autopkgtest

name	autopkgtest
description	Add or improve debian/tests/ for as-installed Debian package testing per DEP-8. Detects package shape (library, daemon, CLI tool), proposes minimal Restrictions, runs tests with the lightest virt backend available. Asks the maintainer before enabling isolation-container or needs-root.

debaid autopkgtest

Add or improve debian/tests/ for as-installed testing.

Preconditions

• A context JSON exists at ./.debaid/context.json. If missing, build it: run ${DEBAID_ROOT}/scripts/detect-source.sh and ${DEBAID_ROOT}/scripts/tooling-probe.sh, merge their outputs (see ${DEBAID_ROOT}/shared-context.md for the full schema).
• source.has_debian_dir == true.
• The package builds (you don't need to verify; the orchestrator ensures this when chained).
• tooling.autopkgtest.available == true for the run phase; the authoring phase works without it but tests are not verified.

Package shape detection

Inspect debian/control and the built artefacts to classify:

• Library — binaries named lib* providing .so or language-specific equivalents (.rlib, .a for static-only). Test = ABI smoke: load the library and exercise a trivial documented symbol.
• CLI tool — Section: utils, devel, text, etc. with one or more binaries in /usr/bin/. Test = <bin> --version, <bin> --help, plus the most common subcommand if obvious.
• Daemon — ships a *.service unit, listens on a port, Section: net, admin, etc. Test = start + healthcheck + stop. Restrictions needed; ASK before adding.
• Library + tool — provide both kinds of tests, in separate test files.
• Pure data/docs — Architecture: all with no executables. Test = installability + content sanity (file presence). Often a single superficial test.

Restrictions defaults

Start with the minimum that makes the test pass:

Need	Restriction
Test only reads installed files	(none)
Test writes to $AUTOPKGTEST_TMP	allow-stderr if stderr is expected
Test needs network	needs-internet (justify)
Test starts a service	isolation-container (justify, ASK)
Test must run as root	needs-root (justify, ASK)
Test depends on the build tree	needs-build

isolation-container and needs-root require maintainer approval. Do not enable them silently.

Autodep8 shortcuts

For some upstream ecosystems, the autodep8 framework generates debian/tests/control automatically from a single Testsuite: line in debian/control. When the language matches one of the generators below, prefer the autodep8 shortcut over hand-rolling debian/tests/control — fewer lines to maintain, and the generator tracks ecosystem conventions you would otherwise have to encode by hand.

source.language	Testsuite: value	Notes
python	autopkgtest-pkg-python	Generates python3 -c "import <name>" per python3-* binary; the import name is derived from the package suffix. Set X-Python3-Module: when it diverges. See ${DEBAID_ROOT}/docs/references/languages/python.md § "autopkgtest".
perl	autopkgtest-pkg-perl	Runs prove -v against upstream's test suite using the installed package; for XS modules also verifies the compiled .so loads. See ${DEBAID_ROOT}/docs/references/languages/perl.md § "autopkgtest" (DRAFT).
ruby	autopkgtest-pkg-ruby	Ruby overlay deferred; the generator works without an overlay.
nodejs	autopkgtest-pkg-nodejs	No overlay planned in this pass; the generator works without one.

No autodep8 generator exists for Rust or Go. Application binaries in those languages still go through the full Process below; do not propose a Testsuite: line for them.

Use the shortcut only when the upstream test suite is structured in the way the generator expects (run on the installed package, no unusual fixtures, no network). If the package has non-default test requirements (custom env vars, non-standard test entry points, mocked services), hand-roll instead and link to the relevant languages/<lang>.md for ecosystem nuances.

Process

1. Load context.
2. Inspect package shape. Read debian/control, the filesystem contents of the built .deb (if available), and the upstream test layout (if any). Report shape to maintainer.
3. Propose tests. If an autodep8 shortcut applies (see § "Autodep8 shortcuts" above), propose the Testsuite: line in debian/control first and stop here unless the maintainer rejects it. Otherwise, for each binary package, propose one or more test cases with their Test-Command: or script body. Print the proposal as a draft debian/tests/control plus any per-test scripts under debian/tests/.
4. Confirmation gate. If any restriction beyond the minimum-set is required, ASK the maintainer. Same for any Depends: lines that pull in heavy extras.
5. Write phase. Create debian/tests/control and the test scripts. Make scripts executable. Run wrap-and-sort on control if applicable.
6. Verification phase. If tooling.autopkgtest.available == false, report that tests are authored but not verified and stop here. Otherwise run autopkgtest -- null first (cheapest). On success, suggest running under autopkgtest-virt-qemu or autopkgtest-virt-lxc if installed; ask before launching (those are slow).
7. Report. Files added, test results, restrictions chosen, anything deferred.

Authoring guidelines

• One test per file under debian/tests/, named after what it tests (e.g. cli-version, lib-smoke, daemon-startup).
• Bash test scripts: set -euo pipefail at top, cd "$AUTOPKGTEST_TMP" early.
• Python test scripts: do not pollute the system Python; install the package under test into a virtualenv only if absolutely needed, otherwise rely on the installed Debian package.
• Avoid Test-Command: one-liners longer than ~80 chars; move to a script for readability.
• Depends: @ pulls in the package's own binary; use it instead of listing the binary name explicitly when possible.
• Depends: @builddeps@ is rarely the right answer — it's huge.

Hard rules

Suite-wide (apply to every debaid skill):

• Never invoke dput, debrelease, dgit push, or any upload command.
• Never git push to any remote.
• Never edit debian/changelog distribution from UNRELEASED to anything else.
• Never edit Maintainer: or Uploaders: fields.
• Never edit upstream source files directly (use debian/patches/ with DEP-3 headers).
• Never run rm -rf or git clean -fdx on the workspace.
• Never write a lintian override without a # reason comment.
• Never set Multi-Arch: same without verifying file paths.

Phase-specific (autopkgtest):

• Never enable isolation-container or needs-root without asking the maintainer.
• Never write tests that hit the public internet unless needs-internet is set AND the maintainer approves.
• Never download upstream test fixtures during the test — if the test needs data, it goes in debian/tests/ or comes from the package itself.

Bail-out conditions

• Package shape is ambiguous (e.g. library that also ships a CLI but the CLI is private to the build).
• Test framework requires isolation-container and maintainer declines.
• autopkgtest -- null fails for reasons not attributable to the test (env issue, broken backend).

Use the bail-out summary format from ${DEBAID_ROOT}/shared-context.md § "Bail-out summary format".