Have you ever bumped into a wall with your automated tests? Many developers bump into various roadblocks and hurdles when writing test code. Are your test methods starting to fail because the code-under-test uses the current date and time? Are your automated integration tests failing because the database they integrate with keeps changing? Do you have an explosion of test methods, with the ratio of test code to code-under-test way too high? Is your effort to refactor and improve code overwhelmed by the time it takes to rewrite all those failing unit tests? This presentation is about clearing away Agile testing obstacles, avoiding common pitfalls, and staying away from dangerous practices.

1. Agile Testing Best Practices
Stephen Ritchie
DCAST March Meeting
19-Mar-2013

2. Agenda
1 Motivation
2 Principles
3 Obstacles
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3. Motivation
Why Test
Software?
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5. Chrysler New Yorker
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6. Motivation
Why Write
Automated
Tests?
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7. Achieve Desired Results
• Software costs too much
• Users demand quality
• Testing takes too long
• New features take too long
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8. Microscope: Visibility and Insight
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9. Smoke Detector: Problem Detection
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10. Weather Satellite: Advanced Warning
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11. Automated Tests
Make Sure
Software Works
As Intended

12. Agenda
1 Motivation
2 Principles
3 Obstacles
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13. Agile Test Pyramid: Vision
Testers
Automated
Engineers
Google “Agile Test Pyramid” http://bit.ly/10Qubsy
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14. Agile Test Pyramid: Reality
Ice-Cream Cone Anti-Pattern http://bit.ly/10QpUFG
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15. Agile Test Quadrants
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16. Principles
1. Unit Test
Developer Tests
“Intention Checking”
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17. Principles
2. Automate
• Always running
• Can't be bargained with
• Can't be reasoned with
• Tests don't feel pity or
remorse or fear
• Absolutely will not stop,
ever, until you deliver a
quality software product.
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18. Principles
2. Automate
• CI Server
• Per Commit
• Overnight Functional
• Smoke Testing
• Stability Testing
• Performance/Load
• Automate Deployments
• Project “Dashboard”
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19. Principles
3. Zero Configuration*
I can run your tests,
You can run mine.
* One-time configuration is okay
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20. Principles
4. Fast
All tests run
time efficiently
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21. Principles
5. Clear Results
Pass/Fail
Focused Test
Isolates Issue
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22. Principles
6. Easy to Maintain
Conventional
Brief
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23. Principles
7. Timely
Test-Driven Development (TDD)
Test As-It’s-Built
Test As-It’s-Fixed
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24. Agenda
1 Motivation
2 Principles
3 Obstacles
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25. Requirements, Requirements, Requirements
Obstacle 1
•Too Abstract
•Changing
•Over Specification
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27. Specification by Example
Examples & Feature Files
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28. One Primary Assert To Rule Them All
One Primary Assert
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29. Time Crunch
Obstacle 2
Time Crunch
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30. Four Ways to Fake Time
Fake Time
• Virtual Machine
• Isolate The System
• Inspect The Clock
• Dummy IClock
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31. Dummy Real System
Clock Clock
IClock
Interface
System Under Test

32. Database Killed The Integration Test
Obstacle 3
Database
Integration
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33. Fixture Setup and Data Arrangement
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34. Fixture Setup and Data Arrangement
• Schema Migration
– RoundhousE
– Flyway Db
– Liquibase
• Data Arrangement
– DbUnit & NDbUnit
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35. Now We Have Too Much Test Code
Obstacle 4
Explosion of
Test Code
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36. Monitor Test Code Growth Rate
Control Growth
• Monitor The Ratio
• Data-Drive Tests
• Boundary Analysis
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38. Bad Coupling
Obstacle 5
Unhelpful Reuse
Unhelpful Repetition
Unhelpful Coupling
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39. In Test Code, Do Repeat Yourself ... Do Repeat Yourself
Test Code Is Different
• Avoid Inheritance Reuse
• Use “Context” Helpers
• Repetition Is Better Than
Coupling
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41. Agenda
1 Motivation
2 Principles
3 Obstacles
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42. Of Course It’s Safe … After You
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43. Shameless Self Promotion Time!
• “Best Practices” Initiative
• Tips and Tricks
• Generate Ideas
• Quantifying Value
• Biases & Aversions
• Tools & Technologies
• Avoid Making the Same
Mistake Once.
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44. Code and Slides
• Code: https://github.com/ruthlesshelp
• Slides: http://www.slideshare.net/ruthlesshelp
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45. Contact Me
• Email: stephen.ritchie@excella.com
• Twitter: @ruthlesshelp
• Blog: http://ruthlesslyhelpful.net
• LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/sritchie
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