LEDMatrix/docs/HOW_TO_RUN_TESTS.md

How to Run Tests for LEDMatrix

This guide explains how to use the test suite for the LEDMatrix project.

Prerequisites

1. Install Test Dependencies

Make sure you have the testing packages installed:

# Install all dependencies including test packages
pip install -r requirements.txt

# Or install just the test dependencies
pip install pytest pytest-cov pytest-mock

2. Set Environment Variables

For tests that don't require hardware, set the emulator mode:

export EMULATOR=true

This ensures tests use the emulator instead of trying to access actual hardware.

Running Tests

Run All Tests

# From the project root directory
pytest

# Or with more verbose output
pytest -v

# Or with even more detail
pytest -vv

Run Specific Test Files

# Run a specific test file
pytest test/test_display_controller.py

# Run multiple specific files
pytest test/test_display_controller.py test/test_plugin_system.py

Run Specific Test Classes or Functions

# Run a specific test class
pytest test/test_display_controller.py::TestDisplayControllerModeRotation

# Run a specific test function
pytest test/test_display_controller.py::TestDisplayControllerModeRotation::test_basic_rotation

Run Tests by Marker

The tests use markers to categorize them:

# Run only unit tests (fast, isolated)
pytest -m unit

# Run only integration tests
pytest -m integration

# Run tests that don't require hardware
pytest -m "not hardware"

# Run slow tests
pytest -m slow

Run Tests in a Directory

# Run all tests in the test directory
pytest test/

# Run plugin tests only
pytest test/plugins/

# Run web interface tests only
pytest test/web_interface/

# Run web interface integration tests
pytest test/web_interface/integration/

Understanding Test Output

Basic Output

When you run pytest, you'll see:

test/test_display_controller.py::TestDisplayControllerInitialization::test_init_success PASSED
test/test_display_controller.py::TestDisplayControllerModeRotation::test_basic_rotation PASSED
...

• PASSED - Test succeeded
• FAILED - Test failed (check the error message)
• SKIPPED - Test was skipped (usually due to missing dependencies or conditions)
• ERROR - Test had an error during setup

Verbose Output

Use -v or -vv for more detail:

pytest -vv

This shows:

• Full test names
• Setup/teardown information
• More detailed failure messages

Show Print Statements

To see print statements and logging output:

pytest -s

Or combine with verbose:

pytest -sv

Coverage Reports

The test suite is configured to generate coverage reports.

View Coverage in Terminal

# Coverage is automatically shown when running pytest
pytest

# The output will show something like:
# ----------- coverage: platform linux, python 3.11.5 -----------
# Name                                    Stmts   Miss  Cover   Missing
# ---------------------------------------------------------------------
# src/display_controller.py                 450     120    73%   45-67, 89-102

Generate HTML Coverage Report

# HTML report is automatically generated in htmlcov/
pytest

# Then open the report in your browser
# On Linux:
xdg-open htmlcov/index.html

# On macOS:
open htmlcov/index.html

# On Windows:
start htmlcov/index.html

The HTML report shows:

• Line-by-line coverage
• Files with low coverage highlighted
• Interactive navigation

Coverage Threshold

The tests are configured to fail if coverage drops below 30%. To change this, edit pytest.ini:

--cov-fail-under=30  # Change this value

Common Test Scenarios

Run Tests After Making Changes

# Quick test run (just unit tests)
pytest -m unit

# Full test suite
pytest

Debug a Failing Test

# Run with maximum verbosity and show print statements
pytest -vv -s test/test_display_controller.py::TestDisplayControllerModeRotation::test_basic_rotation

# Run with Python debugger (pdb)
pytest --pdb test/test_display_controller.py::TestDisplayControllerModeRotation::test_basic_rotation

Run Tests in Parallel (Faster)

# Install pytest-xdist first
pip install pytest-xdist

# Run tests in parallel (4 workers)
pytest -n 4

# Auto-detect number of CPUs
pytest -n auto

Stop on First Failure

# Stop immediately when a test fails
pytest -x

# Stop after N failures
pytest --maxfail=3

Test Organization

Test Files Structure

test/
├── conftest.py                          # Shared fixtures and configuration
├── test_display_controller.py           # Display controller tests
├── test_display_manager.py              # Display manager tests
├── test_plugin_system.py                # Plugin system tests
├── test_plugin_loader.py                # Plugin discovery/loading tests
├── test_plugin_loading_failures.py      # Plugin failure-mode tests
├── test_cache_manager.py                # Cache manager tests
├── test_config_manager.py               # Config manager tests
├── test_config_service.py               # Config service tests
├── test_config_validation_edge_cases.py # Config edge cases
├── test_font_manager.py                 # Font manager tests
├── test_layout_manager.py               # Layout manager tests
├── test_text_helper.py                  # Text helper tests
├── test_error_handling.py               # Error handling tests
├── test_error_aggregator.py             # Error aggregation tests
├── test_schema_manager.py               # Schema manager tests
├── test_web_api.py                      # Web API tests
├── test_nba_*.py                        # NBA-specific test suites
├── plugins/                             # Per-plugin test suites
│   ├── test_clock_simple.py
│   ├── test_calendar.py
│   ├── test_basketball_scoreboard.py
│   ├── test_soccer_scoreboard.py
│   ├── test_odds_ticker.py
│   ├── test_text_display.py
│   ├── test_visual_rendering.py
│   └── test_plugin_base.py
└── web_interface/
    ├── test_config_manager_atomic.py
    ├── test_state_reconciliation.py
    ├── test_plugin_operation_queue.py
    ├── test_dedup_unique_arrays.py
    └── integration/                     # Web interface integration tests
        ├── test_config_flows.py
        └── test_plugin_operations.py

Test Categories

• Unit Tests: Fast, isolated tests for individual components
• Integration Tests: Tests that verify components work together
• Error Scenarios: Tests for error handling and edge cases
• Edge Cases: Boundary conditions and unusual inputs

Troubleshooting

Import Errors

If you see import errors:

# Make sure you're in the project root
cd /home/chuck/Github/LEDMatrix

# Check Python path
python -c "import sys; print(sys.path)"

# Run pytest from project root
pytest

Missing Dependencies

If tests fail due to missing packages:

# Install all dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt

# Or install specific missing package
pip install <package-name>

Hardware Tests Failing

If tests that require hardware are failing:

# Set emulator mode
export EMULATOR=true

# Or skip hardware tests
pytest -m "not hardware"

Coverage Not Working

If coverage reports aren't generating:

# Make sure pytest-cov is installed
pip install pytest-cov

# Run with explicit coverage
pytest --cov=src --cov-report=html

Continuous Integration

There is currently no CI test workflow in this repo — pytest runs locally but is not gated on PRs. The only GitHub Actions workflow is .github/workflows/security-audit.yml, which runs bandit and semgrep on every push.

If you'd like to add a test workflow, the recommended setup is a .github/workflows/tests.yml that runs pytest against the supported Python versions (3.10, 3.11, 3.12, 3.13 per requirements.txt). Open an issue or PR if you want to contribute it.

Best Practices

1. Run tests before committing:

   pytest -m unit  # Quick check
   

2. Run full suite before pushing:

   pytest  # Full test suite with coverage
   

3. Fix failing tests immediately - Don't let them accumulate

4. Keep coverage above threshold - Aim for 70%+ coverage

5. Write tests for new features - Add tests when adding new functionality

Quick Reference

# Most common commands
pytest                    # Run all tests with coverage
pytest -v                 # Verbose output
pytest -m unit           # Run only unit tests
pytest -k "test_name"    # Run tests matching pattern
pytest --cov=src         # Generate coverage report
pytest -x                # Stop on first failure
pytest --pdb              # Drop into debugger on failure

Getting Help

• Check test output for error messages
• Look at the test file to understand what's being tested
• Check conftest.py for available fixtures
• Review pytest.ini for configuration options