gitwtfhub

wtf is foot_traffic?

lewagon/foot_traffic — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-08-04 · repo last pushed 2021-08-20

129RubyAudience · developerComplexity · 2/5DormantSetup · easy

TL;DR

A Ruby tool that drives a real Chrome browser to simulate multiple users clicking through your web app. Useful for visual load testing and checking that real-time features work for many users at once.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((Foot Traffic))
    What it does
      Automates real Chrome
      Simulates multiple users
      Clicks and types like a human
    How it works
      Built on Ferrum
      Talks to Chrome directly
      No Selenium needed
    Features
      Parallel browser tabs
      Headless mode option
      Per-tab cookie management
      Action delay tuning
    Use cases
      Moderate load testing
      Visual development aid
      Real-time feature checks
    Good to know
      No longer maintained
      Requires Chrome installed
      Scripts are committable

Code map

Detail Auto

An interactive map of this repo's files and how they connect — its source is parsed live in your browser. Click Visualize to build it.

filefunction / class

Why would anyone build with this?

REASON 1

Simulate several users at once to watch how your app handles concurrent interactions in real time.

REASON 2

Run moderate load tests by opening multiple browser tabs or windows in parallel.

REASON 3

Visually verify that live-update features work correctly for multiple logged-in users.

REASON 4

Commit repeatable browser scripts to your project and run them as regression checks.

What's in the stack?

RubyFerrumChrome

How it stacks up

lewagon/foot_trafficseptimawati/downloadscrmne/kamal-backup
Stars1299579
LanguageRubyRubyRuby
Last pushed2021-08-20
MaintenanceDormant
Setup difficultyeasyeasymoderate
Complexity2/51/53/5
Audiencedevelopergeneralops devops

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you spin it up?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 30min

Requires Chrome installed locally and the Ferrum gem, project is no longer maintained so it may not work with newest Chrome versions.

No license information is provided in the explanation, so what you can do with the code is unclear.

Wtf does this do

Foot Traffic is a Ruby tool that automates a real web browser to simulate people using your web application. Instead of manually clicking through your site to check if it works, you write a short script that opens Chrome, navigates to pages, clicks buttons, and types text just like a real user would. It's handy for moderate load testing or as a visual aid during development. Under the hood, it relies on another project called Ferrum, which talks directly to Chrome through its built-in debugging protocol. This means you don't need Selenium or any extra driver software installed, just Chrome. You open a session, and within that session you can open multiple browser tabs that run in parallel, each performing its own sequence of actions. You can also run multiple browser windows at once if you want to simulate heavier traffic. The main audience is developers or teams who want to watch their app handle multiple users at once. A concrete use case from the README: making sure your app's real-time features (like live updates) work properly for several users, and seeing the interaction play out visually before your eyes. You can commit these scripts to your project and run them whenever you need to check that things still work. The project offers useful tuning options. You can add delays between actions to better mimic human pacing, run in "headless" mode (no visible browser window), or set up guardrails that catch errors if your system runs out of memory from opening too many tabs. You can also manage cookies per tab, which lets you simulate scenarios like multiple logged-in users hitting protected pages. Note that the project is no longer maintained, so while the code is available and functional, it won't receive updates or fixes.

Yoink these prompts

Prompt 1
I want to use the Foot Traffic Ruby gem to simulate 5 users simultaneously interacting with my web app's real-time chat. Write a script that opens 5 browser tabs, each logging in as a different user, and sends a message.
Prompt 2
Help me set up a Foot Traffic script that navigates to my app's homepage, clicks a button, fills in a form, and waits 2 seconds between actions to mimic human pacing.
Prompt 3
Create a Foot Traffic script that runs in headless mode, opens 3 parallel browser tabs, manages separate cookies per tab, and catches errors if the system runs out of memory.
Prompt 4
Show me how to configure Foot Traffic to open multiple browser windows at once for heavier load testing, with guardrails to prevent too many tabs from crashing my machine.

Frequently asked questions

wtf is foot_traffic?

A Ruby tool that drives a real Chrome browser to simulate multiple users clicking through your web app. Useful for visual load testing and checking that real-time features work for many users at once.

What language is foot_traffic written in?

Mainly Ruby. The stack also includes Ruby, Ferrum, Chrome.

Is foot_traffic actively maintained?

Dormant — no commits in 2+ years (last push 2021-08-20).

What license does foot_traffic use?

No license information is provided in the explanation, so what you can do with the code is unclear.

How hard is foot_traffic to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 30min to a first successful run.

Who is foot_traffic for?

Mainly developer.

View the repo → Decode another repo

This repo across BitVibe Labs

Don't trust strangers blindly. Verify against the repo.