Provided by: perl-doc_5.18.2-2ubuntu1.7_all 
NAME
Test - provides a simple framework for writing test scripts
SYNOPSIS
use strict;
use Test;
# use a BEGIN block so we print our plan before MyModule is loaded
BEGIN { plan tests => 14, todo => [3,4] }
# load your module...
use MyModule;
# Helpful notes. All note-lines must start with a "#".
print "# I'm testing MyModule version $MyModule::VERSION\n";
ok(0); # failure
ok(1); # success
ok(0); # ok, expected failure (see todo list, above)
ok(1); # surprise success!
ok(0,1); # failure: '0' ne '1'
ok('broke','fixed'); # failure: 'broke' ne 'fixed'
ok('fixed','fixed'); # success: 'fixed' eq 'fixed'
ok('fixed',qr/x/); # success: 'fixed' =~ qr/x/
ok(sub { 1+1 }, 2); # success: '2' eq '2'
ok(sub { 1+1 }, 3); # failure: '2' ne '3'
my @list = (0,0);
ok @list, 3, "\@list=".join(',',@list); #extra notes
ok 'segmentation fault', '/(?i)success/'; #regex match
skip(
$^O =~ m/MSWin/ ? "Skip if MSWin" : 0, # whether to skip
$foo, $bar # arguments just like for ok(...)
);
skip(
$^O =~ m/MSWin/ ? 0 : "Skip unless MSWin", # whether to skip
$foo, $bar # arguments just like for ok(...)
);
DESCRIPTION
This module simplifies the task of writing test files for Perl modules, such that their
output is in the format that Test::Harness expects to see.
QUICK START GUIDE
To write a test for your new (and probably not even done) module, create a new file called
t/test.t (in a new t directory). If you have multiple test files, to test the "foo",
"bar", and "baz" feature sets, then feel free to call your files t/foo.t, t/bar.t, and
t/baz.t
Functions
This module defines three public functions, "plan(...)", "ok(...)", and "skip(...)". By
default, all three are exported by the "use Test;" statement.
"plan(...)"
BEGIN { plan %theplan; }
This should be the first thing you call in your test script. It declares your testing
plan, how many there will be, if any of them should be allowed to fail, and so on.
Typical usage is just:
use Test;
BEGIN { plan tests => 23 }
These are the things that you can put in the parameters to plan:
"tests => number"
The number of tests in your script. This means all ok() and skip() calls.
"todo => [1,5,14]"
A reference to a list of tests which are allowed to fail. See "TODO TESTS".
"onfail => sub { ... }"
"onfail => \&some_sub"
A subroutine reference to be run at the end of the test script, if any of the
tests fail. See "ONFAIL".
You must call "plan(...)" once and only once. You should call it in a "BEGIN {...}"
block, like so:
BEGIN { plan tests => 23 }
"ok(...)"
ok(1 + 1 == 2);
ok($have, $expect);
ok($have, $expect, $diagnostics);
This function is the reason for "Test"'s existence. It's the basic function that
handles printing ""ok"" or ""not ok"", along with the current test number. (That's
what "Test::Harness" wants to see.)
In its most basic usage, "ok(...)" simply takes a single scalar expression. If its
value is true, the test passes; if false, the test fails. Examples:
# Examples of ok(scalar)
ok( 1 + 1 == 2 ); # ok if 1 + 1 == 2
ok( $foo =~ /bar/ ); # ok if $foo contains 'bar'
ok( baz($x + $y) eq 'Armondo' ); # ok if baz($x + $y) returns
# 'Armondo'
ok( @a == @b ); # ok if @a and @b are the same length
The expression is evaluated in scalar context. So the following will work:
ok( @stuff ); # ok if @stuff has any elements
ok( !grep !defined $_, @stuff ); # ok if everything in @stuff is
# defined.
A special case is if the expression is a subroutine reference (in either "sub {...}"
syntax or "\&foo" syntax). In that case, it is executed and its value (true or false)
determines if the test passes or fails. For example,
ok( sub { # See whether sleep works at least passably
my $start_time = time;
sleep 5;
time() - $start_time >= 4
});
In its two-argument form, "ok(arg1, arg2)" compares the two scalar values to see if
they match. They match if both are undefined, or if arg2 is a regex that matches
arg1, or if they compare equal with "eq".
# Example of ok(scalar, scalar)
ok( "this", "that" ); # not ok, 'this' ne 'that'
ok( "", undef ); # not ok, "" is defined
The second argument is considered a regex if it is either a regex object or a string
that looks like a regex. Regex objects are constructed with the qr// operator in
recent versions of perl. A string is considered to look like a regex if its first and
last characters are "/", or if the first character is "m" and its second and last
characters are both the same non-alphanumeric non-whitespace character. These regexp
Regex examples:
ok( 'JaffO', '/Jaff/' ); # ok, 'JaffO' =~ /Jaff/
ok( 'JaffO', 'm|Jaff|' ); # ok, 'JaffO' =~ m|Jaff|
ok( 'JaffO', qr/Jaff/ ); # ok, 'JaffO' =~ qr/Jaff/;
ok( 'JaffO', '/(?i)jaff/ ); # ok, 'JaffO' =~ /jaff/i;
If either (or both!) is a subroutine reference, it is run and used as the value for
comparing. For example:
ok sub {
open(OUT, ">x.dat") || die $!;
print OUT "\x{e000}";
close OUT;
my $bytecount = -s 'x.dat';
unlink 'x.dat' or warn "Can't unlink : $!";
return $bytecount;
},
4
;
The above test passes two values to "ok(arg1, arg2)" -- the first a coderef, and the
second is the number 4. Before "ok" compares them, it calls the coderef, and uses its
return value as the real value of this parameter. Assuming that $bytecount returns 4,
"ok" ends up testing "4 eq 4". Since that's true, this test passes.
Finally, you can append an optional third argument, in "ok(arg1,arg2, note)", where
note is a string value that will be printed if the test fails. This should be some
useful information about the test, pertaining to why it failed, and/or a description
of the test. For example:
ok( grep($_ eq 'something unique', @stuff), 1,
"Something that should be unique isn't!\n".
'@stuff = '.join ', ', @stuff
);
Unfortunately, a note cannot be used with the single argument style of "ok()". That
is, if you try "ok(arg1, note)", then "Test" will interpret this as "ok(arg1, arg2)",
and probably end up testing "arg1 eq arg2" -- and that's not what you want!
All of the above special cases can occasionally cause some problems. See "BUGS and
CAVEATS".
"skip(skip_if_true, args...)"
This is used for tests that under some conditions can be skipped. It's basically
equivalent to:
if( $skip_if_true ) {
ok(1);
} else {
ok( args... );
}
...except that the ok(1) emits not just ""ok testnum"" but actually ""ok testnum #
skip_if_true_value"".
The arguments after the skip_if_true are what is fed to "ok(...)" if this test isn't
skipped.
Example usage:
my $if_MSWin =
$^O =~ m/MSWin/ ? 'Skip if under MSWin' : '';
# A test to be skipped if under MSWin (i.e., run except under MSWin)
skip($if_MSWin, thing($foo), thing($bar) );
Or, going the other way:
my $unless_MSWin =
$^O =~ m/MSWin/ ? '' : 'Skip unless under MSWin';
# A test to be skipped unless under MSWin (i.e., run only under MSWin)
skip($unless_MSWin, thing($foo), thing($bar) );
The tricky thing to remember is that the first parameter is true if you want to skip
the test, not run it; and it also doubles as a note about why it's being skipped. So
in the first codeblock above, read the code as "skip if MSWin -- (otherwise) test
whether "thing($foo)" is "thing($bar)"" or for the second case, "skip unless
MSWin...".
Also, when your skip_if_reason string is true, it really should (for backwards
compatibility with older Test.pm versions) start with the string "Skip", as shown in
the above examples.
Note that in the above cases, "thing($foo)" and "thing($bar)" are evaluated -- but as
long as the "skip_if_true" is true, then we "skip(...)" just tosses out their value
(i.e., not bothering to treat them like values to "ok(...)". But if you need to not
eval the arguments when skipping the test, use this format:
skip( $unless_MSWin,
sub {
# This code returns true if the test passes.
# (But it doesn't even get called if the test is skipped.)
thing($foo) eq thing($bar)
}
);
or even this, which is basically equivalent:
skip( $unless_MSWin,
sub { thing($foo) }, sub { thing($bar) }
);
That is, both are like this:
if( $unless_MSWin ) {
ok(1); # but it actually appends "# $unless_MSWin"
# so that Test::Harness can tell it's a skip
} else {
# Not skipping, so actually call and evaluate...
ok( sub { thing($foo) }, sub { thing($bar) } );
}
TEST TYPES
• NORMAL TESTS
These tests are expected to succeed. Usually, most or all of your tests are in this
category. If a normal test doesn't succeed, then that means that something is wrong.
• SKIPPED TESTS
The "skip(...)" function is for tests that might or might not be possible to run,
depending on the availability of platform-specific features. The first argument
should evaluate to true (think "yes, please skip") if the required feature is not
available. After the first argument, "skip(...)" works exactly the same way as
"ok(...)" does.
• TODO TESTS
TODO tests are designed for maintaining an executable TODO list. These tests are
expected to fail. If a TODO test does succeed, then the feature in question shouldn't
be on the TODO list, now should it?
Packages should NOT be released with succeeding TODO tests. As soon as a TODO test
starts working, it should be promoted to a normal test, and the newly working feature
should be documented in the release notes or in the change log.
ONFAIL
BEGIN { plan test => 4, onfail => sub { warn "CALL 911!" } }
Although test failures should be enough, extra diagnostics can be triggered at the end of
a test run. "onfail" is passed an array ref of hash refs that describe each test failure.
Each hash will contain at least the following fields: "package", "repetition", and
"result". (You shouldn't rely on any other fields being present.) If the test had an
expected value or a diagnostic (or "note") string, these will also be included.
The optional "onfail" hook might be used simply to print out the version of your package
and/or how to report problems. It might also be used to generate extremely sophisticated
diagnostics for a particularly bizarre test failure. However it's not a panacea. Core
dumps or other unrecoverable errors prevent the "onfail" hook from running. (It is run
inside an "END" block.) Besides, "onfail" is probably over-kill in most cases. (Your
test code should be simpler than the code it is testing, yes?)
BUGS and CAVEATS
• "ok(...)"'s special handing of strings which look like they might be regexes can also
cause unexpected behavior. An innocent:
ok( $fileglob, '/path/to/some/*stuff/' );
will fail, since Test.pm considers the second argument to be a regex! The best bet is
to use the one-argument form:
ok( $fileglob eq '/path/to/some/*stuff/' );
• "ok(...)"'s use of string "eq" can sometimes cause odd problems when comparing
numbers, especially if you're casting a string to a number:
$foo = "1.0";
ok( $foo, 1 ); # not ok, "1.0" ne 1
Your best bet is to use the single argument form:
ok( $foo == 1 ); # ok "1.0" == 1
• As you may have inferred from the above documentation and examples, "ok"'s prototype
is "($;$$)" (and, incidentally, "skip"'s is "($;$$$)"). This means, for example, that
you can do "ok @foo, @bar" to compare the size of the two arrays. But don't be fooled
into thinking that "ok @foo, @bar" means a comparison of the contents of two arrays --
you're comparing just the number of elements of each. It's so easy to make that
mistake in reading "ok @foo, @bar" that you might want to be very explicit about it,
and instead write "ok scalar(@foo), scalar(@bar)".
• This almost definitely doesn't do what you expect:
ok $thingy->can('some_method');
Why? Because "can" returns a coderef to mean "yes it can (and the method is
this...)", and then "ok" sees a coderef and thinks you're passing a function that you
want it to call and consider the truth of the result of! I.e., just like:
ok $thingy->can('some_method')->();
What you probably want instead is this:
ok $thingy->can('some_method') && 1;
If the "can" returns false, then that is passed to "ok". If it returns true, then the
larger expression "$thingy->can('some_method') && 1" returns 1, which "ok" sees as a
simple signal of success, as you would expect.
• The syntax for "skip" is about the only way it can be, but it's still quite confusing.
Just start with the above examples and you'll be okay.
Moreover, users may expect this:
skip $unless_mswin, foo($bar), baz($quux);
to not evaluate "foo($bar)" and "baz($quux)" when the test is being skipped. But in
reality, they are evaluated, but "skip" just won't bother comparing them if
$unless_mswin is true.
You could do this:
skip $unless_mswin, sub{foo($bar)}, sub{baz($quux)};
But that's not terribly pretty. You may find it simpler or clearer in the long run to
just do things like this:
if( $^O =~ m/MSWin/ ) {
print "# Yay, we're under $^O\n";
ok foo($bar), baz($quux);
ok thing($whatever), baz($stuff);
ok blorp($quux, $whatever);
ok foo($barzbarz), thang($quux);
} else {
print "# Feh, we're under $^O. Watch me skip some tests...\n";
for(1 .. 4) { skip "Skip unless under MSWin" }
}
But be quite sure that "ok" is called exactly as many times in the first block as
"skip" is called in the second block.
ENVIRONMENT
If "PERL_TEST_DIFF" environment variable is set, it will be used as a command for
comparing unexpected multiline results. If you have GNU diff installed, you might want to
set "PERL_TEST_DIFF" to "diff -u". If you don't have a suitable program, you might
install the "Text::Diff" module and then set "PERL_TEST_DIFF" to be "perl -MText::Diff -e
'print diff(@ARGV)'". If "PERL_TEST_DIFF" isn't set but the "Algorithm::Diff" module is
available, then it will be used to show the differences in multiline results.
NOTE
A past developer of this module once said that it was no longer being actively developed.
However, rumors of its demise were greatly exaggerated. Feedback and suggestions are
quite welcome.
Be aware that the main value of this module is its simplicity. Note that there are
already more ambitious modules out there, such as Test::More and Test::Unit.
Some earlier versions of this module had docs with some confusing typos in the description
of "skip(...)".
SEE ALSO
Test::Harness
Test::Simple, Test::More, Devel::Cover
Test::Builder for building your own testing library.
Test::Unit is an interesting XUnit-style testing library.
Test::Inline and SelfTest let you embed tests in code.
AUTHOR
Copyright (c) 1998-2000 Joshua Nathaniel Pritikin.
Copyright (c) 2001-2002 Michael G. Schwern.
Copyright (c) 2002-2004 Sean M. Burke.
Current maintainer: Jesse Vincent. <jesse@bestpractical.com>
This package is free software and is provided "as is" without express or implied warranty.
It may be used, redistributed and/or modified under the same terms as Perl itself.