Method and system for automated testing of versioned information handling system applications

• US 20040117413A1
• Filed: 12/16/2002
• Published: 06/17/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Brown, Michael E., Perusse, Charles T. Jr.
• Granted Patent: US 7,519,630 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management

Abstract

Automated testing of versioned information handling system applications is performed by automatically compiling currently available versions at regular time intervals throughout a development cycle and then automatically testing each compiled version on test information handling systems to detect errors associated with each compiled version of the application. For instance, production operating systems used to configure manufactured information handling systems are automatically tested at regular intervals during development so that versions of a complete operating system and application environment are properly integrated. Testing of the complete operating system and application environment of a production operating system is accomplished by interrupting power to test information handling systems and loading the production operating system with a PXE agent. Periodic compilation and testing of versions provides simplified identification and tracking of development errors.

Claims

1. A system for automated testing of information handling system application versions, the system comprising:

plural application development systems operable to create plural versions of an application;

an autocompile engine interfaced with the plural application development systems and operable to periodically compile the current application version; and

a test director interfaced with the autocompile engine and operable to initiate testing of the compiled current application version on one or more test information handling systems and to detect faults in the compiled current application version.

2. The system of claim 1 further comprising:

plural test information handling systems interfaced with the test director and operable to run the compiled application version; and

a power cycle system associated with each test system, each power cycle system interfaced with the test director;

wherein the test director initiates loading of the compiled current application version on the test information handling systems by interrupting power with the power cycle system to initiate boot of the test information handling systems.

3. The system of claim 2 further comprising:

a PXE agent associated with each test information handling system and operable to initiate boot from a distributed PXE server; and

a PXE server associated with the test director and operable to provide the compiled current application to the PXE agent.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the application comprises a production operating system operable to load on a manufactured information handling system and to configure the information handling system.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein the production operating system comprises Linux.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the autocompile engine periodically compiles the current application version at regular time intervals, the current application version comprising all application versions checked into the autocompile engine at a time interval.

7. The system of claim 1 further comprising a test results log associated with the test director, the test results log identifying errors detected at a test information handling system as associating the errors with an application version.

8. The system of claim 7 further comprising a compile error detector associated with the autocompile engine, the compile error detector identifying compile errors associated with the compilation of a current application version.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the test director is further operable to initiate testing of the current application version on plural test information handling systems having hardware configurations representative of production hardware configurations.

10. A method for automated testing of versioned information handling system applications, the method comprising:

developing plural versions of an application;

checking in the plural versions of the application to a common location as each version is completed;

automatically compiling checked in versions of the application a predetermined times;

automatically testing each compiled version of the application on plural test information handling systems to detect errors associated with each compiled version of the application.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the application comprises a production operating system for supporting manufacture of information handling systems.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the production operating system comprises Linux.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein automatically testing further comprises:

interrupting power to the test information handling systems; and

booting the test information handling systems to call the compiled version of the application.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein booting the test information handling systems further comprises calling the compiled version of the application with a PXE agent associated with each information handling system.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein the test information handling systems comprise hardware configurations representative of production hardware configurations.

16. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

detecting errors on a test information handling system; and

associating the detected errors with a version of the application.

17. An information handling system for testing versions of an application, the information handling system comprising instructions operable to:

track plural versions of an application, the plural versions generated over a time period;

automatically compile the versions at defined time intervals of the time period;

automatically load each of the compiled versions on test information handling systems; and

detect errors on the test information handling systems, each error associated with a compiled version.

18. The information handling system of claim 17 wherein the application comprises a production operating system operable to load on a manufactured information handling system and to configure the information handling system.

19. The information handling system of claim 18 wherein the instructions operable to automatically load each of the compiled versions further comprises instructions operable to:

interrupt power to the test information handling systems; and

provide the most recent compiled version of the application to a PXE agent associated with each test information handling system.

20. The information handling system of claim 18 wherein the instructions operable to detect errors further comprises instructions operable to communicate with test information handling systems having the most recent compiled version of the application loaded and running.