wheels advanced testing

The Wheels CLI provides advanced testing capabilities through integration with TestBox. These commands offer specialized test runners for different testing scenarios.

Available Commands

test:all - Run All Tests

Runs all tests in your application using TestBox CLI.

wheels test:all

Options

Option

Type

Default

Description

--type

string

app

Type of tests to run: (app, core)

--format

string

txt

Output format (txt, json, junit, html)

--coverage

boolean

false

Generate coverage report

--coverageReporter

string

Coverage reporter format (html, json, xml)

--coverageOutputDir

string

Directory for coverage output

--verbose

boolean

true

Display extra details including passing and skipped tests

--directory

string

tests/specs

The directory to use to discover test bundles and specs to test. Mutually exclusive with bundles. Example: directory=tests.specs

--recurse

boolean

true

Recurse the directory mapping or not

--bundles

string

The path or list of paths of the spec bundle CFCs to run and test ONLY

--labels

string

The list of labels that a suite or spec must have in order to execute

--excludes

string

The list of labels that a suite or spec must not have in order to execute

--filter

string

Test filter pattern

Examples

# Run all app tests
wheels test:all

# Run with JSON format
wheels test:all --format=json

# Run with coverage
wheels test:all --coverage --coverageReporter=html

# Filter tests by name
wheels test:all --filter=UserTest --verbose

# Run core tests
wheels test:all --type=core

# Run specific bundles
wheels test:all --bundles=tests.specs.unit.models,tests.specs.unit.controllers

test:unit - Run Unit Tests

Runs only unit tests located in the tests/specs/unit directory.

wheels test:unit

Options

Option

Type

Default

Description

--type

string

app

Type of tests to run: (app, core)

--format

string

txt

Output format (txt, json, junit, html)

--verbose

boolean

true

Display extra details including passing and skipped tests

--bundles

string

The path or list of paths of the spec bundle CFCs to run and test ONLY

--labels

string

The list of labels that a suite or spec must have in order to execute

--excludes

string

The list of labels that a suite or spec must not have in order to execute

--filter

string

Test filter pattern

--directory

string

tests/specs/unit

The directory to use to discover test bundles and specs to test. Mutually exclusive with bundles. Example: directory=tests.specs

Examples

# Run unit tests
wheels test:unit

# Run with JSON format
wheels test:unit --format=json

# Filter specific tests
wheels test:unit --filter=UserModelTest

# Run core unit tests
wheels test:unit --type=core

test:integration - Run Integration Tests

Runs only integration tests located in the tests/specs/integration directory.

wheels test:integration

Options

Same as test:unit but defaults to tests/specs/integration directory.

Examples

# Run integration tests
wheels test:integration

# Run specific workflow tests
wheels test:integration --filter=UserWorkflowTest

# With verbose output and JUnit format
wheels test:integration --verbose --format=junit

# Run integration tests
wheels test:integration --type=app

test:watch - Watch Mode

Watches for file changes and automatically reruns tests.

wheels test:watch

Options

Option

Type

Default

Description

--type

string

app

Type of tests to run: (app, core)

--directory

string

tests/specs

The directory to use to discover test bundles and specs to test. Mutually exclusive with bundles. Example: directory=tests.specs

--format

string

txt

Output format (txt, json, junit, html)

--verbose

boolean

true

Display extra details including passing and skipped tests

--delay

integer

1000

Delay in milliseconds before rerunning tests

--bundles

string

The path or list of paths of the spec bundle CFCs to run and test ONLY

--labels

string

The list of labels that a suite or spec must have in order to execute

--excludes

string

The list of labels that a suite or spec must not have in order to execute

--filter

string

Test filter pattern

Examples

# Watch all tests
wheels test:watch

# Watch unit tests only
wheels test:watch --directory=tests/specs/unit

# Watch with custom delay and JSON format
wheels test:watch --delay=500 --format=json

test:coverage - Code Coverage

Runs tests with code coverage analysis (requires FusionReactor).

wheels test:coverage

Options

Option

Type

Default

Description

--type

string

app

Type of tests to run: (app, core)

--directory

string

tests/specs

The directory to use to discover test bundles and specs to test. Mutually exclusive with bundles. Example: directory=tests.specs

--format

string

txt

Output format (txt, json, junit, html)

--outputDir

string

tests/results/coverage

Directory to output the coverage report

--threshold

integer

Coverage percentage threshold (0-100)

--pathsToCapture

string

/app

Paths to capture for coverage

--whitelist

string

*.cfc

Whitelist paths for coverage

--blacklist

string

*Test.cfc,*Spec.cfc

Blacklist paths from coverage

--bundles

string

The path or list of paths of the spec bundle CFCs to run and test ONLY

--labels

string

The list of labels that a suite or spec must have in order to execute

--excludes

string

The list of labels that a suite or spec must not have in order to execute

--filter

string

Test filter pattern

--verbose

boolean

true

Display extra details including passing and skipped tests

Examples

# Basic coverage
wheels test:coverage

# With threshold and specific directory
wheels test:coverage --threshold=80 --directory=tests/specs/unit

# Coverage for specific paths
wheels test:coverage --pathsToCapture=/models,/controllers

# With JUnit output
wheels test:coverage --format=json --outputDir=coverage-reports

Test Organization

Directory Structure

The standard test directory structure for Wheels applications:

tests/
├── specs/             # Main test directory (default for type=app)
│   ├── unit/          # Unit tests
│   │   ├── models/    # Model unit tests
│   │   ├── controllers/ # Controller unit tests
│   │   └── helpers/   # Helper unit tests
│   ├── integration/   # Integration tests
│   │   ├── workflows/ # User workflow tests
│   │   └── api/       # API integration tests
│   └── functions/     # Function-specific tests
└── results/           # Test results and reports
    └── coverage/      # Coverage reports

Test Types

The --type parameter determines which test suite to run:

app (default): Runs tests in /wheels/app/tests route, uses tests/specs directory
core: Runs tests in /wheels/core/tests route, for framework tests

Sample Tests

When you run test:unit or test:integration for the first time and the directories don't exist, sample test files are created automatically in the correct locations:

Unit tests: tests/specs/unit/SampleUnitTest.cfc
Integration tests: tests/specs/integration/SampleIntegrationTest.cfc

Output Formats

All test commands support multiple output formats via the --format parameter:

txt (default): Human-readable text output
json: JSON format for parsing and automation
junit: JUnit XML format for CI/CD integration
html: HTML format for browser viewing

Best Practices

Organize Tests by Type
- Keep unit tests in tests/specs/unit/
- Keep integration tests in tests/specs/integration/
- Use subdirectories for better organization

Use Labels for Test Organization

it("should process payments", function() {
    // test code
}).labels("critical", "payments");

Set Coverage Thresholds
- Aim for at least 80% code coverage
- Use --threshold to enforce minimum coverage
Watch Mode for TDD
- Use test:watch during development
- Keep tests running in a separate terminal
CI/CD Integration
- Use --format=junit for CI systems
- Generate coverage reports with --coverageReporter=xml

Coverage Requirements

Code coverage requires FusionReactor 8.0+ to be installed and configured:

Install FusionReactor
Enable Code Coverage in FusionReactor settings
Restart your ColdFusion/Lucee server
Run wheels test:coverage

Troubleshooting

TestBox CLI Not Found

If you get an error about TestBox CLI not being installed:

box install testbox-cli
box reload

No Tests Found

Make sure your test files:

Are in the correct directory (tests/specs/ or subdirectories)
Have the .cfc extension
Extend wheels.Testbox

Coverage Not Working

If coverage shows as disabled:

Verify FusionReactor is installed
Check that Code Coverage is enabled in FusionReactor settings
Ensure you've restarted the server after enabling coverage

Test Routes Not Working

The test commands use these routes:

App tests: http://localhost:port/wheels/app/tests
Core tests: http://localhost:port/wheels/core/tests

Ensure these routes are accessible and properly configured.

wheels test run - Modern test runner (not a TestBox wrapper)
box testbox run - Direct TestBox CLI usage
wheels g test - Generate test files

Previouswheels test run NextEnvironment Management

Last updated 12 days ago

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Available Commands

test:all - Run All Tests

Options

Examples

test:unit - Run Unit Tests

Options

Examples

test:integration - Run Integration Tests

Options

Examples

test:watch - Watch Mode

Options

Examples

test:coverage - Code Coverage

Options

Examples

Test Organization

Directory Structure

Test Types

Sample Tests

Output Formats

Best Practices

Coverage Requirements

Troubleshooting

TestBox CLI Not Found

No Tests Found

Coverage Not Working

Test Routes Not Working

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