Environment Editor

Aus ExpeccoWiki

The environment editor is used to create and edit variables in the environment of a test suite, a test plan or a compound block. The view slightly differs when either the testsuite's or a compound block's environment is edited. It can be found on the "Environment" tab after selecting the testsuite or a compound block in the navigation tree.

Buttons

• Add another variable to the environment
• Remove the selected variable from the environment

• Initialize the environment with the given values (only shown in the project's environment)

• Move the selected variable upwards in the list
• Move the selected variable downwards in the list

Fields

• Variable-Name
  This field is a text input field that holds the variable name, which must meet the rules for variable naming. Click it once to give it the input focus.

• NET
  This checkbox determines whether the variable will be visible in expeccoNET or in exported parameter sets. This option/column is only shown in the project's variable environment.

• OW
  This checkbox determines whether the variable hides (overwrites) an inherited variable from an outer scope, or not. This option/column is only shown for compound blocks.

• R/W
  This field is a checkbox that determines whether the variable can be modified during initialization, or not.

• Datatype
  This dropdown list provides a list of available data types. Choose the type of the variable here (typically, most likely a String-type is used)

• Initialization
  This dropdown list provides a list of possible initialization methods for the variable's value. Most common are 'Constant' and 'New Instance', but it is also possible to assign a value during initialization by evaluating a programmatic expression, or to request values from the user via a dialog.

• Initial Value/Expression
  Use this text field to enter the initial value (if the initialization method is 'Constant').

• Current Value
  This field shows a variable's current value. This information is useful for writable variables (for example: counters or other measurements as gathered during execution) or for user-entered variables.

Initialization Types

Notice that variables are only initialized once, when the environment itself is instantiated. The instantiation happens at load time for the top-level project environment, or with every execution for the test-suite, testcase and action environments.

The concrete behavior, depending on the init-type, is:

• Constant
  a constant value, such as a port-number, counter values, hostnames or other simple (unstructured) values. This value is used "as is".

• SecretConstant
  like above, but its value is not shown in the variable-environment; useful for passwords. Notice: the algorithm for password storage is not secure. It will be easy for any experienced user/programmer to extract these values from either the saved test-suite or via the inspectors from the running test-suite. Also, the value might also be visible in the execution log.

• New Instance
  creates a new (empty) instance of the datatype.

• New Instance of Size
  given its size in the environment, create a vector (collection-like) instance.

• Ask for Size
  will ask the user for the size of an instance to create.

• Request from User
  opens a dialog to ask for the variable's value, when the project is loaded.

• Request from User when first used
  opens a dialog to ask for the variable's value, when the variable's value is needed for the very first time during the session.

• Secret from User
  like "Request from User", but hides the password in the dialog.

• Secret from User when first used
  like "Request from User when first used", but hides the password in the dialog.

• Smalltalk Expression
  the text is evaluated as a Smalltalk expression and the resulting value used to initialize the variable.

• JavaScript Expression
  as above, but uses JavaScript syntax for the evaluation.

• GUI-Value
  a special type used with GUI blocks (described elsewhere).

• GUI-Action
  a special type used with GUI blocks (described elsewhere).

The "when first used" initialization-type is useful for passwords of dynamically alternative execution pathes - for example, if your testsuite needs either an ftp- or an http password, depending on which communication path is chosen dynamically.

 

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For other editors see: Editors

The full online documentation can be found under: Online Documentation