LISA Features: JAVA/RMI

The solution that natively understands how to test Java classes and remote objects.

When it comes to testing, core Java developers around the world tend to be a "do-it-yourself" bunch. And this is certainly true for testing components such as Java objects while they are under development. Testing Java classes and RMI servers requires hours of tricky coding and test client development, so often developers will wait until much later in the development process to test, when the object is being rolled into a larger system.

Better unit and regression testing practices (with JUnit/Ant and other tools) have become par for the course in enterprise Java development. This offers a starting point for quality, but unit testing alone is simply too manual to properly exercise your components early in development, when problems are much easier to fix.

To really exercise these complex components early, we need to stop writing code to test code. We need to test the functionality and performance of the component - not create new volume of scripts to test. We need to help the QA and business requirements owners test to functionally validate our components, earlier in the project. LISA was built from the ground up for this purpose.

Features

Until LISA for Java & RMI, Java class or framework testing was only possible with a programmer's IDE in Java or JavaScript. Since this code-based approach can only be used by the developer, often when they are in the middle of coding the app, the tests that emerge often take the "happy path" of testing only for the conditions the developer expects.

• Inline testing. Break the code-compile-run-curse cycle, and never write a test client again. Execute test while you're authoring and adjusting them. You will have to see to believe the level of continual feedback you get while you are developing with LISA.
• Built on and for Java. LISA is pure Java, and is innately aware of Java objects and RMI at a granular level, whether they are under development or "legacy" components you need to leverage. As you should expect, LISA runs on any Java-ready client (Unix/Linux, Win, OSX) and can easily test objects on any Java-compliant server.
• Easy enough for non-developers. LISA is no-code automated testing, meaning developers save time by no longer having to script tests. Non-programming QA and business requirements team members can also get involved in testing the functional logic of these components.
• Multiple systems. One LISA test case can follow a complex workflow and validate multiple web sites, web services, Java objects and application servers. LISA supports active sessions, SSL, authentication and magic strings, so it lets you test systems just as your end users will. On the back end, LISA provides live interaction and deep testing of any component or service you can access over the Internet.
• Across the full development lifecycle. Test components iteratively during development with immediate point-and-click responses. Then roll those same unit and functional tests into regression tests included in your Ant/Make builds. Then take those same test cases and turn them into load and stress tests that can run continuously (with LISA Server).

Benefits

LISA for Java/RMI provides an ideal automated testing environment for Java objects and components, offering a new level of breadth and depth that allows the entire team to own quality.

• True no-code automated testing with compelling features for both developers and QA professionals
• Eliminates the need to program test clients and maintain fragile test scripts
• Provides an immediate way to accelerate "test first," XP development practices
• Brings QA into the iterative development cycle for early and continuous testing
• Works with any J2EE application server (Java App Server, WebLogic, WebSphere, JBoss, more)
• Leverages and runs with your existing build and deploy environment of JUnit/Ant scripts
• Point-and-click testing of Java classes, RMI, and other objects (CORBA, etc.) in a way no other product can
• Browse, analyze and make live assertions against any available logic or controls in the application
• Manage properties and test assertions
• Turn your Java/RMI test runs into load tests, and scheduled regression and performance tests over time (with LISA L/P Server)
• Great for analyzing and testing legacy code and objects that you may need to integrate
• Test instrument your custom application code with the powerful LISA Extension SDK
• Built for the future - upgrade to LISA for J2EE or LISA Complete, keep your test cases and extend them to web interfaces, EJBs, JMS queues, JDBC databases, web services and JMX metrics.
• Share LISA test cases and test runs as simple XML files and incorporate them into your existing groupware, issue tracking and requirements management processes

The Test Harness for custom Java applications

Are you running proprietary or custom software? Where most testing solutions would give up, LISA's integration abilities let developers "test enable" software. With minimal incremental effort, developers can make their code testable with our simple API. The whole team can get rich metrics and debugging information on applications behind the scenes.

The more complex your enterprise applications are, the more compelling testing with LISA becomes. Quality is not just a tool you can buy, it is an experience your whole team needs to own. ITKO invites you to take a closer look at LISA today.

To learn more about how LISA incorporates the 4 C's and can address critical development constraints and software reliability challenges in your organization, please contact us, or read more about LISA Virtualize, LISA Validate, LISA Test, and LISA Pathfinder.