Syntax rules

Part 1 · Fundamentals›2 · Your first suiteRFCP 2.2

Lesson lab: Syntax rulesch02-first-suite--syntax-rules.zip · 3 KB

This lesson starts from a fresh lab — download it even if you already have the chapter lab.

Download ch02-first-suite--syntax-rules.zip

Or fetch and unpack it from a terminal in VS Code:

bash / zsh

curl -fsSLO https://manykarim.github.io/robotframework-essentials-web/labs/ch02-first-suite--syntax-rules.zip && unzip -q ch02-first-suite--syntax-rules.zip && rm ch02-first-suite--syntax-rules.zip

PowerShell

Invoke-WebRequest https://manykarim.github.io/robotframework-essentials-web/labs/ch02-first-suite--syntax-rules.zip -OutFile ch02-first-suite--syntax-rules.zip; Expand-Archive ch02-first-suite--syntax-rules.zip -DestinationPath .; Remove-Item ch02-first-suite--syntax-rules.zip

Open the folder in VS Code with code rfe-ch02-first-suite--syntax-rules (or File → Open Folder…) and accept the recommended RobotCode and Python extensions. Then set it up:

uv sync

bash / zsh

python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt

PowerShell

python -m venv .venv
.venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1
pip install -r requirements.txt

Keep the environment active in every terminal where you run lesson commands.

poetry install --no-root

Python 3.13 or newer is required; uv installs it when it is missing.

Open in browserNo setup? Try the lab right here: its files, an editor and a terminal, running in your browser.

What's inside

• Directoryrfe-ch02-first-suite--syntax-rules/

  • Directory.vscode/

    • extensions.json
  • Directorychecks/

    • first_suite.robot
  • .gitignore
  • .python-version
  • LAB.md
  • pyproject.toml
  • README.md
  • requirements.txt
  • uv.lock

Robot Framework’s syntax has a few rules that trip up newcomers, and all of them are about spacing and lines:

• Separation — two or more spaces (or a tab) separate cells. A single space is part of the text.
• Continuation — ... at the start of a line continues the previous line.
• Comments — # starts a comment to end of line.
• Escaping — \ escapes a special character; ${SPACE} is a deliberate single space.

This chapter’s workspace has a broken suite at checks/first_suite.robot: its cells are separated by a single space, so Robot Framework reads each line as one long keyword name and cannot find it. Download this lesson’s lab, then repair it.

Warning

A single space does not separate cells. Log Hello is the keyword named “Log Hello”, which does not exist — not the Log keyword with the argument “Hello”.

Task 1 — Fix the cell separation in the broken suite

Edit

Open checks/first_suite.robot. Each line uses single spaces. Widen the gap between every keyword and its arguments to two or more spaces:

*** Test Cases ***
Greeting Reads Clean
    Log    Robot Framework is running
    Should Be Equal    apples    apples

Done when

the suite now calls the Log and Should Be Equal keywords.

Task 2 — Run the repaired suite green

Run

Run it:

uv run robot checks

robot checks

poetry run robot checks

Done when

the test Greeting Reads Clean passes.

Check your understanding

Quick recall. Your first answer stays in this browser; the quiz never blocks your progress.

1. How does Robot Framework separate a keyword from its arguments?

   A single spaceTwo or more spaces (or a tab)A comma
   Show the answer

   Answer: Two or more spaces (or a tab) — Cells are separated by two or more spaces. A single space is part of the text, so Log Hello is read as one keyword name.

2. How do you continue a long value onto the next line?

   A trailing backslash... at the start of the lineA semicolon
   Show the answer

   Answer: ... at the start of the line — The continuation marker ... begins a line that continues the previous one.

Key terms

cell separationconcept

Two or more spaces (or a tab) separate cells; a single space is literal text.

... (continuation)concept

Continues the previous line's value onto a new line.

All terms in the glossary →