Automatic testing of object-oriented software 1 Overview : a session with AutoTest

Abstract

Abstract. Effective testing involves preparing test oracles and test cases, two activities which are too tedious to be effectively performed by humans, yet for the most part remain manual. The AutoTest unit testing framework automates both, by using Eiffel contracts — already present in the software — as test oracles, and generating objects and routine arguments to exercise all given classes; manual tests can also be added, and all failed test cases are automatically retained for regression testing, in a “minimized” form retaining only the relevant instructions. AutoTest has already detected numerous hitherto unknown bugs in production software.