ALM Editions: Functional test execution is available only for users with ALM Edition. For more information about ALM editions and their functionality, see ALM Editions. To find out what edition of ALM you are using, ask your ALM site administrator.
You can run server-side Functional and Performance tests from Application Lifecycle Management (ALM). Server-side tests run on remote testing hosts. A testing host is any machine registered with Lab Management on which a testing tool has been installed.
The following workflow diagram illustrates how functional test set execution occurs in ALM:
You can use ALM to run server-side tests immediately, or you can reserve resources for a test execution in the future.
For functional tests, you can run an entire test set, or run specific test instances from a test set.
Server-side tests are a key component in ALM's Continuous Delivery solution. They can be bundled into a build verification suite, making them part of an automated, end-to-end deployment and testing framework that makes application development more efficient, reliable, and quick. For details about the build verification suites and the Continuous Delivery process, see Deploying and Testing your Application in ALM.
Testing Host Properties
Test instances added to a functional test set have a Testing Host property field in the Execution Grid. You can use this field to require that the testing host used to execute the selected test instance has certain properties. ALM enables you to define the following properties: Purpose, Attributes, and Location. For details, see Select Testing Host Dialog Box.
ALM adds the required hosts for the test instance to the grid of the Requested Hosts tab.
Requested Hosts
When ALM executes a server-side test or test set, it uses the testing hosts in the Requested Hosts tab (found in Testing > Test Lab). You can view, modify, add, or delete the testing hosts reserved for the selected test set in the Requested Hosts tab.
Caution: ALM adds host requests to the grid regardless of whether or not such a host exists in the testing host pool. If the grid includes a request for a host that is not in the testing pool, the test set becomes invalid.
ALM manages testing host requests in two different modes:
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Auto mode.
In ALM's default auto mode, each time you add a test instance to a test set, ALM checks if the host requested by this new test instance (whether it is a specific host or an automatch host) was already requested for the selected test set. If the new test instance contains a host request which does not already exist in the Requested Hosts grid, ALM automatically adds a new testing host to the test set. If the grid already contains the host being requested for the new test instance, no new hosts are added.
Example: The test set already contains a host request for a host in London with a VAPI-XP purpose, and you add a new test instance which requires an automatch host with a VAPI-XP purpose.
ALM adds a new host request to the grid for the automatch host.
Even though the London host request technically covers the new automatch host, they are not the same, so ALM adds a new automatch host request to the grid.
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Custom mode.
You may decide to manually edit the hosts being requested for a selected test set. For example, you may have only one testing host available in your pool and it can cover a few different test instances. In that case, you modify the hosts in the Requested Hosts tab and arrange for only a single host. Once you make a change in the grid, ALM puts the test set into custom mode.
In custom mode, ALM automatically adds new host requests for additional test instances only when it is necessary to maintain the validity of the test set. This is the case when the added test instance cannot possibly be satisfied by the already existing host requests for that test set.
Example: The test set already contains a host request for an automatch host with a VAPI-XP purpose, and you add a new test instance which requires a host in London with a VAPI-XP purpose.
ALM adds a host request for the new test instance because the first automatch host request does not necessarily cover the London host request.
But, if your test set already contains a host request for a host in London with a VAPI-XP purpose, and you add a new test instance which requires an automatch host with a VAPI-XP purpose, ALM does not add a new host request to the grid. The London host request suffices for the new test instance, therefore ALM does not add a new host request.
ALM Lab Service
When executing a server-side test, ALMwith the ALM Lab Service agent installed on the assigned testing host and requests that the test be run. The Lab Service agent exports the test results back to ALM.
For details about Lab Service, see the Micro Focus ALM Lab Management Guide
Execution Report
When you run a functional or performance test set, the Execution Report page opens, keeping you updated with the status of your test execution. You can also view the Execution Report page from the Test Runs module. For details, see Execution Report Page - Desktop Client.
