Extending GTest CI with Structured Tests and Execution Insights

Extending GTest CI with Structured Tests and Execution Insights

In my previous posts, I covered how to set up a basic Google Test (GTest) project on Windows using MSYS2, MinGW-w64, and vcpkg, and subsequently integrated it with GitHub Actions for Continuous Integration (CI). In this post, I’ll demonstrate how I extended the CI workflow to include structured test execution and detailed output insights, making it easier to understand test results both locally and in CI environments.

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Motivation

After setting up the basic CI workflow, I noticed discrepancies between local test execution and CI output. Local tests provided detailed insights about individual test cases, while CI only displayed high-level summaries via ctest. To bridge this gap, I:

1. Structured my tests into meaningful test suites.
2. Enhanced the CI configuration to include detailed test outputs and per-test execution times.

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Enhancing the Project Structure

To ensure my tests are modular and maintainable, I grouped related functionality into separate test suites. For example, here’s how I structured tests for LeetCode Problem 167 (LC167):

Updated Project Structure

C:/Users/Gordon/Documents/Developer/2024_embedded_c++/
├── src/
│   ├── AccessLog.cpp
│   ├── LRU.cpp
│   ├── Merge_SLL.cpp
│   ├── leetcode/
│   │   └── LC167.cpp
├── tests/
│   ├── gtest_helpers/
│   │   └── gtest_main.cpp
│   ├── test_LC167.cpp
│   └── test_helpers.h
├── build/ (Generated after running CMake)

Example Test Suite (test_LC167.cpp)

#include <gtest/gtest.h>
#include "LC167.cpp" // Include the solution implementation

TEST(LC167, ExampleTest) {
    std::vector<int> input = {2, 7, 11, 15};
    int target = 9;
    std::vector<int> expected = {1, 2};
    EXPECT_EQ(twoSum(input, target), expected);
}

TEST(LC167, EdgeCaseTest) {
    std::vector<int> input = {1, 2};
    int target = 3;
    std::vector<int> expected = {1, 2};
    EXPECT_EQ(twoSum(input, target), expected);
}

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Updated CI Workflow with Test Insights

To align CI output with local execution details, I enhanced the ctest configuration and included options for verbose logging and direct binary execution.

Updated GitHub Actions YAML

Here’s the complete GitHub Actions YAML configuration, updated to include structured tests and execution insights:

---
name: CMake GTest CI with Detailed Insights

on:
  push:
    branches: [ "main" ]
  pull_request:
    branches: [ "main" ]

env:
  BUILD_TYPE: Release

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: windows-latest

    steps:
    - uses: actions/checkout@v3

    - name: Setup MSYS2
      uses: msys2/setup-msys2@v2
      with:
        msystem: MINGW64
        update: true
        install: >
          mingw-w64-x86_64-gcc
          mingw-w64-x86_64-cmake
          mingw-w64-x86_64-make

    - name: Cache vcpkg
      uses: actions/cache@v3
      with:
        path: |
          $/vcpkg
          $/vcpkg_cache
        key: vcpkg-$-$

    - name: Install vcpkg
      run: |
        git clone https://github.com/Microsoft/vcpkg.git
        .\vcpkg\bootstrap-vcpkg.bat
        .\vcpkg\vcpkg.exe install gtest:x64-mingw-dynamic

    - name: Configure with CMake
      shell: msys2 {0}
      run: |
        mkdir build
        cd build
        cmake -G "MinGW Makefiles" \
          -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE="${GITHUB_WORKSPACE}/vcpkg/scripts/buildsystems/vcpkg.cmake" \
          -DVCPKG_TARGET_TRIPLET=x64-mingw-dynamic \
          -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="${GITHUB_WORKSPACE}/vcpkg/installed/x64-mingw-dynamic" \
          ..

    - name: Build
      shell: msys2 {0}
      run: |
        cd build
        cmake --build . --config $

    - name: Test with CTest
      shell: msys2 {0}
      run: |
        cd build
        ctest -C $ --output-on-failure --verbose

    - name: Run Test Binary for Detailed Insights
      shell: msys2 {0}
      run: |
        cd build
        ./tests.exe

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Benefits of the Updates

1. Structured Tests: Organized tests make it easier to identify issues and add new cases.
2. Execution Insights: Using ctest --verbose and directly running the test binary provides both high-level summaries and detailed execution logs.
3. Debugging: Clearer outputs make it easier to debug failures in both local and CI environments.

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Conclusion

These updates significantly enhance the testing workflow, making it robust and developer-friendly. Whether you’re solving algorithmic problems or writing production code, having a structured and insightful CI setup ensures your work is reliable and maintainable.

Stay tuned for more posts as I continue improving the CI pipeline and explore advanced topics like code coverage and performance benchmarking in GTest!

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