using the @WebMvcTest annotation.

1. Load Custom Security Configuration:

If your application has custom security configurations, you can selectively load them for testing by importing the configuration class using @Import annotation.

@WebMvcTest(YourTestController.class)
@Import(SecurityConfig.class) // Load your security configuration
public class YourTestControllerTest {
    // Your tests...
}

2. Use MockUser for Authorization:

When your tests require authentication but not the full security setup, you can use @WithMockUser to provide a mock user.

@WebMvcTest(YourTestController.class)
@Import(SecurityConfig.class) // Load your security configuration
public class YourTestControllerTest {

    @Autowired
    private MockMvc mockMvc;

    @Test
    @WithMockUser
    public void testEndpointWithMockUser() throws Exception {
        // Test logic with mock user
        mockMvc.perform(...
    }
}

3. Difference between @SpringBootTest and @WebMvcTest:

@SpringBootTest loads the complete Spring application context and is used for integration testing the entire application, including all layers and components. On the other hand, @WebMvcTest focuses only on the web layer and loads only the components relevant for testing MVC controllers.

Conclusion:

Handling Spring Security in Spring Boot integration tests is crucial to ensure that your application behaves correctly under various security scenarios. By using the appropriate annotations and configurations, you can effectively test your endpoints while simulating different security conditions.

Closing:

Integration testing with Spring Boot and Spring Security ensures that your application behaves as expected under different security configurations. By understanding how to handle Spring Security in integration tests and the difference between @SpringBootTest and @WebMvcTest, you can write comprehensive tests for your Spring Boot applications.