Automated Builds And UI Testing in SharePoint 2010 Development

Automated builds and UI testing in Sp2010 development
Chris O’Brien
DEV203

About me
Independent SharePoint consultant
Blog: www.sharepointnutsandbolts.com
Twitter: @ChrisO_Brien
Book: Real World SharePoint 2010 (20 MVPs)
LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/chrisobrienmvp

Problems in SP2010 dev projects
Many dependencies
Code, Features, timer jobs
Deployment is complex
e.g. No native support for WSP rollback
Difficult to unit test
Still not much traction in SharePoint world?

Problems in *large* SP2010 dev projects
Tracking
Hard to keep track of deployments/fixes
Many developers = many deployments?
Inefficiency
Devs keeping environment up-to-date
Inconsistent builds (or buildmaster bottleneck)
Silly mistakes e.g.
Incorrect versions
Debug vs. Release mode
Testing of actual WSPs
Communication

Solution recipe
Auto-compile of assemblies and build of WSPs
Correct versions in source control
Add a label in source control to help rollback
Auto incrementing assembly version number
Better tracking of deployments/fixes etc.
Deployment of WSPs to remote SharePoint 2010 environment
Test environment, not developer machine
UI testing
Build fails on UI test failure
Developer notifications

Solution ingredients
TFS Team Build workflow (.Net4.0)
Specifies sequence of steps
PowerShell
Deploys WSPs, other deployment steps e.g. teardown/setup site
PowerShell remoting(preferred over PsExec)
Allows PS on SharePoint box to be called from build server
Invoke-Command -ComputerName “foo” { script }

Automating the build

Build definition
Styles:
What’s the trigger?
Manual, Scheduled (e.g. nightly), every check-in, Rolling builds, Gated Check-In etc.
Customise workflow
Mandatory for SharePoint builds
Several workflows OOTB
DefaultTemplate, LabTemplate

demo
Automating the build

Image: selecting build trigger

Image: customizing build workflow

COdedui tests

What is a coded UI test?
Recorded on test agent desktop
Support: browser (inc. AJAX), Silverlight, WPF, forms apps
Generate code which can be modified (e.g. to pass data)
Point and click to add assertions
E.g. navigate to web part gallery, check web part present

demo
Testing SharePoint with coded UI tests

Image: recording a UI test

Adding COdedui tests to the build

Integrating coded UI tests into build
Automatic if test assembly name matches filespec
Default = “*test*” somewhere in assembly name
Background:
All tests can be run from command-line with MSTest.exe (Unit tests, Coded UI tests, Load tests, Etc.)
Team Build ships with MSTest WF activity (wrapper)
The OOTB workflows contain this activity
Caveat:
OOTB workflows must be edited to deploy WSPs and/or run coded UI tests

demo
Catching code issues with build/test process

Image: build summary

Image: test results for build

Image: analyzing failed test (1)

Image: analyzing failed test (2)

Why stop at UI testing?

Image: code profiling in build (1)

Image: code profiling in build (2)

Image: IntelliTrace in build

Best practices
Start on day 0 of project
Retro-fitting can be expensive
Get fast feedback - have a lightweight/quick build run on check-in
Compile all projects/build WSPs
Suggestion - every SharePoint project should do this much
Increment assembly versions (FileVersion) with label generated by build
Leverage UI testing (with or without automated builds)

Resources
Setting up TFS to build SharePoint Projects - http://bit.ly/9lEqnP
Assembly versions in build workflow - http://bit.ly/eRPB0e
Running tests as part of a build - http://bit.ly/i41eze
PS remoting and SharePoint 2010 - http://bit.ly/9Cb4tF
Also on my blog soon:
My customized workflow and PS scripts
Multi-part article series on automated builds/testing
www.sharepointnutsandbolts.com

Thank you!

Appendix slides

What you need - software
Automated builds = TFS 2010 (Team Build)
Server + 1 CAL free with every MSDN level
Need CAL for every user who interacts
Components: Build Controller, Build Agent
Coded UI tests = Visual Studio 2010 Premium/Ultimate (OR ‘Test Elements’ add-on)
Components: Test Controller, Test Agent

What you need - hardware
Option 1 – the EASY button
Disadvantages:
Risk to source control
Performance
SP2010 + TFS2010 = big resource reqs
Bottom line:
Don’t do this with prod source control!

What you need - hardware
Option 2 – a sample topology

PowerShell remoting
To enable:
To run:
Invoke-Command -ComputerName“foo” { script }

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Automated Builds And UI Testing in SharePoint 2010 Development

by Chris O'Brien

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Automated Builds And UI Testing in SharePoint 2010 Development Presentation Transcript