testing

name	testing
description	Testing patterns — Playwright E2E, test structure, fixture management, mock boundaries.

Testing Skill

Reference skill for generator teammates. Read this before writing any test code.

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Test Strategy

Tests run in three layers. Each layer has a distinct purpose and cost profile.

Layer 1 — Unit Tests

• Test a single function or class in isolation.
• No network, no database, no file system.
• Mock only external boundaries (see code-gen SKILL.md for mock rules).
• Fast: all unit tests must complete in under 10 seconds total.
• Location: tests/unit/ mirroring the source tree.

Layer 2 — Integration Tests

• Test interactions between two or more modules (e.g., service + repository against a real test DB).
• Use a real database in a Docker container, not SQLite substitutes unless explicitly approved.
• Seed data is reset between tests using transactions or truncation.
• Location: tests/integration/.

Layer 3 — End-to-End Tests (E2E)

• Test complete user flows through the running application.
• Use Playwright (see references/playwright.md for config and patterns).
• Run against a locally started application with a seeded test database.
• Location: tests/e2e/.

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Coverage Requirements

Layer	Minimum Threshold
Unit	100% of business logic branches
Integration	All happy paths + documented error paths per endpoint
E2E	All user stories in the current sprint contract

Coverage tools (pytest-cov, Vitest coverage) must pass CI gates. A failing coverage gate blocks merge — it is not advisory.

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Boundary Condition Generation

For every function under test, generate test cases for:

1. Empty inputs — empty string, empty array, zero, null/None.
2. Boundary values — min/max valid range, one below min, one above max.
3. Invalid types — if the language allows runtime type errors, test them.
4. Error paths — every documented exception/error case must have a test.
5. Concurrency — if the function is called concurrently, test for race conditions.

Name boundary tests descriptively:

• "returns empty list when no items match filter"
• "raises OrderNotFoundError when order_id does not exist"
• "caps quantity at MAX_ITEMS_PER_ORDER when input exceeds limit"

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Test Data Rules

• Use realistic domain values in all tests. See references/test-data.md for fixture patterns.
• Never use placeholder values: "test", 0, "foo", null as stand-ins for real domain objects.
• Use factory functions or builder patterns to construct test data — not inline object literals.
• Randomize test data where possible using seeded fakers (Faker.js, Faker for Python).
  • Seed the faker in CI to get deterministic results (faker.seed(12345)).

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Gotchas

• Mocking business logic instead of testing it (hides bugs, creates false confidence)
• Writing tests that only test the happy path — error paths matter equally
• Using time.sleep() or waitForTimeout in tests — use proper async patterns
• Tests that depend on execution order — each test must be independently runnable
• Asserting on implementation details (private method calls) instead of observable outcomes
• Using production database credentials in any test environment
• Hardcoded port numbers without fallback — use dynamic port allocation in integration tests