The Assert Testing Framework

Test::Unit style testing framework, just better than Test::Unit.

Usage

# in test/my_tests.rb

require 'assert'

class MyTests < Assert::Context

  def test_something
    assert_equal 1, 1
  end

end

$ assert test/my_tests.rb
Loaded suite (1 test)
Running tests in random order, seeded with "33650"
.

1 result: pass

(0.000199 seconds)

What Assert is

  • Framework: you define tests and the context they run in - Assert runs them. Everything is pure ruby so use any 3rd party testing tools you like. Create 3rd party tools that extend Assert behavior.
  • First Class: everything is a first class object and can be extended to your liking (and should be)
  • MVC: tests and how they are defined (M) and executed (C) are distinct from how you view the test results (V).
  • Backwards compatible: (assuming a few minor tweaks) with Test::Unit test suites

What Assert is not

  • Rspec
  • Unit/Functional/Integration/etc: Assert is agnostic - you define whatever kinds of tests you like (one or more of the above) and assert runs them in context.
  • Mock/Spec/BDD/Factories/etc: Assert is the framework and there are a variety of 3rd party tools to do such things - feel free to use whatever you like.

Description

Assert is a Test::Unit style testing framework. This means you can write tests in Assert the same way you would with test-unit.

In addition, Assert adds some helpers and syntax sugar to enhance the way tests are written. Most are taken from ideas in Shoulda and Leftright. Assert uses class-based contexts so if you want to nest your contexts, use inheritance.

Note: Assert is tested using itself. The tests are a pretty good place to look for examples and usage patterns.

CLI

$ assert --help

Assert ships with a CLI for running tests. Test files must end in _tests.rb (or _test.rb). The CLI globs any given file path(s), requires any test files, and runs the tests in them.

As an example, say your test folder has a file structure like so:

- test
|  - basic_tests.rb
|  - helper.rb
|  - complex_tests.rb
|  - complex
|  |  - fast_tests.rb
|  |  - slow_tests.rb
  • $ assert - runs all tests ('./test' is used if no paths are given)
  • $ assert test/basic - run all tests in basic_tests.rb
  • $ assert test/complex/fast_tests.rb - runs all tests in fast_tests.rb
  • $ assert test/basic test/comp - runs all tests in basic_tests.rb, complex_tests.rb, fast_tests.rb and slow_tests.rb

All you need to do is pass some sort of existing file path (hint: use tab-completion) and Assert will find any test files and run the tests in them.

Configuring Assert

Assert.configure do |config|
  # set your config options here
end

Assert uses a config pattern for specifying settings. Using this pattern, you can configure settings, extensions, custom views, etc. Settings can be configured in 4 different scopes and are applied in this order: User, Local, CLI, ENV.

User settings

Assert will look for and require the file $HOME/.assert/init.rb. Use this file to specify user settings. User settings can be overridden by Local, CLI, and ENV settings.

Local settings

Assert will look for and require the file ./.assert.rb. Use this file to specify project settings. Local settings can be overridden by CLI, and ENV settings.

To specify a custom local settings file path, use the ASSERT_LOCALFILE env var.

CLI settings

Assert accepts options from its CLI. Use these options to specify runtime settings. CLI settings can be overridden by ENV settings.

ENV settings

Assert uses ENV vars to drive certain settings. Use these vars to specify absolute runtime settings. ENV settings are always applied last and cannot be overridden.

Running Tests

Assert uses its Assert::Runner to run tests. You can extend this default runner or use your own runner implementation. Specify it in your user/local settings:

require 'my_awesome_runner_class'

Assert.configure do |config|
  config.runner MyAwesomeRunnerClass.new
end

Test Dir

By default Assert expects tests in the test dir. The is where it looks for the helper file and is the default path used when running $ assert. To override this dir, do so in your user/local settings file:

Assert.configure do |config|
  config.test_dir "testing"
end

Test Helper File

By default Assert will look for a file named helper.rb in the test_dir and require it (if found) just before running the tests. To override the helper file name, do so in your user/local settings file:

Assert.configure do |config|
  config.test_helper "some_helpers.rb"
end

Test Order

The default runner object runs tests in random order. To run tests in a consistant order, specify a custom runner seed:

In user/local settings file:

Assert.configure do |config|
  config.runner_seed 1234
end

Using the CLI:

$ assert [-s|--seed] 1234

Using an ENV var:

$ ASSERT_RUNNER_SEED=1234 assert

Capture Output

By default, Assert shows any output on $stdout produced while running a test. It provides a setting to override whether to show this output or to 'capture' it and display it in the test result details:

In user/local settings file:

Assert.configure do |config|
  config.capture_output true
end

Using the CLI:

$ assert [-o|--capture-output|--no-capture-output]

Failure Handling

By default, Assert will halt test execution when a test produces a Fail result. It provides a setting to override this default:

In user/local settings file:

Assert.configure do |config|
  config.halt_on_fail false
end

Using the CLI:

$ assert [-t|--halt|--no-halt]

Viewing Test Results

Assert::View::DefaultView is the default handler for viewing test results. Its output goes something like this:

  • before the run starts, output some info about the test suite that is about to run
  • print out result abbreviations as the test results are generated
  • after the run finishes...
    • display any result details (from failing or error results) in reverse test/result order
    • output some summary info

You can run a test suite and get a feel for what this default outputs. The view has a few options you can tweak:

  • styled: whether to apply ANSI styles to the output, default true
  • pass_styles: how to style pass result output, default :green
  • fail_styles: default :red, :bold
  • error_styles: default :yellow, :bold
  • skip_styles: default :cyan
  • ignore_styles: default: :magenta

To override an option, do so in your user/local settings:

Assert.configure do |config|
  config.view.styled false
end

However, the view hanlder you use is itself configurable. Define you own view handler class and specify it in your user/local settings:

class MyCustomView < Assert::View::Base
  # define your view here...
end

Assert.configure do |config|
  config.view MyCustomView.new
end

Anatomy of a View

A view class handles the logic and templating of test result output. A view class should inherit from Assert::View::Base. This defines default callback handlers for the test runner and gives access to a bunch of common helpers for reading test result data.

Each view should implement the callback handler methods to output information at different points during the running of a test suite. Callbacks have access to any view methods and should output information using puts and prints. See the DefaultView template for a usage example.

Available callbacks from the runner, and when they are called:

  • before_load: at the beginning, before the suite is loaded
  • after_load: after the suite is loaded, just before on_start
  • on_start: when a loaded test suite starts running
  • before_test: before a test starts running, the test is passed as an arg
  • on_result: when a running tests generates a result, the result is passed as an arg
  • after_test: after a test finishes running, the test is passed as an arg
  • on_finish: when the test suite is finished running

Beyond that, each view can do as it sees fit. Initialize how you wish, take whatever settings you'd like, and output results as you see fit, given the available callbacks.

Using 3rd party views

To use a 3rd party custom view, first require it in and then configure it. Assert provides a helper for requiring in views. It can be used in two ways. You can pass a fully qualified path to the helper and if it exists, will require it in.

Assert::View.require_user_view '/path/to/my/view'

Alternatively, you can install/clone/copy/write your view implementations in ~/.assert/views and require it in by name. To have assert require it by name, have it installed at ~/assert/views/view_name/lib/view_name.rb (this structure is compatible with popular conventions for rubygem development). For example:

# assuming ~/.assert/views/my-custom-view/lib/my-custom-view.rb exists
# this will require it in
Assert::View.require_user_view 'my-custom-view'

Once your view class is required in, use it and configure it just as you would any view.

Assert Models

Suite

A Suite object is reponsible for collecting and structuring tests and defines the set of tests to run using the test Runner. Tests are grouped within the suite by their context. Suite provides access to the contexts, tests, and test results. In addition, the Suite model provides some stats (ie. run_time, runner_seed, etc...).

Runner

A Runner object is responsible for running a suite of tests and firing event callbacks to the View. Any runner object should take the test suite and view as arguments and should provide a 'run' method that runs the tests and renders the view.

Context

A Context object is the scope that tests are run in. When tests are run, a new instance of the test context is created and the test code is evaluated within the scope of this context instance. Context provides methods for defining tests and test callbacks and for generating test results in running tests. Subclass context classes to achieve nested context behavior.

Test

A Test object defines the test code that needs to be run and the results generated by that test code. Tests are aware of their context and are responsible for running their code in context.

Result

A Result object defines the data related to a test result. There are a few kinds of test results available:

  • Pass
  • Fail
  • Error
  • Skip
  • Ignore

Tests produce results as they are executed. Every assert statement produces a result. Some results, like Error and Skip, will halt execution. Pass and Ignore results do not halt execution. Fail results, by default, halt execution but there is an option to have them not halt execution. Therefore, tests can have many results of varying types.

View

A View object is responsible for rendering test result output. Assert provides a Assert::View::Base object to provide common helpers and default runner callback handlers for building views. Assert also provides a Assert::View::DefaultView that it renders its output with. See the "Viewing Test Results" section below for more details.

Macro

Macros are procs that define sets of test code and make it available for easy reuse. Macros work nicely with the 'should' and 'test' context methods.

Installation

$ gem install assert

Contributing

The source code is hosted on Github. Feel free to submit pull requests and file bugs on the issues tracker.

If submitting a Pull Request, please:

  1. Fork it
  2. Create your feature branch (git checkout -b my-new-feature)
  3. Commit your changes (git commit -am 'Added some feature')
  4. Push to the branch (git push origin my-new-feature)
  5. Create new Pull Request

One note: please respect that Assert itself is intended to be the flexible, base-level, framework-type logic that should change little if at all. Pull requests for niche functionality or personal testing philosphy stuff will likely not be accepted.

If you wish to extend Assert for your niche purpose/desire/philosophy, please do so in it's own gem (preferrably named assert-<whatever>) that uses Assert as a dependency. When you do, tell us about it and we'll add to this README with a short description.