Skip to Content
E2E Test AutomationAPI Environment VariablesCreate and Manage Variables

🌍 API Environment Variables at the API Collection Level in ATA

API Environment Variables in AllThingsAPI (ATA) allow you to define and manage configuration values at the API collection level. These variables are essential for maintaining flexibility in your API testing, especially when working across different environments such as Development, Staging, and Production. Environment variables at the collection level allow you to centralize configuration settings that can be easily reused across multiple requests in the same collection, streamlining your testing and ensuring consistency across environments.

🔑 What Are API Environment Variables at the Collection Level?

API Environment Variables at the collection level are key-value pairs that define configuration settings which can be referenced throughout the entire collection. These variables typically include values like base URLs, authentication tokens, session IDs, or other parameters that might change depending on the environment or need to be reused across multiple requests.

At the API collection level, environment variables offer several advantages:

  • Centralized Configuration: Define variables that can be used across multiple API requests within the same collection, making it easier to manage and update configurations.
  • Environment Flexibility: Switch between different environments (Development, Staging, Production) seamlessly by referencing the correct environment variables.
  • Consistency: Ensure that your API requests in the collection remain consistent across tests by using environment variables for dynamic values like authentication tokens or URLs.

🛠️ How API Environment Variables Work at the Collection Level

  1. Create Collection-Level Environment Variables:

    • In ATA, you can define environment variables specifically for a collection. These variables will be available for any request within that collection. For example, you can define a base_url variable that points to the base URL of your API (e.g., https://dev.api.example.com).

  2. Reference Environment Variables in Requests:

    • You can use these environment variables in different parts of your API requests, such as:
      • In URL: Reference the base URL and API endpoints.
        • Example:
          {\{base_url\}}/users?id=1
      • In Headers: Use environment variables for authentication tokens or custom headers.
        • Example:
          Authorization: Bearer {\{access_token\}}
      • In Request Body: Pass dynamic data within the request body.
        • Example: 
          {
  "session_id": "{\{session_cookie\}}"
}

  3. Switch Between Environments:

    • ATA allows you to switch between different environments with just a few clicks. For example, you can use different base URLs and access tokens in Development, Staging, and Production by simply selecting the appropriate environment when running your tests.

  4. Maintain Consistent Configuration Across Requests:

    • Instead of manually editing each request every time a value changes (like a URL or token), you can simply update the environment variable, and it will automatically reflect across all the requests that reference that variable.

🔧 Managing API Environment Variables at the Collection Level

1. Creating an Environment for a Collection

  1. Navigate to API Env Variables:
    Open the API Env Variables section in ATA.

  2. Create a New Environment:
    Click the ”+” button to create a new environment. Provide a descriptive name (e.g., “Development”, “Production”).

  3. Define Variables:

    • Add the key-value pairs for your environment variables, such as:
      • base_url = https://dev.api.example.com
      • access_token = Bearer <your_access_token>
      • session_cookie = <your_session_id>

  4. Save the Environment:
    Once your environment variables are added, click Save to store your environment.

2. Using Variables in API Requests

Once your collection-level environment variables are created, you can reference them within your API requests.

Example 1: Using base_url in URL

  • API Request URL: 
    {\{base_url\}}/users?id=1
  • This will resolve to:
    https://dev.api.example.com/users?id=1 (if base_url is set to https://dev.api.example.com)

Example 2: Using access_token in Headers

  • API Request Header: 
    Authorization: Bearer {\{access_token\}}
  • This will resolve to:
    Authorization: Bearer <your_access_token> (if access_token is set)

Example 3: Using session_cookie in Request Body

  • API Request Body: 
    {
  "session_id": "{\{session_cookie\}}"
}
  • This will resolve to:
    { "session_id": "<your_session_id>" }

🧑‍💻 Switching Between Environments

The ability to switch between environments in ATA ensures that your tests can be executed in different settings (e.g., Development, Staging, Production) without needing to manually update configurations.

  1. Select Environment:
    Before running your tests, select the appropriate environment from the Environment dropdown in the API Testing Lab.

  2. Automatic Variable Updates:
    ATA automatically uses the environment-specific variables (like base_url or access_token) to configure the requests for that environment, ensuring the right values are used.

📊 Benefits of API Environment Variables at the Collection Level

  1. Centralized Configuration:
    Manage environment variables for an entire collection, making it easier to update configurations without manually editing each request.

  2. Environment Flexibility:
    Easily switch between different environments for testing purposes, ensuring that your APIs are tested across Development, Staging, and Production environments without hassle.

  3. Consistency Across Tests:
    Ensure that all requests within a collection use the same configuration values by referencing environment variables, reducing the risk of errors and improving testing consistency.

  4. Simplified Testing:
    No need to update each request when configurations change—just update the environment variables, and ATA will apply them automatically across all relevant requests.

✅ Conclusion

API Environment Variables at the Collection Level in AllThingsAPI (ATA) are essential for managing configurations across your tests and ensuring seamless transitions between different environments. By centralizing your environment-specific settings (like base URLs, tokens, and session IDs), you can streamline your testing process, reduce errors, and enhance the flexibility of your API tests.

API environment variables improve the scalability and efficiency of your testing workflows, ensuring that your APIs are always tested in the right context and configuration.

Happy testing! 🚀

🌍 API Environment Variables at the Collection Level

API Environment Variables in E2E Test Automation allow you to define and manage configuration values at the API collection level. These variables are essential for maintaining flexibility in your API testing, especially when working across different environments such as Development, Staging, and Production. Environment variables at the collection level allow you to centralize configuration settings that can be easily reused across multiple requests in the same collection, streamlining your testing and ensuring consistency across environments.

🔑 What Are API Environment Variables at the Collection Level?

API Environment Variables at the collection level are key-value pairs that define configuration settings which can be referenced throughout the entire collection. These variables typically include values like base URLs, authentication tokens, session IDs, or other parameters that might change depending on the environment or need to be reused across multiple requests.

At the API collection level, environment variables offer several advantages:

  • Centralized Configuration – Define variables that can be used across multiple API requests within the same collection, making it easier to manage and update configurations
  • Environment Flexibility – Switch between different environments (Development, Staging, Production) seamlessly by referencing the correct environment variables
  • Consistency – Ensure that your API requests in the collection remain consistent across tests by using environment variables for dynamic values like authentication tokens or URLs

🔄 How API Environment Variables Work at the Collection Level

Creating Collection-Level Environment Variables

In E2E Test Automation, you can define environment variables specifically for a collection. These variables will be available for any request within that collection. For example, you can define a base_url variable that points to the base URL of your API (e.g., https://dev.api.example.com).

Referencing Environment Variables in Requests

You can use these environment variables in different parts of your API requests, such as:

In URL – Reference the base URL and API endpoints:

{\{base_url\}}/users?id=1

In Headers – Use environment variables for authentication tokens or custom headers:

Authorization: Bearer {\{access_token\}}

In Request Body – Pass dynamic data within the request body:

{
  "session_id": "{\{session_cookie\}}"
}

Switching Between Environments

E2E Test Automation allows you to switch between different environments with just a few clicks. For example, you can use different base URLs and access tokens in Development, Staging, and Production by simply selecting the appropriate environment when running your tests.

Maintaining Consistent Configuration Across Requests

Instead of manually editing each request every time a value changes (like a URL or token), you can simply update the environment variable, and it will automatically reflect across all the requests that reference that variable.

🛠️ Managing API Environment Variables at the Collection Level

Creating an Environment for a Collection

Steps:

  1. Navigate to API Env Variables – Open the API Env Variables section in E2E Test Automation

  2. Create a New Environment – Click the ”+” button to create a new environment. Provide a descriptive name (e.g., “Development”, “Production”)

  3. Define Variables – Add the key-value pairs for your environment variables, such as:

    • base_url = https://dev.api.example.com
    • access_token = Bearer <your_access_token>
    • session_cookie = <your_session_id>

  4. Save the Environment – Once your environment variables are added, click Save to store your environment

Using Variables in API Requests

Once your collection-level environment variables are created, you can reference them within your API requests.

Example 1: Using base_url in URL

API Request URL:

{\{base_url\}}/users?id=1

This will resolve to:

https://dev.api.example.com/users?id=1

(if base_url is set to https://dev.api.example.com)

Example 2: Using access_token in Headers

API Request Header:

Authorization: Bearer {\{access_token\}}

This will resolve to:

Authorization: Bearer <your_access_token>

(if access_token is set)

Example 3: Using session_cookie in Request Body

API Request Body:

{
  "session_id": "{\{session_cookie\}}"
}

This will resolve to:

{
  "session_id": "<your_session_id>"
}

🔀 Switching Between Environments

The ability to switch between environments in E2E Test Automation ensures that your tests can be executed in different settings (e.g., Development, Staging, Production) without needing to manually update configurations.

Steps:

  1. Select Environment – Before running your tests, select the appropriate environment from the Environment dropdown in the API Testing Lab

  2. Automatic Variable Updates – E2E Test Automation automatically uses the environment-specific variables (like base_url or access_token) to configure the requests for that environment, ensuring the right values are used

🎯 Benefits of API Environment Variables at the Collection Level

Centralized Configuration
Manage environment variables for an entire collection, making it easier to update configurations without manually editing each request.

Environment Flexibility
Easily switch between different environments for testing purposes, ensuring that your APIs are tested across Development, Staging, and Production environments without hassle.

Consistency Across Tests
Ensure that all requests within a collection use the same configuration values by referencing environment variables, reducing the risk of errors and improving testing consistency.

Simplified Testing
No need to update each request when configurations change—just update the environment variables, and E2E Test Automation will apply them automatically across all relevant requests.

✅ Summary

API Environment Variables at the Collection Level in E2E Test Automation are essential for managing configurations across your tests and ensuring seamless transitions between different environments. By centralizing your environment-specific settings (like base URLs, tokens, and session IDs), you can streamline your testing process, reduce errors, and enhance the flexibility of your API tests.

API environment variables improve the scalability and efficiency of your testing workflows, ensuring that your APIs are always tested in the right context and configuration.

Happy testing! 🚀

🌍 API Environment Variables at the Collection Level

API Environment Variables in E2E Test Automation allow you to define and manage configuration values at the API collection level. These variables are essential for maintaining flexibility in your API testing, especially when working across different environments such as Development, Staging, and Production. Environment variables at the collection level allow you to centralize configuration settings that can be easily reused across multiple requests in the same collection, streamlining your testing and ensuring consistency across environments.

🔑 What Are API Environment Variables at the Collection Level?

API Environment Variables at the collection level are key-value pairs that define configuration settings which can be referenced throughout the entire collection. These variables typically include values like base URLs, authentication tokens, session IDs, or other parameters that might change depending on the environment or need to be reused across multiple requests.

At the API collection level, environment variables offer several advantages:

  • Centralized Configuration – Define variables that can be used across multiple API requests within the same collection, making it easier to manage and update configurations
  • Environment Flexibility – Switch between different environments (Development, Staging, Production) seamlessly by referencing the correct environment variables
  • Consistency – Ensure that your API requests in the collection remain consistent across tests by using environment variables for dynamic values like authentication tokens or URLs

🔄 How API Environment Variables Work at the Collection Level

Creating Collection-Level Environment Variables

In E2E Test Automation, you can define environment variables specifically for a collection. These variables will be available for any request within that collection. For example, you can define a base_url variable that points to the base URL of your API (e.g., https://dev.api.example.com).

Referencing Environment Variables in Requests

You can use these environment variables in different parts of your API requests, such as:

In URL – Reference the base URL and API endpoints:

{\{base_url\}}/users?id=1

In Headers – Use environment variables for authentication tokens or custom headers:

Authorization: Bearer {\{access_token\}}

In Request Body – Pass dynamic data within the request body:

{
  "session_id": "{\{session_cookie\}}"
}

Switching Between Environments

E2E Test Automation allows you to switch between different environments with just a few clicks. For example, you can use different base URLs and access tokens in Development, Staging, and Production by simply selecting the appropriate environment when running your tests.

Maintaining Consistent Configuration Across Requests

Instead of manually editing each request every time a value changes (like a URL or token), you can simply update the environment variable, and it will automatically reflect across all the requests that reference that variable.

🛠️ Managing API Environment Variables at the Collection Level

Creating an Environment for a Collection

Steps:

  1. Navigate to API Env Variables – Open the API Env Variables section in E2E Test Automation

  2. Create a New Environment – Click the ”+” button to create a new environment. Provide a descriptive name (e.g., “Development”, “Production”)

  3. Define Variables – Add the key-value pairs for your environment variables, such as:

    • base_url = https://dev.api.example.com
    • access_token = Bearer <your_access_token>
    • session_cookie = <your_session_id>

  4. Save the Environment – Once your environment variables are added, click Save to store your environment

Using Variables in API Requests

Once your collection-level environment variables are created, you can reference them within your API requests.

Example 1: Using base_url in URL

API Request URL:

{\{base_url\}}/users?id=1

This will resolve to:

https://dev.api.example.com/users?id=1

(if base_url is set to https://dev.api.example.com)

Example 2: Using access_token in Headers

API Request Header:

Authorization: Bearer {\{access_token\}}

This will resolve to:

Authorization: Bearer <your_access_token>

(if access_token is set)

Example 3: Using session_cookie in Request Body

API Request Body:

{
  "session_id": "{\{session_cookie\}}"
}

This will resolve to:

{
  "session_id": "<your_session_id>"
}

🔀 Switching Between Environments

The ability to switch between environments in E2E Test Automation ensures that your tests can be executed in different settings (e.g., Development, Staging, Production) without needing to manually update configurations.

Steps:

  1. Select Environment – Before running your tests, select the appropriate environment from the Environment dropdown in the API Testing Lab

  2. Automatic Variable Updates – E2E Test Automation automatically uses the environment-specific variables (like base_url or access_token) to configure the requests for that environment, ensuring the right values are used

🎯 Benefits of API Environment Variables at the Collection Level

Centralized Configuration
Manage environment variables for an entire collection, making it easier to update configurations without manually editing each request.

Environment Flexibility
Easily switch between different environments for testing purposes, ensuring that your APIs are tested across Development, Staging, and Production environments without hassle.

Consistency Across Tests
Ensure that all requests within a collection use the same configuration values by referencing environment variables, reducing the risk of errors and improving testing consistency.

Simplified Testing
No need to update each request when configurations change—just update the environment variables, and E2E Test Automation will apply them automatically across all relevant requests.

✅ Summary

API Environment Variables at the Collection Level in E2E Test Automation are essential for managing configurations across your tests and ensuring seamless transitions between different environments. By centralizing your environment-specific settings (like base URLs, tokens, and session IDs), you can streamline your testing process, reduce errors, and enhance the flexibility of your API tests.

API environment variables improve the scalability and efficiency of your testing workflows, ensuring that your APIs are always tested in the right context and configuration.

Happy testing! 🚀

API Environment VariablesUse Environment Variables in API Requests