nic-testing

name	nic-testing
description	Testing patterns for NIC including Go table-driven tests, snapshot tests, and Python integration tests. Use when writing unit tests, snapshot tests, policy tests, template tests, Helm tests, or pytest integration tests for the Ingress Controller.

NIC Testing Patterns

Build and Test Commands

Command	Purpose
make test	Run all Go tests (-tags=aws,helmunit -shuffle=on ./...)
make test-update-snaps	Regenerate snapshot golden files (UPDATE_SNAPS=always)
make lint	golangci-lint via Docker, diff against origin/main
make format	goimports + gofumpt
make cover	Generate test coverage report
make lint-python	Python test formatting: isort + black

Always use make test over raw go test. Run make test-update-snaps when template output changes.

Note: Helm tests use the //go:build helmunit build tag -- they are only compiled and run when -tags=helmunit is passed (included in make test).

---

Go Unit Tests

Table-Driven Tests (primary pattern)

func TestValidateMyPolicy(t *testing.T) {
    t.Parallel()
    tests := []struct {
        policy *v1.Policy
        isPlus bool
        msg    string
    }{
        { /* valid case */ },
        { /* edge case */ },
    }
    for _, test := range tests {
        err := ValidatePolicy(test.policy, test.isPlus, false, false)
        if err != nil {
            t.Errorf("ValidatePolicy returned error %v for case: %s", err, test.msg)
        }
    }
}

Naming Convention

Two conventions are in use -- both are acceptable:

Policy/transport tests (policy_test.go, transportserver_test.go):

• TestValidate<Thing>_PassesOnValidInput
• TestValidate<Thing>_FailsOnInvalidInput

VirtualServer/general tests (virtualserver_test.go and most other files):

• TestValidate<Thing> (valid input, often with subtests)
• TestValidate<Thing>Fails (invalid input)
• TestGenerate<Feature>

Snapshot Tests (template output)

Every test file that uses snaps.MatchSnapshot must have a TestMain that cleans up stale snapshots:

func TestMain(m *testing.M) {
    snaps.Clean(m, snaps.CleanOpts{Sort: true})
}

Example snapshot test:

func TestVirtualServerForNginx(t *testing.T) {
    t.Parallel()
    executor := newTmplExecutorNGINX(t)
    data, err := executor.ExecuteVirtualServerTemplate(&virtualServerCfg)
    require.NoError(t, err)
    snaps.MatchSnapshot(t, string(data))
}

Helper Conventions

• Always call t.Parallel() at the start
• Use t.Helper() in helper functions
• Use github.com/google/go-cmp/cmp for deep struct comparison
• Use github.com/gkampitakis/go-snaps/snaps for snapshot tests

---

Helm Tests

Location: charts/tests/

• helmunit_test.go -- Helm snapshot tests using terratest + go-snaps
• testdata/ -- values.yaml overrides per test scenario

Add a test values file in charts/tests/testdata/<feature>.yaml and a corresponding test case in helmunit_test.go.

---

Python Integration Tests

Location: tests/suite/

Test Class Pattern

@pytest.mark.policies
@pytest.mark.policies_myfeature
@pytest.mark.parametrize(
    "crd_ingress_controller, virtual_server_setup",
    [({"type": "complete", "extra_args": [...]},
      {"example": "virtual-server", "app_type": "simple"})],
    indirect=True,
)
class TestMyFeaturePolicies:
    def test_basic_functionality(self, kube_apis, crd_ingress_controller,
                                  virtual_server_setup, test_namespace):
        # 1. Create policy from YAML
        pol_name = create_policy_from_yaml(
            kube_apis.custom_objects, yaml_src, test_namespace
        )
        wait_before_test()
        # 2. Patch VS to reference policy
        patch_virtual_server_from_yaml(...)
        # 3. Assert HTTP responses
        resp = requests.get(url, headers={"host": vs_host})
        assert resp.status_code == 200
        assert "Expected-Header" in resp.headers
        # 4. Cleanup
        delete_policy(kube_apis.custom_objects, pol_name, test_namespace)
        patch_virtual_server_from_yaml(...)  # restore original

Fixtures and Utilities

• Common fixtures: kube_apis, crd_ingress_controller, virtual_server_setup, test_namespace
• Fixtures: tests/suite/fixtures/ (setup/teardown lifecycle)
• Utilities: tests/suite/utils/ (create_policy_from_yaml, patch_virtual_server_from_yaml, delete_policy, wait_before_test)
• Prefer event/status-based waits over fixed sleeps when possible

File Naming

• test_<feature>_policies_vs.py -- VirtualServer policy tests
• test_<feature>_policies_vsr.py -- VirtualServerRoute policy tests
• test_<feature>_policies_ingress.py -- Ingress policy tests

Test Data

Store YAML manifests in tests/data/<feature>/.

---

Gotchas

• Always run make test-update-snaps after changing any .tmpl file -- snapshot tests will fail otherwise
• Never run raw go test -- use make test which includes required build tags
• Snapshot golden files are in __snapshots__/ directories -- commit the regenerated files
• Every snapshot test file requires a TestMain with snaps.Clean(m, snaps.CleanOpts{Sort: true}) -- omitting it causes stale snapshots to accumulate
• Python tests use indirect=True parametrize for IC + VS setup -- do not remove this