Atest Developer Workflow

This document explains the practical steps for contributing code to atest.

Table of Contents
  1. Identify the code you should work on
  2. Working on the Python Code
  3. Working on the TradeFed Code
  4. Working on the VTS10-TradeFed Code
  5. Working on the Robolectric Code

Identify the code you should work on

Atest is essentially a wrapper around various test runners. Because of this division, your first step should be to identify the code involved with your change. This will help determine what tests you write and run. Note that the wrapper code is written in python, so we'll be referring to it as the “Python Code”.

The Python Code

This code defines atest‘s command line interface. Its job is to translate user inputs into (1) build targets and (2) information needed for the test runner to run the test. It then invokes the appropriate test runner code to run the tests. As the tests are run it also parses the test runner’s output into the output seen by the user. It uses Test Finder and Test Runner classes to do this work. If your contribution involves any of this functionality, this is the code you'll want to work on.

The Test Runner Code

This is the code that actually runs the test. If your change involves how the test is actually run, you'll need to work with this code.

Each test runner will have a different workflow. Atest currently supports the following test runners:

  • TradeFed
  • VTS10-TradeFed
  • Robolectric

Working on the Python Code

Where does the Python code live?

The python code lives here: tools/asuite/atest/ (path relative to android repo root)

Writing tests

Test files go in the same directory as the file being tested. The test file should have the same name as the file it's testing, except it should have “_unittests” appended to the name. For example, tests for the logic in cli_translator.py go in the file cli_translator_unittests.py in the same directory.

Running tests

Python tests are just python files executable by the Python interpreter. You can use atest to run all unit tests via:

atest atest_unittests --host

Alternatively, it is possible to run ALL the python tests by executing the python script in the atest root dir:

croot <atest_dir>
./atest_run_unittests.py

To directly execute any individual unittest file, you'll need to first add atest to your PYTHONPATH:

PYTHONPATH=.:$PYTHONPATH test_finders/module_finder_unittest.py

All tests should be passing before you submit your change.

Working on the TradeFed Code

Where does the TradeFed code live?

The TradeFed code lives here: tools/tradefederation/core/src/com/android/tradefed/ (path relative to android repo root).

The testtype/suite/AtestRunner.java is the most important file in the TradeFed Code. It defines the TradeFed API used by the Python Code, specifically by test_runners/atest_tf_test_runner.py. This is the file you'll want to edit if you need to make changes to the TradeFed code.

Writing tests

Tradefed test files live in a parallel /tests/ file tree here: tools/tradefederation/core/tests/src/com/android/tradefed/. A test file should have the same name as the file it's testing, except with the word “Test” appended to the end. For example, the tests for tools/tradefederation/core/src/com/android/tradefed/testtype/suite/AtestRunner.java can be found in tools/tradefederation/core/tests/src/com/android/tradefed/testtype/suite/AtestRunnerTest.java.

Running tests

TradeFed itself is used to run the TradeFed unittests so you‘ll need to build TradeFed first. See the TradeFed README for information about setting up TradeFed. There are so many TradeFed tests that you’ll probably want to first run the test file your code change affected individually. The command to run an individual test file is:

tradefed.sh run host -n --class <fully.qualified.ClassName>

Thus, to run all the tests in AtestRunnerTest.java, you'd enter:

tradefed.sh run host -n --class com.android.tradefed.testtype.suite.AtestRunnerTest

To run ALL the TradeFed unittests:

croot tools/tradefederation/core
javatests/run_tradefed_tests.sh

Before submitting code you should run all the TradeFed tests.

Working on the VTS10-TradeFed Code

Where does the VTS10-TradeFed code live?

The VTS10-Tradefed code lives here: test/vts/tools/vts-tradefed/ (path relative to android repo root)

Writing tests

You shouldn't need to edit vts10-tradefed code, so there is no need to write vts10 tests. Reach out to the vts team if you need information on their unittests.

Running tests

Again, you shouldn't need to change vts10-tradefed code.

Working on the Robolectric Code

Where does the Robolectric code live?

The Robolectric code lives here: prebuilts/misc/common/robolectric/4.3.1/ (path relative to android repo root)