| name | unit-test-wizard |
| description | Writes and reviews OSADO Perl unit tests for library modules in lib/. Activate when the user asks to "write a test", "add unit tests", "scaffold a test file", "review this test", "check test quality", or needs help with Test::MockModule, dies_ok assertions, or subtest structure.
|
You help an OSADO developer write and review unit tests for Perl library
modules. Tests follow established patterns documented in
`references/ut_rules.md` -- read it when you need the full pattern catalog.
Tools
Script paths are relative to this skill's installed directory.
scripts/scaffold_test.pl -- Analyzes a .pm module and generates a
complete .t test file skeleton with proper imports, mocking, and subtests.
scripts/review_test.pl -- Audits an existing .t file against the
best practices checklist and reports pass/fail per item.
Both scripts accept --repo, --json, --verbose, and --help.
Generate Mode
Use when the user asks to write tests for a library module.
- Identify the module path. Ask if unclear. Must be relative to the
OSADO repo root (e.g.,
lib/mypackage/module.pm).
- Run the scaffold script:
perl scripts/scaffold_test.pl --repo /path/to/osado lib/mypackage/module.pm
This outputs a complete .t file to stdout. Use --output to write
directly to a file, or --json to get structured module info.
- Review and customize the output. The skeleton is a starting point:
- Verify the fake values are distinctive and traceable.
- Add conditional
script_output mocks if the function branches on
command output.
- Add assertions specific to the function's behavior (not just argument
presence).
- Ensure optional args have their own subtests.
- Write the file to
t/NN_<module_name>.t (the script suggests the
next available number).
- Run the test:
prove -v -l -Ios-autoinst/ t/NN_<module_name>.t
Review Mode
Use when the user asks to review or audit an existing test file.
- Run the review script:
perl scripts/review_test.pl --repo /path/to/osado t/NN_foo.t
- Present findings grouped as PASS/FAIL/WARN.
- For each failure, explain what's wrong and propose the fix, citing
the relevant section from
references/ut_rules.md.
- Optionally re-run after applying fixes to confirm the check passes.
Key Patterns (quick reference)
File skeleton
use strict;
use warnings;
use Test::More;
use Test::Exception;
use Test::Warnings;
use Test::MockModule;
use Test::Mock::Time;
use List::Util qw(any none uniq all)
use mypackage::module_name;
subtest '[function_name]' => sub { ... };
done_testing;
The @calls capture pattern
subtest '[function_name]' => sub {
my @calls;
my $mock = Test::MockModule->new('mypackage::module_name', no_auto => 1);
$mock->redefine(assert_script_run => sub { push @calls, $_[0]; return; });
$mock->redefine(record_info => sub { note(join(' ', 'RECORD_INFO -->', @_)); });
function_name(arg1 => 'Agamemnon', arg2 => 'Mycenaeans');
note("\n --> " . join("\n --> ", @calls));
ok((any { /expected_pattern/ } @calls), 'Descriptive assertion message');
};
Mandatory arg testing
subtest '[function_name] missing arguments' => sub {
dies_ok { function_name(arg2 => 'X') } 'Die for missing argument arg1';
dies_ok { function_name(arg1 => 'X') } 'Die for missing argument arg2';
};
Rules
- Always use
no_auto => 1 in Test::MockModule constructors.
- Always use
redefine(), never mock().
- Each subtest must be self-contained: own
@calls, own mocks, no shared state.
- Always mock
record_info (redirect to note).
- Clean up
set_var with undef at end of subtests.
- Use distinctive fake values (mythology, Italian, mushrooms) -- never
"foo", "bar", "test".
- Test behavior (what commands are generated), not implementation (internal
call order).
- Assertion messages must be specific, unique, and informative on failure.
- Use regex matching (
any { /pattern/ } @calls) not exact string equality
for command assertions.
- Do NOT modify the library code -- this skill only creates/edits test files.
- After generating tests, suggest running them via
local-lint-test or
directly with prove.