This chapter covers baselines, and how to create them.
A baseline is a set of output variable values against which you can test.
A baseline can be created in either of the following ways:
Once you have created a test, you can record baseline values for each of its output variables. Then, later, when you have made changes to your code, you can run the same test again and compare the new results with the baseline.
When a fragment test is created, a default baseline is also created. You can edit the default baseline from the fragment test worksheet.
If you create a baseline and then run a test against that baseline the test is deemed to have failed if a single pair of values does not match.
TouchPoint provides a recording function which enables you to run a test and record the values of the output variables for use as a baseline. You can overwrite a baseline, but normally you would preserve a baseline and use it as the standard against which you test. For example, if you know that your program is functioning correctly but you are intending to make changes to it, you could create a test and record it in order to store a baseline before you make those changes. Then, when the changes have been made, you run the test and compare your results with the recorded baseline.
You can record a baseline for both fragment and application tests.
To record baseline values for a test, select the test and then select Record from the Test Case menu.
The test is run and values are recorded for the output variables.
As the test is run, information is displayed in the Build tab of the Mainframe Express Output window. The information displayed is configurable via the Tests item on the Mainframe Express Options menu.
For a fragment test, output variable values are recorded for each iteration of the test. When all iterations have been run, a message is displayed indicating that the recording is complete.
For an application test, output variable values are recorded each time the fragment is encountered. When the application has finished running, a message is displayed indicating that the recording is complete.
Note: Display of the message box indicating that recording is complete is configurable via the Tests item on the Mainframe Express Options menu.
If you click on the Tests tab on the Project View, you will see the date and time at which the baseline was recorded for a test under Last Update.
When you create a fragment test, you can choose to edit the default baseline. This might be useful if, for example, you are performing conformance testing and want to create a set of "expected results".
You can edit baseline values by right-clicking in the appropriate cell in the fragment test worksheet and selecting Edit baseline.
For fragment tests, you can switch baseline comparison off from the fragment test worksheet. You might want to do this if, for example, you are using validation criteria to perform conformance testing.
Baseline comparison is always switched on by default but you can toggle it off (or on again) by double-clicking in the appropriate cell in the fragment test worksheet.
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