Megatest

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// This file is part of Megatest.
// 
//     Megatest is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
//     it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
//     the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
//     (at your option) any later version.
// 
//     Megatest is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
//     but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
//     MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
//     GNU General Public License for more details.
// 
//     You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
//     along with Megatest.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
//
// Copyright 2006-2012, Matthew Welland.

Getting Started
---------------

[partintro]
.Getting started with Megatest
--
Creating a testsuite or flow and your first test or task.
--

After installing Megatest you can create a flow or testsuite and add some
tests using the helpers. Here is a quickstart sequence to get you up and
running your first automated testsuite.

Creating a Megatest Area
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Choose Target Keys
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

First choose your "target" keys. These are used to organise your runs in a
way that is meaningful to your project. If you are unsure about what to use
for keys just use a single generic key such as "RUNTYPE". These keys will be
used to hand values to your tests via environment variables so ensure they
are unique. Prefixing them with something such as PROJKEYS_ is a good
strategy. 

Examples of keys:

.Example keys
[width="60%",options="header"]
|==============================================
| Option            | Description
| RELEASE/ITERATION | This example is used by Megatest for its internal QA.
| ARCH/OS/RELEASE   | For a software project targeting multiple platforms
| UCTRLR/NODETYPE   | Microcontroller project with different controllers
running same software
|==============================================

Create Area Config Files
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

You will need to choose locations for your runs (the data generated every
time you run the testsuite) and link tree. For getting started answer the
prompts with "runs" and "links". We use the Unix editor "vi" in the examples
below but you can use any plain text editor.

.Using the helper to create a Megatest area
------------------
megatest -create-megatest-area

# optional: verify that the settings are ok
vi megatest.config
vi runconfigs.config
------------------

Creating a Test
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Choose the test name for your first test and run the helper. You can edit
the files after the initial creation. You will need to enter names and
scripts for the steps to be run and then edit the
tests/<testname>/testconfig file and modify the logpro rules to properly
process the log output from your steps. For your first test just hit enter
for the "waiton", "priority" and iteration variable prompts.

Hint: for geting started make your logpro rules very liberal. expect:error
patterns should match nothing and comment out expect:required rules.

.Using the helper to create a Megatest test
---------------
megatest -create-test myfirsttest

# then edit the generated config
vi tests/myfirsttest/testconfig
---------------

Running your test
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

First choose a target and runname. If you have a two-place target such as
RELEASE/ITERATION a target would look like v1.0/aff3 where v1.0 is the
RELEASE and aff3 is the ITERATION. For a run name just use something like
run1. 

.Running all tests (testpatt of "%" matches all tests)
---------------
megatest -run -target v1.0/aff3 -runname run1 -testpatt % -log run1.log
---------------

Viewing the results
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Start the dashboard and browse your run in the "Runs" tab.

.Starting dashboard
----------------
dashboard -rows 24
----------------

// This file is part of Megatest.
// 
//     Megatest is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
//     it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
//     the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
//     (at your option) any later version.
// 
//     Megatest is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
//     but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
//     MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
//     GNU General Public License for more details.
// 
//     You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
//     along with Megatest.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
//
// Copyright 2006-2012, Matthew Welland.

How To Do Things
----------------

Process Runs
~~~~~~~~~~~~

Remove Runs
^^^^^^^^^^^

From the dashboard click on the button (PASS/FAIL...) for one of the tests. From the test control panel that 
comes up push the clean test button. The command field will be prefilled with a template command for removing 
that test. You can edit the command, for example change the argument to -testpatt to "%" to remove all tests.

.Remove the test diskperf and all it's items
----------------
megatest -remove-runs -target ubuntu/nfs/none -runname ww28.1a -testpatt diskperf/% -v
----------------

.Remove all tests for all runs and all targets
----------------
megatest -remove-runs -target %/%/% -runname % -testpatt % -v
----------------

Archive Runs
^^^^^^^^^^^^

Megatest supports using the bup backup tool (https://bup.github.io/) to archive your tests for efficient storage
and retrieval. Archived data can be rapidly retrieved if needed. The metadata for the run (PASS/FAIL status, run 
durations, time stamps etc.) are all preserved in the megatest database.

For setup information see the Archiving topic in the reference section of this manual.

To Archive
++++++++++

Hint: use the test control panel to create a template command by pushing the "Archive Tests" button.

.Archive a full run
----------------
megatest -target ubuntu/nfs/none -runname ww28.1a -archive save-remove -testpatt %
----------------

To Restore
++++++++++

.Retrieve a single test
----------------
megatest -target ubuntu/nfs/none -runname ww28.1a -archive restore -testpatt diskperf/%
----------------

Hint: You can browse the archive using bup commands directly.

----------------
bup -d /path/to/bup/archive ftp
----------------

Submit jobs to Host Types based on Test Name
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

.In megatest.config
------------------------
[host-types]
general ssh #{getbgesthost general}
nbgeneral nbjob run JOBCOMMAND -log $MT_LINKTREE/$MT_TARGET/$MT_RUNNAME.$MT_TESTNAME-$MT_ITEM_PATH.lgo

[hosts]
general cubian xena

[launchers]
envsetup general
xor/%/n 4C16G
% nbgeneral

[jobtools]
launcher bsub
# if defined and not "no" flexi-launcher will bypass launcher unless there is no
# match.
flexi-launcher yes
------------------------

Tricks
------

This section is a compendium of a various useful tricks for debugging,
configuring and generally getting the most out of Megatest.

Limiting your running jobs
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The following example will limit a test in the jobgroup "group1" to no more than 10 tests simultaneously.

In your testconfig:

----------------
[test_meta]
jobgroup group1
----------------

In your megatest.config:

---------------
[jobgroups]
group1 10
custdes 4
---------------

Debugging Tricks
----------------

Examining The Environment
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Test Control Panel - xterm
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

From the dashboard click on a test PASS/FAIL button. This brings up a test control panel. Aproximately near the center left of the 
window there is a button "Start Xterm". Push this to get an xterm with the full context and environment loaded for that test. You can run
scripts or ezsteps by copying from the testconfig (hint, load up the testconfig in a separate gvim or emacs window). This is the easiest way
to debug your tests.

During Config File Processing
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

It is often helpful to know the content of variables in various
contexts as Megatest does the actions needed to run your tests. A handy technique is to force the startup of an xterm in the context being examined.

For example, if an item list is not being generated as expected you
can inject the startup of an xterm as if it were an item:

.Original items table
-----------------
[items]
CELLNAME [system getcellname.sh]
-----------------

.Items table modified for debug
-----------------
[items]
DEBUG [system xterm]
CELLNAME [system getcellnames.sh]
-----------------

When this test is run an xterm will pop up. In that xterm the
environment is exactly that in which the script "getcellnames.sh"
would run. You can now debug the script to find out why it isn't
working as expected.

Organising Your Tests and Tasks
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The default location "tests" for storing tests can be extended by
adding to your tests-paths section.

----------------------------
[misc]
parent #{shell dirname $(readlink -f .)}

[tests-paths]
1 #{get misc parent}/simplerun/tests
----------------------------

The above example shows how you can use addition sections in your
config file to do complex processing. By putting results of relatively
slow operations into variables the processing of your configs can be
kept fast.

Alternative Method for Running your Job Script
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

.Directly running job in testconfig
-------------------
[setup]
runscript main.csh
-------------------

The runscript method is essentially a brute force way to run scripts where the
user is responsible for setting STATE and STATUS and managing the details of running a test. 

Debugging Server Problems
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Some handy Unix commands to track down issues with servers not
communicating with your test manager processes. Please put in tickets
at https://www.kiatoa.com/fossils/megatest if you have problems with
servers getting stuck.

----------------
sudo lsof -i
sudo netstat -lptu
sudo netstat -tulpn
----------------

<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">Starting dashboard</div>
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre>dashboard -rows 24</pre>
</div></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="sect1">
<h2 id="_study_plan">Study Plan</h2>
<div class="sectionbody">
<div class="paragraph"><p>Megatest is an extensive program with a lot to learn. Following are some paths through the material to smooth the learning path.</p></div>
<div class="sect2">
<h3 id="_basic_concepts_suggest_you_pick_these_up_on_the_way">Basic Concepts (suggest you pick these up on the way)</h3>
<div class="ulist"><ul>
<li>
<p>
Components of automation; run, test, iteration
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
Selectors; target, runname, and testpatt
</p>
</li>
</ul></div>
</div>
<div class="sect2">
<h3 id="_running_testsuites_or_automation">Running Testsuites or Automation</h3>
<div class="ulist"><ul>
<li>
<p>
Using the dashboard gui (recommended)
</p>
<div class="ulist"><ul>
<li>
<p>
Using the "Runs" panel.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
Using the "Run Control" panel.
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
Using a test control panel
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
The Right Mouse Button menu
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
Debug features
</p>
<div class="ulist"><ul>
<li>
<p>
xterm
</p>
<div class="ulist"><ul>
<li>
<p>
pstree
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
log files; mt_copy.log, mt_launch.log
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
variables; megatest.csh, megatest.sh
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
testconfig dump, *testconfig
</p>
</li>
</ul></div>
</li>
<li>
<p>
State/status buttons
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
Run, Clean, KillReq
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
ReRunClean
</p>
</li>
</ul></div>
</li>
</ul></div>
</li>
<li>
<p>
Using the command line
</p>
<div class="ulist"><ul>
<li>
<p>
Getting help; megatest -h, megatest -manual
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
Starting runs; megatest -run
</p>
<div class="ulist"><ul>
<li>
<p>
Selection controls; -target, -runname and -testpatt
</p>
</li>
</ul></div>
</li>
</ul></div>
</li>
</ul></div>
</div>
<div class="sect2">
<h3 id="_writing_tests_and_flows">Writing Tests and Flows</h3>
<div class="ulist"><ul>
<li>
<p>
tests/<em>testname</em>/testconfig <a href="megatest_manual.html#_the_testconfig_file">testconfig details</a>
</p>
<div class="ulist"><ul>
<li>
<p>
iteration (one test applied to many inputs) <a href="megatest_manual.html#_iteration">test iteration</a>
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
dependencies <a href="megatest_manual.html#_requirements_section">test requirements</a>
</p>
</li>
</ul></div>
</li>
<li>
<p>
megatest areas
</p>
<div class="ulist"><ul>
<li>
<p>
megatest.config
</p>
</li>
</ul></div>
</li>
</ul></div>
</div>
<div class="sect2">
<h3 id="_advanced_topics">Advanced Topics</h3>
<div class="ulist"><ul>
<li>
<p>
Removing and keeping runs selectively <a href="megatest_manual.html#_managing_old_runs">managing runs</a>
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
Subruns <a href="megatest_manual.html#_nested_runs">nested runs</a>
</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>
Config file features <a href="megatest_manual.html#_config_file_helpers">config file features</a>
</p>
</li>
</ul></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="sect1">
<h2 id="_writing_tests">Writing Tests</h2>
<div class="sectionbody">
<div class="sect2">
<h3 id="_creating_a_new_test">Creating a new Test</h3>
<div class="paragraph"><p>The following steps will add a test "yourtestname" to your testsuite. This assumes

<div class="paragraph"><p>The runscript method is a brute force way to run scripts where the
user is responsible for setting STATE and STATUS</p></div>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre>runscript main.csh</pre>
</div></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="sect2">
<h3 id="_iteration">Iteration</h3>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">Sections for iteration</div>
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre># full combinations
[items]
A x y
B 1 2

# Yields: x/1 x/2 y/1 y/2

# tabled
[itemstable]
A x y
B 1 2

# Yields x/1 y/2</pre>
</div></div>
</div>
<div class="sect2">
<h3 id="_requirements_section">Requirements section</h3>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">Header</div>
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre>[requirements]</pre>

<div class="paragraph"><p>A item based waiton will start items in a test when the same-named
item is COMPLETED and PASS, CHECK or WAIVED in the prior test. This
was historically called "itemwait" mode. The terms "itemwait" and
"itemmatch" are synonyms.</p></div>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre>[requirements]

mode itemmatch</pre>
</div></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="sect2">
<h3 id="_overriding_enviroment_variables">Overriding Enviroment Variables</h3>
<div class="paragraph"><p>Override variables before starting the test. Can include files (perhaps generated by megatest -envdelta or similar).</p></div>

# Use this trick to unset variables
#{scheme (unsetenv "FOOBAR")}</pre>
</div></div>
</div>
<div class="sect2">
<h3 id="_itemmap_handling">Itemmap Handling</h3>
<div class="paragraph"><p>For cases were the dependent test has a similar but not identical
itempath to the downstream test an itemmap can allow for itemmatch
mode</p></div>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">example for removing part of itemmap for waiton test (eg: item <span class="monospaced">foo-x/bar</span> depends on waiton&#8217;s item <span class="monospaced">y/bar</span>)</div>
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre>[requirements]
mode itemwait

# itemmap &lt;item pattern for this test&gt;  &lt;item replacement pattern for waiton test&gt;
itemmap .*x/ y/</pre>
</div></div>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">example for removing part of itemmap for waiton test (eg: item <span class="monospaced">foo/bar/baz</span> in this test depends on waiton&#8217;s item <span class="monospaced">baz</span>)</div>
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre># ## pattern replacement notes
#
# ## Example
# ## Remove everything up to the last /
[requirements]
mode itemwait

# itemmap &lt;item pattern for this test&gt; &lt;nothing here indicates removal&gt;
itemmap .*/</pre>
</div></div>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">example replacing part of itemmap for (eg: item <span class="monospaced">foo/1234</span> will imply waiton&#8217;s item <span class="monospaced">bar/1234</span>)</div>
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre>#
# ## Example
# ## Replace foo/ with bar/
[requirements]
mode itemwait

# itemmap &lt;item pattern for this test&gt;  &lt;item replacement pattern for waiton test&gt;
itemmap foo/ bar/</pre>
</div></div>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">example for backreference (eg: item <span class="monospaced">foo23/thud</span> will imply waiton&#8217;s item <span class="monospaced">num-23/bar/thud</span></div>
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre>#
# ## Example
# ## can use \{number} in replacement pattern to backreference a (capture) from matching pattern similar to sed or perl
[requirements]
mode itemwait

# itemmap &lt;item pattern for this test&gt;  &lt;item replacement pattern for waiton test&gt;
itemmap foo(\d+)/ num-\1/bar/</pre>
</div></div>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">example multiple itemmaps</div>
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre># multi-line; matches are applied in the listed order
# The following would map:
#   a123b321 to b321fooa123 then to 321fooa123p
#
[requirements]


itemmap (a\d+)(b\d+) \2foo\1
  b(.*) \1p</pre>
</div></div>
<div class="sect3">
<h4 id="_complex_mapping">Complex mapping</h4>
<div class="paragraph"><p>Complex mappings can be handled with a separate [itemmap] section (instead if an itemmap line in the [requirements] section)</p></div>
<div class="paragraph"><p>Each line in an itemmap section starts with a waiton test name followed by an itemmap expression</p></div>

</div>
<div class="paragraph"><p>We accomplish this by configuring the testconfigs of our tests C D and E as follows:</p></div>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">Testconfig for Test E has</div>
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre>[requirements]
waiton C

itemmap (\d+)/res \1/bb</pre>
</div></div>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">Testconfig for Test D has</div>
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre>[requirements]
waiton C

itemmap (\d+)/res \1/aa</pre>
</div></div>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">Testconfig for Test C has</div>
<div class="content monospaced">
<pre>[requirements]
waiton A B


[itemmap]
A (\d+)/aa aa/\1
B (\d+)/bb bb/\1</pre>
</div></div>
<div class="listingblock">
<div class="title">Testconfigs for Test B and Test A have no waiton or itemmap configured</div>

</div>
</div>
</div>
<div id="footnotes"><hr></div>
<div id="footer">
<div id="footer-text">
Version 1.0<br>
Last updated 2018-10-24 13:58:41 PDT
</div>
</div>
</body>
</html>

plain text files. All system state is stored in an sqlite3
database. Tests are launched using the launching system available for
the distributed compute platform in use. A template script is provided
which can launch jobs on local and remote Linux hosts. Currently
megatest uses the network filesystem to call home to your master
sqlite3 database.

include::plan.txt[]
// to allow the getting_started.txt to be a stand-alone document use level
shifting, note that the preceding blank line is needed.
// :leveloffset: 2

include::installation.txt[]

include::getting_started.txt[]

include::study_plan.txt[]

:leveloffset: 0

include::writing_tests.txt[]
include::howto.txt[]
include::reference.txt[]

Megatest Internals
------------------

["graphviz", "server.png"]
----------------------------------------------------------------------
include::server.dot[]

Road Map
--------

// This file is part of Megatest.
// 
//     Megatest is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
//     it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
//     the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
//     (at your option) any later version.
// 
//     Megatest is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
//     but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
//     MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
//     GNU General Public License for more details.
// 
//     You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
//     along with Megatest.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.

// Copyright 2006-2012, Matthew Welland.

Note 1: This road-map continues to evolve and subject to change without notice.

Here is a smattering of ideas for Megatest 2.0
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

. Add variable $MT_RUNPATH = $MT_LINKTREE/$MT_TARGET/$MT_RUNNAME
----------------
[db]
api legacy|new
----------------
. One big lesson from the 1.63-1.65 generation was that the main.db, 1.db … model was really good at scaling. I’d like to combine that model with the current also-very-good model. Obviously this is a disruptive change. I think making the old model the default and the new model an option for at least one generation would be fair.
.   Rigorous megatest.config and runconfig.config caching.
..  Cache the configs in $MT_RUNPATH
..  Following invocations of –run, -rerun* will calculate the new config but only overwrite the cached file IF changed
. If the cached file changes ALL existing tests go from COMPLETED -> STALE, I’m not sure what to do about RUNNING tests
. !VARS in runconfigs are not exported to the environment. They are accessed via rget as if the ! was not there.
. Per test copy commands (crude example below is not correct).
----------------
[testcopy]
%/iind% unison SRC DEST
% cp –r SRC DEST
----------------
.	Test management via pkts (optional?)
..	Control pkt types: run, kill, rerunclean, clean, archive, status?
..	Status pkt types: ack, step, status_change
.	Add nanomsg as a transport option
.	

RFC M01: Add ability to move runs to other Areas
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*Purpose*: allow shrinking megatest.db data by moving runs to an alternate
 Megatest area with same keys.

*Method*: extend db sync to take a different megatest area as a destination.

*Design*:

. add param -destination [area|path]. when specified runs are copied to new
  area and removed from local db.
. the data move would involve these steps
.. copy the run data to destination area megatest.db
.. mark the run records as deleted, do not remove the run data on disk
. accessing the data would be by running dashboard in the satellite area
. future versions of Megatest dashboard should support displaying areas in a
  merged way.
. some new controls would be supported in the config
.. [setup] => allow-runs [no|yes]  <== used to disallow runs
.. [setup] => auto-migrate=[areaname|path]  <== used to automatically
   migrate data to a satellite area.

*Branch*: This work is taking place on branch v1.65-reduce-records

RFC M02: Move data into completed-runs.db
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*Purpose*: shrink megatest.db data to enable lower load and higher performance.

*Method*: add a completed-runs.db and automatically move runs data from megatest.db to that db

*Design*:

. completed-runs.db is a full megatest database with complete schema
. the data move would involve these steps
.. copy the run data to completed-runs.db
.. remove the run data, first from /tmp/…/megatest.db and /tmp/…/megatest_ref.db, followed by megatest.db
. accessing the data would be unchanged for most operations.
. a mode -full-db will be added which when specified would attach the completed-runs.db to megatest.db before doing the query
. mechanisms for moving runs to/from the megatest.db would be added
.. -reduce-records => move runs to completed-runs.db
.. -restore-records => move runs from completed-runs.db to megatest.db

*Branch*: This work is taking place on branch v1.65-reduce-records

RFC M03: Automatic homehost migrations
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*Purpose*: Automatically migrate homehost.

*Method*: Check that there are no tests running, launched or remotehoststart in past ½ hour then if not on homehost migrate the db to current host

*Design*:

. Check that the system is quiescent, i.e. that there are no runs in flight or recently run
. Create a lock
. Migrate the /tmp cache db to the current host
. Update the .homehost file
. Remove the lock

*Branch*: This work not yet started

Architecture Refactor
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Goals
^^^^^

. Reduce load on the file system. Sqlite3 files on network filesystem can be
  a burden. [green]#[DONE]#
. Reduce number of servers and frequency of start/stop. This is mostly an
  issue of clutter but also a reduction in "moving parts". [green]#[DONE]#
. Coalesce activities to a single home host where possible. Give the user
  feedback that they have started the dashboard on a host other than the
  home host. [green]#[DONE]#
. Reduce number of processes involved in managing running tests.

Changes Needed
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

. ACID compliant db will be on /tmp and synced to megatest.db with a five
  second max delay. [green]#[DONE]#
. Read/writes to db for processes on homehost will go direct to /tmp
  megatest.db file. [green]#[DONE]#
. Read/wites fron non-homehost processes will go through one server. Bulk
  reads (e.g. for dashboard or list-runs) will be cached on the current host
  in /tmp and synced from the home megatest.db in the testsuite area. [green]#[DONE]#
. Db syncs rely on the target db file timestame minus some margin. [green]#[DONE]#
. Since bulk reads do not use the server we can switch to simple RPC for the
  network transport. [green]#[DONE]#
. Test running manager process extended to manage multiple running tests.

Current Items
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ww05 - migrate to inmem-db
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

. Switch to inmem db with fast sync to on disk db's [green]#[DONE]#
. Server polls tasks table for next action
.. Task table used for tracking runner process [red]#[Replaced by mtutil]#
.. Task table used for jobs to run [red]#[Replaced by mtutil]#
.. Task table used for queueing runner actions (remove runs,
   cleanRunExecute, etc)  [red]#[Replaced by mtutil#]


// ww32
// ~~~~
// 
// . Rerun step and or subsequent steps from gui
// . Refresh test area files from gui
// . Clean and re-run button
// . Clean up STATE and STATUS handling.
// .. Dashboard and Test control panel are reverse order - choose and fix
// .. Move seldom used states and status to drop down selector
// . Access test control panel when clicking on Run Summary tests
// . Feature: -generate-index-tree
// . Change specifing of state and status to use STATE1/STATUS1,STATE2/STATUS2
// 
// ww33
// ~~~~
// 
// . http api available for use with Perl, Ruby etc. scripts
// . megatest.config setup entries for:
// .. run launching (e.g. /bin/sh %CMD% > /dev/null)
// .. browser "konqueror %FNAME%
// 
// ww34
// ~~~~
// 
// . Mark dependent tests for clean/rerun -rerun-downstream
// . On run start check for defunct tests in RUNNING, LAUNCHED or REMOTEHOSTSTART and correct or notify
// . Fix: refresh of gui sometimes fails on last item (race condition?)
// 
// ww35
// ~~~~
// 
// . refdb: Add export of csv, json and sexp
// . Convert to using call-with-environment-variables where possible. Should allow handling of parallel runs in same process.
// . Re-work text interface wizards. Several bugs on record. Possibly convert to gui based.
// . Add to testconfig requirements section; launchlimiter scriptname, calls scriptname to check if ok to launch test
// . Refactor Run Summary view, currently very clumsy
// . Add option to show steps in Run Summary view
// 
// ww36
// ~~~~
// 
// . Refactor guis for resizeablity
// . Add filters to Run Summary view and Run Control view
// . Add to megatest.config or testconfig; rerunok STATE/STATUS,STATE/STATUS...
// . Launch gates for diskspace; /path/one>1G,/path/two>200M,/tmp>5G,#{scheme *toppath*}>1G
// 
// Bin List
// ~~~~~~~~
// 
// .	Quality improvements
// ..	Server stutters occasionally
// ..	Large number of items or tests still has some issues.
// ..	Code refactoring
// ..	Replace remote process with true API using json (supports Web app also)
// .	Streamline the gui
// ..	Everything resizable
// ..	Less clutter
// ..	Tool tips
// ..	Filters on Run Summary, Summary and Run Control panel
// ..	Built in log viewer (partially implemented)
// ..	Refactor the test control panel
// .	Help and documentation
// ..	Complete the user manual (I’ve been working on this lately).
// ..	Online help in the gui
// .	Streamlined install
// ..	Deployed version (download a location independent ready to run binary bundle)
// ..	Install Makefile (in progress, needed for Mike to install on VMs)
// ..	Added option to compile IUP (needed for VMs)
// .	Server side run launching
// .	Support for re-running, cleaning etc. of individual steps (ezsteps makes this very easy to implement).
// .	Launch process needs built in daemonizing (easy to do, just need to test it thoroughly).
// .	Wizards for creating tests, regression areas (current ones are text only and limited).
// .	Fully functional built in web service (currently you can browse runs but it is very simplistic).
// .	Wildcards in runconfigs: e.g. [p1271/9/%/%]
// .	Gui panels for editing megatest.config and runconfigs.config
// .	Fully isolated tests (no use of NFS to see regression area files)
// .	Windows version

// This file is part of Megatest.
// 
//     Megatest is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
//     it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
//     the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
//     (at your option) any later version.
// 
//     Megatest is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
//     but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
//     MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
//     GNU General Public License for more details.
// 
//     You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
//     along with Megatest.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.

Reference
---------

Megatest Use Modes
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

.Base commands
[width="80%",cols="^,2m,2m",frame="topbot",options="header"]
|======================
|Use case	         | Megatest command	|  mtutil
|Start from scratch       |	-rerun-all	|  restart	
|Rerun non-good completed |	-rerun-clean	|  rerunclean	
|Rerun all non-good and not completed yet | -set-state-status KILLREQ; -rerun-|clean | killrerun	
|Continue run             |	-run	        |  resume	
|Remove run	         |      -remove-runs	|  clean	
|Lock run	         |      -lock	        |  lock	
|Unlock run	         |      -unlock	        |  unlock	
|killrun	                 | -set-state-status KILLREQ; -kill-run	| killrun	
|======================

Config File Helpers
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Various helpers for more advanced config files.

.Helpers
[width="80%",cols="^,2m,2m,2m",frame="topbot",options="header"]
|======================
|Helper                      | Purpose                       | Valid values            | Comments
| #{scheme (scheme code...)} | Execute arbitrary scheme code | Any valid scheme        | Value returned from the call is converted to a string and processed as part of the config file
| #{system command}          | Execute program, inserts exit code  | Any valid Unix command  | Discards the output from the program
| #{shell  command} or #{sh ...}  | Execute program, inserts result from stdout | Any valid Unix command | Value returned from the call is converted to a string and processed as part of the config file
| #{realpath path} or #{rp ...}   | Replace with normalized path | Must be a valid path |
| #{getenv VAR} or #{gv VAR}      | Replace with content of env variable | Must be a valid var |
| #{get s v} or #{g s v}     | Replace with variable v from section s | Variable must be defined before use |
| #{rget v}                  | Replace with variable v from target or default of runconfigs file | |
| #{mtrah}                   | Replace with the path to the megatest testsuite area | | 
|======================

Config File Settings
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Settings in megatest.config

Config File Additional Features
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Including output from a script as if it was inline to the config file:

-------------------------
[scriptinc myscript.sh]
-------------------------

If the script outputs:

-------------------------
[items]
A a b c
B d e f
-------------------------

Then the config file would effectively appear to contain an items section
exactly like the output from the script. This is useful when dynamically
creating items, itemstables and other config structures. You can see the
expansion of the call by looking in the cached files (look in your linktree
for megatest.config and runconfigs.config cache files and in your test run
areas for the expanded and cached testconfig).

Wildcards and regexes in Targets

-------------------------
[a/2/b]
VAR1 VAL1

[a/%/b]
VAR1 VAL2
-------------------------

Will result in:

-------------------------
[a/2/b]
VAR1 VAL2
-------------------------

Can use either wildcard of "%" or a regular expression:

-------------------------
[/abc.*def/]
-------------------------

Disk Space Checks
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Some parameters you can put in the [setup] section of megatest.config:

-------------------
# minimum space required in a run disk 
minspace 10000000

# minimum space required in dbdir:
dbdir-space-required 100000

# script that takes path as parameter and returns number of bytes available:
free-space-script check-space.sh
-------------------

Trim trailing spaces
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

------------------
[configf:settings trim-trailing-spaces yes]
------------------

Job Submission Control
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Submit jobs to Host Types based on Test Name
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

.In megatest.config
------------------------
[host-types]
general   nbfake
remote    bsub

[launchers]
runfirst/sum% remote
% general

[jobtools]
launcher bsub
# if defined and not "no" flexi-launcher will bypass launcher unless 
# there is no host-type match.
flexi-launcher yes
------------------------

host-types
++++++++++

List of host types and the commandline to run a job on that host type.

.host-type => launch command
------------
general nbfake
------------

launchers
+++++++++

.test/itempath => host-type
------------
runfirst/sum% remote
------------

Miscellaneous Setup Items
+++++++++++++++++++++++++

Attempt to rerun tests in "STUCK/DEAD", "n/a", "ZERO_ITEMS" states.

.In megatest.config
------------------
[setup]
reruns 5
------------------

Replace the default blacklisted environment variables with user supplied
list.

Default list: USER HOME DISPLAY LS_COLORS XKEYSYMDB EDITOR MAKEFLAGS MAKEF MAKEOVERRIDES

.Add a "bad" variable "PROMPT" to the variables that will be commented out
in the megatest.sh and megatest.csh files:
-----------------
[setup]
blacklistvars USER HOME DISPLAY LS_COLORS XKEYSYMDB EDITOR MAKEFLAGS PROMPT
-----------------

Run time limit
++++++++++++++

-----------------
[setup]
# this will automatically kill the test if it runs for more than 1h 2m and 3s
runtimelim 1h 2m 3s
-----------------

Tests browser view
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The tests browser (see the Run Control tab on the dashboard) has two views for displaying the tests. 

. Dot (graphviz) based tree
. No dot, plain listing

The default is the graphviz based tree but if your tests don't view
well in that mode then use "nodot" to turn it off.

-----------------
[setup]
nodot
-----------------

Capturing Test Data
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In a test you can capture arbitrary variables and roll them up in the
megatest database for viewing on the dashboard or web app.

.In a test as a script
------------------------
$MT_MEGATEST -load-test-data << EOF
foo,bar,   1.2,  1.9, >
foo,rab, 1.0e9, 10e9, 1e9
foo,bla,   1.2,  1.9, <
foo,bal,   1.2,  1.2, <   ,     ,Check for overload
foo,alb,   1.2,  1.2, <=  , Amps,This is the high power circuit test
foo,abl,   1.2,  1.3, 0.1
foo,bra,   1.2, pass, silly stuff
faz,bar,    10,  8mA,     ,     ,"this is a comment"
EOF
------------------------

Alternatively you can use logpro triggers to capture values and inject them
into megatest using the -set-values mechanism:

.Megatest help related to -set-values
------------------------
Test data capture
  -set-values             : update or set values in the testdata table
  :category               : set the category field (optional)
  :variable               : set the variable name (optional)
  :value                  : value measured (required)
  :expected               : value expected (required)
  :tol                    : |value-expect| <= tol (required, can be <, >, >=, <= or number)
  :units                  : name of the units for value, expected_value etc. (optional)
------------------------

Dashboard settings
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

.Runs tab buttons, font and size
------------------
[dashboard]
btn-height x14
btn-fontsz 10
cell-width 60
------------------

Database settings
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

.Database config settings in [setup] section of megatest.config
[width="70%",cols="^,2m,2m,2m",frame="topbot",options="header"]
|======================
|Var                       | Purpose            | Valid values            | Comments
|delay-on-busy             | Prevent concurrent access issues | yes\|no or not defined | Default=no, may help on some network file systems, may slow things down also.
|faststart		   | All direct file access to sqlite db files | yes\|no or not defined | Default=yes, suggest no for central automated systems and yes for interactive use
|homehost 		   | Start servers on this host | <hostname> | Defaults to local host
|hostname		   | Hostname to bind to | <hostname>\|-	  | On multi-homed hosts allows binding to specific hostname
|lowport		   | Start searching for a port at this portnum| 32768 | 
|required		   | Server required    | yes\|no or not defined  | Default=no, force start of server always
|server-query-threshold	   | Start server when queries take longer than this | number in milliseconds | Default=300
|timeout		   | http api timeout 	| number in hours	  | Default is 1 minute, do not change
|======================

The testconfig File
-------------------

Setup section
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Header
^^^^^^

-------------------
[setup]
-------------------

The runscript method is a brute force way to run scripts where the
user is responsible for setting STATE and STATUS

-------------------
runscript main.csh
-------------------

Iteration
~~~~~~~~~

.Sections for iteration
------------------
# full combinations
[items]
A x y
B 1 2

# Yields: x/1 x/2 y/1 y/2

# tabled
[itemstable]
A x y
B 1 2

# Yields x/1 y/2
------------------


Requirements section
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

.Header
-------------------
[requirements]
-------------------

Wait on Other Tests
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

-------------------
# A normal waiton waits for the prior tests to be COMPLETED 
# and PASS, CHECK or WAIVED
waiton test1 test2
-------------------

Mode
^^^^

The default (i.e. if mode is not specified) is normal. All pre-dependent tests
must be COMPLETED and PASS, CHECK or WAIVED before the test will start

-------------------
[requirements]
mode   normal
-------------------

The toplevel mode requires only that the prior tests are COMPLETED.

-------------------
[requirements]
mode toplevel
-------------------

A item based waiton will start items in a test when the same-named
item is COMPLETED and PASS, CHECK or WAIVED in the prior test. This
was historically called "itemwait" mode. The terms "itemwait" and
"itemmatch" are synonyms.

-------------------
[requirements]
mode itemmatch
-------------------

Overriding Enviroment Variables
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Override variables before starting the test. Can include files (perhaps generated by megatest -envdelta or similar).

--------------------
[pre-launch-env-vars]
VAR1 value1

# Get some generated settings
[include ../generated-vars.config]

# Use this trick to unset variables
#{scheme (unsetenv "FOOBAR")}
--------------------

Itemmap Handling
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For cases were the dependent test has a similar but not identical
itempath to the downstream test an itemmap can allow for itemmatch
mode

.example for removing part of itemmap for waiton test (eg: item +foo-x/bar+ depends on waiton's item +y/bar+)
-------------------
[requirements]
mode itemwait
# itemmap <item pattern for this test>  <item replacement pattern for waiton test>
itemmap .*x/ y/

-------------------

.example for removing part of itemmap for waiton test (eg: item +foo/bar/baz+ in this test depends on waiton's item +baz+)
-------------------

# ## pattern replacement notes
#
# ## Example
# ## Remove everything up to the last /
[requirements]
mode itemwait
# itemmap <item pattern for this test> <nothing here indicates removal>
itemmap .*/
-------------------

.example replacing part of itemmap for (eg: item +foo/1234+ will imply waiton's item +bar/1234+)
-------------------

#
# ## Example
# ## Replace foo/ with bar/
[requirements]
mode itemwait
# itemmap <item pattern for this test>  <item replacement pattern for waiton test>
itemmap foo/ bar/

-------------------

.example for backreference (eg: item +foo23/thud+ will imply waiton's item +num-23/bar/thud+
-------------------
#
# ## Example
# ## can use \{number} in replacement pattern to backreference a (capture) from matching pattern similar to sed or perl
[requirements]
mode itemwait
# itemmap <item pattern for this test>  <item replacement pattern for waiton test>
itemmap foo(\d+)/ num-\1/bar/

-------------------

.example multiple itemmaps
-------------------

# multi-line; matches are applied in the listed order
# The following would map:
#   a123b321 to b321fooa123 then to 321fooa123p
#
[requirements]
itemmap (a\d+)(b\d+) \2foo\1
  b(.*) \1p
-------------------


Complex mapping
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Complex mappings can be handled with a separate [itemmap] section (instead if an itemmap line in the [requirements] section)

Each line in an itemmap section starts with a waiton test name followed by an itemmap expression

.eg: The following causes waiton test A item +bar/1234+ to run when our test's +foo/1234+ item is requested as well as causing waiton test B's +blah+ item to run when our test's +stuff/blah+ item is requested
--------------
[itemmap]
A foo/ bar/
B stuff/
--------------


Complex mapping example
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^



// image::itemmap.png[]
image::complex-itemmap.png[]


We accomplish this by configuring the testconfigs of our tests C D and E as follows:

.Testconfig for Test E has
----------------------
[requirements]
waiton C
itemmap (\d+)/res \1/bb
----------------------

.Testconfig for Test D has
----------------------
[requirements]
waiton C
itemmap (\d+)/res \1/aa
----------------------

.Testconfig for Test C has
----------------------
[requirements]
waiton A B

[itemmap]
A (\d+)/aa aa/\1
B (\d+)/bb bb/\1
----------------------

.Testconfigs for Test B and Test A have no waiton or itemmap configured
-------------------
-------------------

.Walk through one item -- we want the following to happen for testpatt +D/1/res+ (see blue boxes in complex itemmaping figure above):

. eg from command line +megatest -run -testpatt D/1/res -target mytarget -runname myrunname+
. Full list to be run is now: +D/1/res+
. Test D has a waiton - test C.  Test D's itemmap rule +itemmap (\d&plus;)/res \1/aa+ ->  causes +C/1/aa+ to run before +D/1/res+
. Full list to be run is now: +D/1/res+, +C/1/aa+
. Test C was a waiton - test A. Test C's rule +A (\d&plus;)/aa aa/\1+ -> causes +A/aa/1+ to run before +C/1/aa+
. Full list to be run is now: +D/1/res+, +C/1/aa+, +A/aa/1+
. Test A has no waitons.  All waitons of all tests in full list have been processed.  Full list is finalized.



itemstable
^^^^^^^^^^
An alternative to defining items is the itemstable section.  This lets you define the itempath in a table format rather than specifying components and relying on getting all permutations of those components.





Dynamic Flow Dependency Tree
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

.Autogeneration waiton list for dynamic flow dependency trees
-------------------
[requirements]
# With a toplevel test you may wish to generate your list 
# of tests to run dynamically
#
waiton #{shell get-valid-tests-to-run.sh}
-------------------

Run time limit
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

-----------------
[requirements]
runtimelim 1h 2m 3s  # this will automatically kill the test if it runs for more than 1h 2m and 3s
-----------------

Skip
^^^^

A test with a skip section will conditional skip running.

.Skip section example
-----------------
[skip]
prevrunning x
# rundelay 30m 15s
-----------------

Skip on Still-running Tests
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

-----------------
# NB// If the prevrunning line exists with *any* value the test will
# automatically SKIP if the same-named test is currently RUNNING. The
# "x" can be any string. Comment out the prevrunning line to turn off
# skip.

[skip]
prevrunning x
-----------------

Skip if a File Exists
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

-----------------
[skip]
fileexists /path/to/a/file # skip if /path/to/a/file exists
-----------------

Skip if test ran more recently than specified time
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

.Skip if this test has been run in the past fifteen minutes and 15 seconds.
-----------------
[skip]
rundelay 15m 15s
-----------------

Disks
^^^^^

A disks section in testconfig will override the disks section in
megatest.config. This can be used to allocate disks on a per-test or per item
basis.

Controlled waiver propagation
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

If test is FAIL and previous test in run with same MT_TARGET is WAIVED then apply the following rules from the testconfig:
If a waiver check is specified in the testconfig apply the check and if it passes then set this FAIL to WAIVED

Waiver check has two parts, 1) a list of waiver, rulename, filepatterns and 2) the rulename script spec (note that "diff" and "logpro" are predefined)

-----------------
###### EXAMPLE FROM testconfig #########
# matching file(s) will be diff'd with previous run and logpro applied
# if PASS or WARN result from logpro then WAIVER state is set
#
[waivers]
# logpro_file    rulename      input_glob
waiver_1         logpro        lookittmp.log

[waiver_rules]

# This builtin rule is the default if there is no <waivername>.logpro file
# diff   diff %file1% %file2%

# This builtin rule is applied if a <waivername>.logpro file exists
# logpro diff %file1% %file2% | logpro %waivername%.logpro %waivername%.html
-----------------

Ezsteps
~~~~~~~

.Example ezsteps with logpro rules
-----------------
[ezsteps]
lookittmp   ls /tmp

[logpro]
lookittmp ;; Note: config file format supports multi-line entries where leading whitespace is removed from each line
  ;;     a blank line indicates the end of the block of text 
  (expect:required in "LogFileBody" > 0 "A file name that should never exist!" #/This is a awfully stupid file name that should never be found in the temp dir/)

-----------------

To transfer the environment to the next step you can do the following:

----------------------------
$MT_MEGATEST -env2file .ezsteps/${stepname}	  
----------------------------

Triggers
~~~~~~~~

In your testconfig or megatest.config triggers can be specified 

-----------------
[triggers]

# Call script running.sh when test goes to state=RUNNING, status=PASS
RUNNING/PASS running.sh

# Call script running.sh any time state goes to RUNNING
RUNNING/ running.sh

# Call script onpass.sh any time status goes to PASS
PASS/ onpass.sh
-----------------

Scripts called will have; test-id test-rundir trigger test-name item-path state status event-time, added to the commandline.

HINT

To start an xterm (useful for debugging), use a command line like the following:

-----------------
[triggers]
COMPLETED/ xterm -e bash -s -- 
-----------------

NOTE: There is a trailing space after the --

There are a number of environment variables available to the trigger script
but since triggers can be called in various contexts not all variables are
available at all times. The trigger script should check for the variable and
fail gracefully if it doesn't exist.

.Environment variables visible to the trigger script
[width="90%",cols="^,2m",frame="topbot",options="header"]
|======================
|Variable             | Purpose            
| MT_TEST_RUN_DIR     | The directory where Megatest ran this test                   
| MT_CMDINFO          | Encoded command data for the test                   
| MT_DEBUG_MODE       | Used to pass the debug mode to nested calls to Megatest                   
| MT_RUN_AREA_HOME    | Megatest home area 
| MT_TESTSUITENAME    | The name of this testsuite or area                   
| MT_TEST_NAME        | The name of this test
| MT_ITEM_INFO        | The variable and values for the test item
| MT_MEGATEST         | Which Megatest binary is being used by this area
| MT_TARGET           | The target variable values, separated by '/'
| MT_LINKTREE         | The base of the link tree where all run tests can be found
| MT_ITEMPATH         | The values of the item path variables, separated by '/'
| MT_RUNNAME          | The name of the run
|======================


Override the Toplevel HTML File
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Megatest generates a simple html file summary for top level tests of
iterated tests. The generation can be overridden. NOTE: the output of
the script is captured from stdout to create the html.


.For test "runfirst" override the toplevel generation with a script "mysummary.sh"
-----------------
# Override the rollup for specific tests
[testrollup]
runfirst mysummary.sh
-----------------

Archiving Setup
---------------

In megatest.config add the following sections:

.megatest.config
--------------
[archive]
# where to get bup executable
# bup /path/to/bup

[archive-disks]

# Archives will be organised under these paths like this:
#  <testsuite>/<creationdate>
# Within the archive the data is structured like this:
#  <target>/<runname>/<test>/
archive0 /mfs/myarchive-data/adisk1
--------------

Handling Environment Variables
------------------------------

It is often necessary to capture and or manipulate environment
variables. Megatest has some facilities built in to help.

Capture variables
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

.Commands
------------------------------
# capture the current enviroment into a db called envdat.db under
# the context "before"
megatest -envcap before

# capture the current environment into a db called startup.db with 
# context "after"
megatest -envcap after startup.db

# write the diff from before to after
megatest -envdelta before-after -dumpmode bash
------------------------------

Dump modes include bash, csh and config. You can include config data
into megatest.config or runconfigs.config.

.Example of generating and using config data
------------------------------
megatest -envcap original
# do some stuff here
megatest -envcap munged
megatest -envdelta original-munged -dumpmode ini -o modified.config
------------------------------

Then in runconfigs.config

.Example of using modified.config in a testconfig
------------------------------
cat testconfig
[pre-launch-env-vars]
[include modified.config]
------------------------------

Managing Old Runs
-----------------

It is often desired to keep some older runs around but this must be balanced with the costs of disk space.

. Use -remove-keep
. Use -archive (can also be done from the -remove-keep interface)
. use -remove-runs with -keep-records

.For each target, remove all runs but the most recent 3 if they are over 1 week old
---------------------
# use -precmd 'sleep 5;nbfake' to limit overloading the host computer but to allow the removes to run in parallel.
megatest -actions print,remove-runs -remove-keep 3 -target %/%/%/% -runname % -age 1w -precmd 'sleep 5;nbfake'"
---------------------

Nested Runs
-----------

A Megatest test can run a full Megatest run in either the same
Megatest area or in another area. This is a powerful way of chaining
complex suites of tests and or actions.

If you are not using the current area you can use ezsteps to retrieve
and setup the sub-Megatest run area.

In the testconfig:
---------------
[subrun]

# Required: wait for the run or just launch it
#           if no then the run will be an automatic PASS irrespective of the actual result
run-wait yes|no

# Optional: where to execute the run. Default is the current runarea
run-area /some/path/to/megatest/area

# Optional: method to use to determine pass/fail status of the run
#   auto (default) - roll up the net state/status of the sub-run
#   logpro         - use the provided logpro rules, happens automatically if there is a logpro section
# passfail auto|logpro
# Example of logpro:
passfail logpro

# Optional: 
logpro ;; if this section exists then logpro is used to determine pass/fail
  (expect:required in "LogFileBody" >= 1 "At least one pass" #/PASS/)
  (expect:error     in "LogFileBody"  = 0 "No FAILs allowed"  #/FAIL/)

# Optional: target translator, default is to use the parent target
target #{shell somescript.sh}

# Optional: runname translator/generator, default is to use the parent runname
run-name #{somescript.sh}

# Optional: testpatt spec, default is to first look for TESTPATT spec from runconfigs unless there is a contour spec
test-patt %/item1,test2

# Optional: contour spec, use the named contour from the megatest.config contour spec
contour contourname ### NOTE: Not implemented yet! Let us know if you need this feature.

# Optional: mode-patt, use this spec for testpatt from runconfigs
mode-patt TESTPATT

# Optional: tag-expr, use this tag-expr to select tests
tag-expr quick

# Optional: (not yet implemented, remove-runs is always propagated at this time), propagate these actions from the parent
#           test
#   Note// default is % for all
propagate remove-runs archive ...

---------------

Programming API
---------------

These routines can be called from the megatest repl. 

.API Keys Related Calls
[width="70%",cols="^,2m,2m,2m",frame="topbot",options="header,footer"]
|======================
|API Call                        | Purpose comments   | Returns                 | Comments
|(rmt:get-keys run-id)           |                    | ( key1 key2 ... )       | 
| (rmt:get-key-val-pairs run-id) |                    | #t=success/#f=fail      | Works only if the server is still reachable
|======================


:numbered!:

// This file is part of Megatest.
// 
//     Megatest is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
//     it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
//     the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
//     (at your option) any later version.
// 
//     Megatest is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
//     but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
//     MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
//     GNU General Public License for more details.
// 
//     You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
//     along with Megatest.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
//
// Copyright 2006-2012, Matthew Welland.

Study Plan
----------

Megatest is an extensive program with a lot to learn. Following are some paths through the material to smooth the learning path.

Basic Concepts (suggest you pick these up on the way)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* Components of automation; run, test, iteration 
* Selectors; target, runname, and testpatt

Running Testsuites or Automation
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* Using the dashboard gui (recommended)
** Using the "Runs" panel.
** Using the "Run Control" panel.
** Using a test control panel
** The Right Mouse Button menu
** Debug features
*** xterm
**** pstree
**** log files; mt_copy.log, mt_launch.log
**** variables; megatest.csh, megatest.sh
**** testconfig dump, *testconfig
*** State/status buttons
*** Run, Clean, KillReq
*** ReRunClean
* Using the command line
** Getting help; megatest -h, megatest -manual
** Starting runs; megatest -run
*** Selection controls; -target, -runname and -testpatt

Writing Tests and Flows
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* tests/_testname_/testconfig link:megatest_manual.html#_the_testconfig_file[testconfig details]
** iteration (one test applied to many inputs) link:megatest_manual.html#_iteration[test iteration]
** dependencies link:megatest_manual.html#_requirements_section[test requirements]
* megatest areas
** megatest.config

Advanced Topics
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* Removing and keeping runs selectively link:megatest_manual.html#_managing_old_runs[managing runs]
* Subruns link:megatest_manual.html#_nested_runs[nested runs]
* Config file features link:megatest_manual.html#_config_file_helpers[config file features]