(autoconf.info.gz) Autotest Logs

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(autoconf.info.gz) testsuite Scripts

(autoconf.info.gz) Using an Autotest Test Suite

 
 Autotest Logs
 -------------
 
    When run, the test suite creates a log file named after itself,
 e.g., a test suite named `testsuite' creates `testsuite.log'.  It
 contains a lot of information, usually more than maintainers actually
 need, but therefore most of the time it contains all that is needed:
 
 command line arguments
      A very bad Unix habit which is unfortunately wide spread consists
      of setting environment variables before the command, such as in
      `CC=my-home-grown-cc ./testsuite'.  This results in the test suite
      not knowing this change, hence (i) it can't report it to you, and
      (ii) it cannot preserve the value of `CC' for subsequent runs(1).
      Autoconf faced exactly the same problem, and solved it by asking
      users to pass the variable definitions as command line arguments.
      Autotest requires this rule too, but has no means to enforce it;
      the log then contains a trace of the variables the user changed.
 
 `ChangeLog' excerpts
      The topmost lines of all the `ChangeLog's found in the source
      hierarchy.  This is especially useful when bugs are reported
      against development versions of the package, since the version
      string does not provide sufficient information to know the exact
      state of the sources the user compiled.  Of course this relies on
      the use of a `ChangeLog'.
 
 build machine
      Running a test suite in a cross-compile environment is not an easy
      task, since it would mean having the test suite run on a machine
      BUILD, while running programs on a machine HOST.  It is much
      simpler to run both the test suite and the programs on HOST, but
      then, from the point of view of the test suite, there remains a
      single environment, HOST = BUILD.  The log contains relevant
      information on the state of the build machine, including some
      important environment variables.
 
 tested programs
      The absolute path and answers to `--version' of the tested
      programs (see  Writing testsuite.at, `AT_TESTED').
 
 configuration log
      The contents of `config.log', as created by `configure', are
      appended.  It contains the configuration flags and a detailed
      report on the configuration itself.
 
    ---------- Footnotes ----------
 
    (1) When a failure occurs, the test suite is rerun, verbosely, and
 the user is asked to "play" with this failure to provide better
 information.  It is important to keep the same environment between the
 first run, and bug-tracking runs.
 

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(autoconf.info.gz) testsuite Scripts

(autoconf.info.gz) Using an Autotest Test Suite