Test executive which provides heap validity checking and memory leak detection for user code modules

• US 7,519,867 B2
• Filed: 04/07/2005
• Issued: 04/14/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: National Instruments Corporation (Emerson Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: National Instruments Corporation (Emerson Electric Company)
• Inventors: Grey, James A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chu; Gabriel L
• Application Number:
  US11/101,353
• Publication Number:
  US 20060143537A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,468 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 714/38.14
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3688 for test execution, e.g. scheduling of test suites

Abstract

A system and method for automatically detecting heap corruption errors and memory leak errors caused by user-supplied code modules that are called by steps of a test executive sequence. The test executive sequence may first be created by including a plurality of test executive steps in the test executive sequence and configuring at least a subset of the steps to call user-supplied code modules. The test executive sequence may then be executed on a host computer under control of a test executive engine. For each step that calls a user-supplied code module, the test executive engine may perform certain actions to automatically detect whether the user-supplied code module causes a heap corruption error and/or automatically detect whether the user-supplied code module causes a memory leak error.

Claims

1. A computer-readable memory medium comprising program instructions executable to:

include a plurality of test executive steps in a test executive sequence in response to user input;

configure each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps to call a respective user-supplied code module in response to user input;

display a graphical user interface for configuring execution options for the test executive sequence; and

receive user input to the graphical user interface enabling heap corruption detection for user-supplied code modules invoked by test executive steps during execution of the test executive sequence; and

execute the test executive sequence, wherein said executing comprises executing each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps;

wherein for each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps, said executing the test executive step comprises;

invoking execution of the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step; and

in response to determining that the heap corruption detection for user-supplied code modules is enabled, checking validity of a first heap after the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step finishes execution to determine whether the respective user-supplied code module caused the first heap to become corrupted.

2. The computer-readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein for each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps, said executing the test executive step further comprises:

in response to determining that the heap corruption detection for user-supplied code modules is enabled, checking validity of the first heap before invoking the execution of the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step to determine whether the first heap is corrupted before the respective user-supplied code module is executed.

3. The computer-readable memory medium of claim 1,

wherein one or more test executive steps of the plurality of test executive steps have pre-functionality, wherein the pre-functionality for each of the one or more test executive steps comprises functionality to be performed before invoking the execution of the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step;

wherein for each of the one or more test executive steps that have pre-functionality, said executing the test executive step further comprises executing the pre-functionality of the step before invoking the execution of the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step.

4. The computer-readable memory medium of claim 1,

wherein one or more test executive steps of the plurality of test executive steps have post-functionality, wherein the post-functionality for each of the one or more test executive steps comprises functionality to be performed after the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step finishes execution;

wherein for each of the one or more test executive steps that have post-functionality, said executing the test executive step further comprises executing the post-functionality of the step after the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step finishes execution.

5. The computer-readable memory medium of claim 1,

wherein the plurality of test executive steps includes a particular test executive step configured to call a particular user-supplied code module;

wherein the program instructions are further executable to;

in response to checking validity of the first heap after the particular user-supplied code module called by the particular test executive step finishes execution, determine that the particular user-supplied code module caused the first heap to become corrupted; and

stop execution of the test executive sequence in response to determining that the particular user-supplied code module caused the first heap to become corrupted.

6. The computer-readable memory medium of claim 1,

wherein the plurality of test executive steps includes a particular test executive step configured to call a particular user-supplied code module;

wherein the program instructions are further executable to;

in response to checking validity of the first heap after the particular user-supplied code module called by the particular test executive step finishes execution, determine that the particular user-supplied code module caused the first heap to become corrupted; and

report an error in response to determining that the particular user-supplied code module caused the first heap to become corrupted.

7. The computer-readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein for each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps, said executing the test executive step further comprises:

checking validity of a second heap after the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step finishes execution to determine whether the respective user-supplied code module caused the second heap to become corrupted.

8. The computer-readable memory medium of claim 1,

wherein the graphical user interface is a first graphical user interface;

wherein the program instructions are further executable to display a second graphical user interface for creating the test executive sequence;

wherein said including the plurality of test executive steps in the test executive sequence is performed in response to user input received to the second graphical user interface requesting inclusion of the plurality of test executive steps in the test executive sequence.

9. The computer-readable memory medium of claim 1,

wherein for each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps, the program instructions are further executable to display a step configuration graphical user interface for configuring the test executive step;

wherein for each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps, the test executive step is configured to call a respective user-supplied code module in response to user input received to the step configuration graphical user interface specifying the respective user-supplied code module.

10. The computer-readable memory medium of claim 1, wherein for a first test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps, said invoking the execution of the respective user-supplied code module called by the first test executive step comprises one of:

calling a function in a DLL;

invoking a method of an ActiveX object;

or

invoking execution of a graphical program.

11. The computer-readable memory medium of claim 1,

wherein said executing the test executive sequence comprises executing the test executive sequence under control of a test executive engine;

wherein the test executive engine is operable to perform said checking validity of the first heap.

12. A computer-implemented method for discovering a heap corruption error caused by a test executive sequence, the method comprising:

including a plurality of test executive steps in the test executive sequence in response to user input;

configuring each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps to call a respective user-supplied code module in response to user input;

displaying a graphical user interface for configuring execution options for the test executive sequence; and

receiving user input to the graphical user interface enabling heap corruption detection for user-supplied code modules invoked by test executive steps during execution of the test executive sequence; and

executing the test executive sequence, wherein said executing comprises executing each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps;

wherein for each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps, said executing the test executive step comprises;

invoking execution of the user-supplied code module called by the test executive step; and

in response to determining that the heap corruption detection for user-supplied code modules is enabled, checking validity of a first heap after the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step finishes execution to determine whether the respective user-supplied code module caused the first heap to become corrupted.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein for each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps, said executing the test executive step further comprises:

in response to determining that the heap corruption detection for user-supplied code modules is enabled, checking validity of the first heap before invoking the execution of the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step to determine whether the first heap is corrupted before the respective user-supplied code module is executed.

14. The method of claim 12,

wherein one or more test executive steps of the plurality of test executive steps have pre-functionality, wherein the pre-functionality for each of the one or more test executive steps comprises functionality to be performed before invoking the execution of the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step;

wherein for each of the one or more test executive steps that have pre-functionality, said executing the test executive step further comprises executing the pre-functionality of the step before invoking the execution of the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step.

15. The method of claim 12,

wherein one or more test executive steps of the plurality of test executive steps have post-functionality, wherein the post-functionality for each of the one or more test executive steps comprises functionality to be performed after the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step finishes execution;

wherein for each of the one or more test executive steps that have post-functionality, said executing the test executive step further comprises executing the post-functionality of the step after the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step finishes execution.

16. The method of claim 12,

wherein the plurality of test executive steps includes a particular test executive step configured to call a particular user-supplied code module;

wherein the method further comprises;

in response to checking validity of the first heap after the particular user-supplied code module called by the particular test executive step finishes execution, determining that the particular user-supplied code module caused the first heap to become corrupted; and

stopping execution of the test executive sequence in response to determining that the particular user-supplied code module caused the first heap to become corrupted.

17. The method of claim 12,

wherein the plurality of test executive steps includes a particular test executive step configured to call a particular user-supplied code module;

wherein the method further comprises;

in response to checking validity of the first heap after the particular user-supplied code module called by the particular test executive step finishes execution, determining that the particular user-supplied code module caused the first heap to become corrupted; and

reporting an error in response to determining that the particular user-supplied code module caused the first heap to become corrupted.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein for each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps, said executing the test executive step further comprises:

checking validity of a second heap after the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step finishes execution to determine whether the respective user-supplied code module caused the second heap to become corrupted.

19. The method of claim 12,

wherein said executing the test executive sequence comprises executing the test executive sequence under control of a test executive engine;

wherein the test executive engine is operable to perform said checking validity of the first heap.

20. A system comprising:

a sequence editor;

a test executive engine;

a host computer configured to execute the sequence editor and the test executive engine; and

a unit under test (UUT) coupled to the host computer;

wherein the host computer is configured to execute the sequence editor to create a test executive sequence for testing the UUT, wherein said creating the test executive sequence comprises including a plurality of test executive steps in the test executive sequence in response to user input to the sequence editor and configuring each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps to call a respective user-supplied code module in response to user input to the sequence editor;

wherein the host computer is further configured to display a graphical user interface for configuring execution options for the test executive sequence and receive user input to the graphical user interface enabling heap corruption detection for user-supplied code modules invoked by test executive steps during execution of the test executive sequence;

wherein the host computer is further configured to execute the test executive engine, wherein the test executive engine is operable to control execution of the test executive sequence, wherein said controlling execution of the test executive sequence comprises causing each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps to be executed on the host computer;

wherein for each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps, the test executive engine is operable to;

invoke the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step for execution on the host computer; and

in response to determining that the heap corruption detection for user-supplied code modules is enabled, check validity of a first heap after the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step finishes execution to determine whether the respective user-supplied code module caused the first heap to become corrupted.

21. The system of claim 20,

wherein for each test executive step of the plurality of test executive steps, the test executive engine is further operable to:

in response to determining that the heap corruption detection for user-supplied code modules is enabled, check validity of the first heap before said invoking the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step to determine whether the first heap is corrupted before the respective user-supplied code module is executed.

22. The system of claim 20,

wherein one or more test executive steps of the plurality of test executive steps have pre-functionality, wherein the pre-functionality for each of the one or more test executive steps comprises functionality to be performed before executing the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step, wherein the pre-functionality for each of the one or more test executive steps is implemented by the test executive engine;

wherein for each of the one or more test executive steps that have pre-functionality, the test executive engine is further operable to execute the pre-functionality of the step before said invoking the respective user-supplied code module called by the step.

23. The system of claim 20,

wherein one or more test executive steps of the plurality of test executive steps have post-functionality, wherein the post-functionality for each of the one or more test executive steps comprises functionality to be performed after executing the respective user-supplied code module called by the test executive step, wherein the post-functionality for each of the one or more test executive steps is implemented by the test executive engine;

wherein for each of the one or more test executive steps that have post-functionality, the test executive engine is further operable to execute the post-functionality of the step after said invoking the respective user-supplied code module called by the step.