Testing as Multiple Users for External Flows
This guide walks through how to test the external portal as a vendor or external contact — while staying logged in as yourself at the same time.
UAT environment URLs
| What | URL |
|---|---|
| COMS UAT | https://coms-uat.services.conexusnuclear.org/ |
| Dev Mail (shared inbox) | http://devmail.services.conexusnuclear.org/ |
What is DevMail?
In the live production system, emails sent by COMS (magic links, notifications, approval emails) go to real inboxes. In the test environment, all outgoing emails are intercepted — they never reach a real inbox. Instead, every email is captured and held in a shared fake email inbox called DevMail.
Devmail lets you read any email the system has sent, without needing access to the recipient's real email account. This is what makes it possible to test the full magic-link flow as an external user.
How to open devmail:
Open a private/inconito window and go to: Mailpit - Conexus DEV Mail
You will see a simple inbox listing every email every test environment has sent. No login is required. Look for emails tagged COMS UAT — the inbox is shared with BMS and other test systems, so there will be unrelated emails mixed in.
Why you need two separate browser windows
When you open COMS in your browser with your credentials, you are signed in as you. If you navigate to the external portal in that same window, you are still you — you cannot be two people in one browser window at once.
The solution is to open a private/incognito window alongside your normal browser window. A private window is completely isolated — it has its own fresh login session with no memory of who you are. Think of it as a second browser running independently next to your normal one.
| Your normal window | Private / Incognito window |
|---|---|
| Logged in as you (internal staff) | Completely logged out — a blank slate |
| Can send magic links, manage contacts | Can receive the magic link and act as an external user |
How to open a private window:
* Google Chrome: press Ctrl + Shift + N (Windows) or Cmd + Shift + N (Mac)
* Microsoft Edge: press Ctrl + Shift + N (Windows) or Cmd + Shift + N (Mac)
A new dark-themed window will appear with a note that you are browsing privately. Use this window to act as the external user throughout your testing.
Full walkthrough: testing as an external user with DevMail
Step 1 — Open your two windows
- Your normal browser window — you are logged in as yourself in COMS.
- A private/incognito window (open one now using
Ctrl+Shift+N). Go to DevMail from there.
Step 2 — Trigger an email that contains a magic link
A magic link is automatically included in many emails COMS sends to external contacts. You do not need to do anything special — just perform whatever action you are testing. The email will appear in devmail a few seconds later.
Common actions that send an email with a magic link:
* Purchase Order emailed to vendor — open a PO, use the "Email to Vendor" action. The vendor receives the PO PDF and a login link to view it in the external portal.
* RFX sent to supplier — open an RFX document, use the "Send to Supplier" action. The supplier receives the RFX and a login link to submit their bid.
* Approval request sent to an external approver — when an approval stage is assigned to an external contact and the request is submitted, that contact receives a notification email with a login link to the approvals page.
* Manual magic link (contact page) — go to a contact's page (via Companies or Contacts), click Send Magic Link, make sure "Send email automatically" is selected, and click Send Email. Use this when you just want a quick login link without triggering a specific workflow.
In every case, COMS generates a secure one-time login link and sends it to the contact's email address — which in testing environments is caught by DevMail.
Step 3 — Find the email in devmail
- In DevMail, you will see an inbox. The most recent email will appear at the top.
- Click the email to open it. It will contain a button with the magic link
- Click the button, COMS will open and you will now be logged in as that external contact.
You are now testing as two different people at the same time — yourself in the normal window, the external user in the private window.
Step 4 — Test whatever you need
You can now interact with both windows simultaneously:
- In the private window: act as the vendor/external contact (submit bids, view documents, respond to requests).
- In the normal window: act as internal staff (review submissions, send approvals, trigger notifications).
Switching back and forth between the two windows lets you see both sides of any workflow.
Step 5 — Finish
When you are done, simply close the tab that is used as the external user. Your normal session is unaffected.
Quick tips
- The magic link can only be used once. If you accidentally close the external user tab but want to go back for further testing with that specific account, or use the link in the wrong window, just go back to COMS and repeat whatever action sent the original email (email the PO again, resend the RFX, send a manual magic link from the contact page) — a fresh email with a new link will appear in DevMail.
- Devmail shows all emails — not just the ones addressed to you. If you cannot find your email, check that you sent the magic link to the correct contact, and look at the top of the inbox — newest emails appear first.
- The private window forgets everything when closed. Next time you need to test as an external user, repeat the steps above from the beginning.
- Your normal session is never affected by what you do in the private window.
- Private/Cognito windows can be used anytime you need to act as two different accounts simultaneously, for example:
- Testing as an **external vendor or contact** while staying logged in as internal staff (the main use case covered in this guide).
- Testing as a **staff member with different permissions** — e.g. checking what a read-only user sees versus an approver.
- Verifying that **two users interacting** works correctly end-to-end — e.g. one submitting, one approving.
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