Techniques for prioritizing test dependencies

• US 20080256392A1
• Filed: 04/16/2007
• Published: 10/16/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Barquilla, Ricardo Lopez, Garland, Adam
• Granted Patent: US 7,840,844 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 714/33
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/263 Generation of test inputs, e.g. test vectors, patterns or sequences ; with adaptation of the tested hardware for testability with external testers

Abstract

Techniques for prioritizing test dependencies are described. A computer system employing such techniques may present a test structure for a set of test cases. The test structure may comprise prioritized test cases and dependencies between test cases. The dependencies may be based on predicted test case failure given failure of another test case. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Claims

1. A computer system comprising:

a testing module to run an organized set of test cases; and

a display to present a test structure for the set of test cases, the test structure comprising prioritized test cases and dependencies between test cases based on predicted test case failure given failure of another test case.

2. The computer system of claim 1, the test structure comprising test cases organized into different layers.

3. The computer system of claim 2, wherein failures are investigated according to the dependencies between test cases.

4. The computer system of claim 2, the testing module to run the set of test cases based on the dependencies.

5. The computer system of claim 1, the test structure organized into parent test cases and child test cases.

6. The computer system of claim 5, wherein failures of parent test cases are investigated before failures of child test cases.

7. The computer system of claim 5, the testing module to run parent test cases before child test cases.

8. The computer system of claim 1, the testing module to skip one or more test cases that depend from a failed test case.

9. The computer system of claim 8, the testing module to perform previously skipped test cases to verify the test structure.

10. A method, comprising:

predicting test case failure given failure of another test case;

determining dependencies between test cases based on the predicted test case failure;

prioritizing test cases and dependencies; and

creating a test structure according to the prioritized test cases and dependencies.

11. The method of claim 10, comprising calculating conditioned probabilities for a set of test cases from historical failure information

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the historical failure information comprises number of times test cases are executed together in a run, number of failures for a test case when run with other test cases, and number of times test cases fail together.

13. The method of claim 10, comprising classifying test cases into different layers based on number of dependencies.

14. The method of claim 10, comprising classifying tests cases as parent test cases and child test cases.

15. An article comprising a computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that if executed enable a computer system to:

run an organized set of test cases; and

display a test structure for the set of test cases, the test structure comprising prioritized test cases and dependencies between test cases based on predicted test case failure given failure of another test case.

16. The article of claim 15, the test structure organized into different layers, the computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that if executed enable the computer system to investigate the set of test cases based on the dependencies between the test cases.

17. The article of claim 15, the test structure organized into different layers, the computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that if executed enable the computer system to run the set of test cases based on the dependencies between the test cases.

18. The article of claim 15, the test structure organized into parent test cases and child test cases, the computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that if executed enable the computer system to investigate failed parent test cases before failed child test cases.

19. The article of claim 15, the test structure organized into parent test cases and child test cases, the computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that if executed enable the computer system to run parent test cases before child test cases.

20. The article of claim 15, the computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that if executed enable the computer system to skip one or more test cases that depend from a failed test case.