December 2022 Summaries

The current state of 2-factor authentication (2FA) poses a challenge for testing applications behind a login flow, particularly when using time-based one-time passwords (TOTP). However, authenticator apps and TOTP flows can be automated using browser automation tools like Playwright. By leveraging the OTP Auth library to generate passcodes, developers can create scripts that log into 2FA-secured accounts, such as GitHub, without relying on manual input or verification steps. The process involves generating a secret from the QR code, pairing it with the current time to produce a one-time password, and filling in the corresponding input field to complete the login flow. With Playwright's auto-waiting feature and the OTP Auth library, developers can automate this process, ensuring their applications are secure and reliable.

The Checkly team has released updated dashboards with a new design that allows users to view more data in a clearer and more easily digestible way, and check their dashboards from any device at any time. The redesigned dashboards are built on NuxtJS 3 and leverage Universal Rendering capabilities, making them faster and more reliable. The update includes improved performance and accessibility features, such as visible color contrast, clear hover states, and aria-label + alt attributes. Additionally, the team has added incident management functionality to help users communicate scheduled maintenance notices and alert developers to minor and major incidents, available for paid plans only.

Monitoring as Code is a workflow that enables developers to describe the desired monitoring infrastructure as code, allowing for automation, transparency and collaboration. It uses version control systems like Git, similar to Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools, to manage monitoring configurations. This approach has several advantages, including staying in sync with application changes, increasing efficiency through automation, improving transparency and collaboration, and enabling version control for monitoring. The future of Monitoring as Code aims to make it delightful, frictionless and accessible for every modern developer with an IDE and a git repository, using open source frameworks like Playwright, Jest, and others.