PACT Testing Strategies

Testing guidance for the Test phase of PACT. This skill provides frameworks for designing comprehensive test suites and links to detailed testing patterns.

Test Pyramid

The test pyramid guides the distribution of test types for optimal coverage and speed.

                    /\
                   /  \      E2E Tests (Few)
                  /    \     - Critical user journeys
                 / E2E  \    - Slow, expensive
                /--------\
               /          \  Integration Tests (Some)
              /Integration \  - API contracts
             /--------------\  - Service interactions
            /                \
           /    Unit Tests    \ Unit Tests (Many)
          /                    \ - Fast, isolated
         /______________________\ - Business logic

Coverage Targets

Unit Testing Patterns

Arrange-Act-Assert (AAA)

describe('OrderService', () => {
  describe('calculateTotal', () => {
    it('should apply discount for orders over $100', () => {
      // Arrange
      const orderService = new OrderService();
      const items = [
        { price: 50, quantity: 2 },
        { price: 20, quantity: 1 }
      ];

      // Act
      const total = orderService.calculateTotal(items);

      // Assert
      expect(total).toBe(108); // $120 - 10% discount
    });
  });
});

Test Behavior, Not Implementation

// BAD: Testing implementation details
it('should call repository.save once', () => {
  await userService.createUser(userData);
  expect(userRepository.save).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
});

// GOOD: Testing behavior
it('should create a user with hashed password', async () => {
  const user = await userService.createUser({
    email: 'test@example.com',
    password: 'plaintext'
  });

  expect(user.email).toBe('test@example.com');
  expect(user.password).not.toBe('plaintext');
  expect(await bcrypt.compare('plaintext', user.password)).toBe(true);
});

Mocking External Dependencies

// Mock setup
const mockEmailService = {
  send: jest.fn().mockResolvedValue({ id: 'msg_123' })
};

const mockUserRepository = {
  findByEmail: jest.fn(),
  save: jest.fn().mockImplementation(user => ({ ...user, id: 'user_123' }))
};

describe('UserService', () => {
  let userService;

  beforeEach(() => {
    jest.clearAllMocks();
    userService = new UserService(mockUserRepository, mockEmailService);
  });

  it('should send welcome email after creating user', async () => {
    mockUserRepository.findByEmail.mockResolvedValue(null);

    await userService.createUser({ email: 'new@example.com', name: 'New User' });

    expect(mockEmailService.send).toHaveBeenCalledWith({
      to: 'new@example.com',
      template: 'welcome',
      data: expect.objectContaining({ name: 'New User' })
    });
  });
});

Testing Edge Cases

describe('validateEmail', () => {
  // Happy path
  it('should accept valid email', () => {
    expect(validateEmail('user@example.com')).toBe(true);
  });

  // Edge cases
  it.each([
    ['email with subdomain', 'user@mail.example.com'],
    ['email with plus sign', 'user+tag@example.com'],
    ['email with numbers', 'user123@example.com'],
  ])('should accept %s', (_, email) => {
    expect(validateEmail(email)).toBe(true);
  });

  // Invalid cases
  it.each([
    ['empty string', ''],
    ['missing @', 'userexample.com'],
    ['missing domain', 'user@'],
    ['spaces', 'user @example.com'],
    ['double @', 'user@@example.com'],
  ])('should reject %s', (_, email) => {
    expect(validateEmail(email)).toBe(false);
  });

  // Boundary cases
  it('should handle very long emails', () => {
    const longEmail = 'a'.repeat(64) + '@' + 'b'.repeat(63) + '.com';
    expect(validateEmail(longEmail)).toBe(true);
  });

  it('should reject emails exceeding max length', () => {
    const tooLongEmail = 'a'.repeat(65) + '@' + 'b'.repeat(64) + '.com';
    expect(validateEmail(tooLongEmail)).toBe(false);
  });
});

Integration Testing Patterns

API Contract Testing

describe('POST /api/users', () => {
  let app;
  let db;

  beforeAll(async () => {
    db = await setupTestDatabase();
    app = createApp(db);
  });

  afterAll(async () => {
    await db.close();
  });

  beforeEach(async () => {
    await db.clear();
  });

  it('should create a user and return 201', async () => {
    const response = await request(app)
      .post('/api/users')
      .send({
        email: 'new@example.com',
        name: 'New User',
        password: 'securepassword123'
      })
      .expect(201);

    expect(response.body).toMatchObject({
      id: expect.any(String),
      email: 'new@example.com',
      name: 'New User',
      createdAt: expect.any(String)
    });

    // Verify password not returned
    expect(response.body.password).toBeUndefined();
  });

  it('should return 400 for invalid email', async () => {
    const response = await request(app)
      .post('/api/users')
      .send({
        email: 'invalid-email',
        name: 'Test User',
        password: 'password123'
      })
      .expect(400);

    expect(response.body).toMatchObject({
      error: {
        code: 'VALIDATION_ERROR',
        message: expect.any(String)
      }
    });
  });

  it('should return 409 for duplicate email', async () => {
    // Create first user
    await request(app)
      .post('/api/users')
      .send({ email: 'exists@example.com', name: 'First', password: 'pass123' });

    // Try to create duplicate
    const response = await request(app)
      .post('/api/users')
      .send({ email: 'exists@example.com', name: 'Second', password: 'pass456' })
      .expect(409);

    expect(response.body.error.code).toBe('DUPLICATE_EMAIL');
  });
});

Database Integration Testing

describe('UserRepository', () => {
  let db;
  let userRepo;

  beforeAll(async () => {
    // Use test database (Docker or in-memory)
    db = await setupTestDatabase();
    await db.migrate();
    userRepo = new UserRepository(db);
  });

  afterAll(async () => {
    await db.close();
  });

  beforeEach(async () => {
    await db.clear();
  });

  it('should persist and retrieve user', async () => {
    const userData = {
      email: 'test@example.com',
      name: 'Test User',
      passwordHash: 'hashed'
    };

    const created = await userRepo.save(userData);
    const retrieved = await userRepo.findById(created.id);

    expect(retrieved).toMatchObject({
      id: created.id,
      email: 'test@example.com',
      name: 'Test User'
    });
  });

  it('should return null for non-existent user', async () => {
    const user = await userRepo.findById('non-existent-id');
    expect(user).toBeNull();
  });

  it('should enforce unique email constraint', async () => {
    await userRepo.save({ email: 'unique@example.com', name: 'First' });

    await expect(
      userRepo.save({ email: 'unique@example.com', name: 'Second' })
    ).rejects.toThrow('duplicate');
  });
});

For detailed integration patterns: See references/integration-patterns.md

E2E Testing Patterns

Critical User Journey Testing

// Using Playwright
describe('Checkout Flow', () => {
  let page;

  beforeAll(async () => {
    // Set up authenticated user
    await seedTestData();
  });

  beforeEach(async () => {
    page = await browser.newPage();
    await page.goto('/login');
    await loginAsTestUser(page);
  });

  afterEach(async () => {
    await page.close();
  });

  it('should complete purchase successfully', async () => {
    // Add item to cart
    await page.goto('/products/test-product');
    await page.click('[data-testid="add-to-cart"]');

    // Go to cart
    await page.click('[data-testid="cart-icon"]');
    await expect(page.locator('[data-testid="cart-item"]')).toBeVisible();

    // Proceed to checkout
    await page.click('[data-testid="checkout-button"]');

    // Fill shipping info
    await page.fill('[data-testid="address"]', '123 Test St');
    await page.fill('[data-testid="city"]', 'Test City');
    await page.fill('[data-testid="zip"]', '12345');
    await page.click('[data-testid="continue-to-payment"]');

    // Complete payment (test card)
    await page.fill('[data-testid="card-number"]', '4242424242424242');
    await page.fill('[data-testid="expiry"]', '12/28');
    await page.fill('[data-testid="cvc"]', '123');
    await page.click('[data-testid="place-order"]');

    // Verify confirmation
    await expect(page.locator('[data-testid="order-confirmation"]')).toBeVisible();
    await expect(page.locator('[data-testid="order-number"]')).toContainText(/ORD-/);
  });
});

Test Organization

Directory Structure

tests/
├── unit/                           # Fast, isolated tests
│   ├── services/
│   │   ├── UserService.test.js
│   │   └── OrderService.test.js
│   ├── utils/
│   │   └── validation.test.js
│   └── models/
│       └── Order.test.js
│
├── integration/                    # API and database tests
│   ├── api/
│   │   ├── users.test.js
│   │   └── orders.test.js
│   └── repositories/
│       └── UserRepository.test.js
│
├── e2e/                           # End-to-end tests
│   ├── checkout.spec.js
│   ├── authentication.spec.js
│   └── user-profile.spec.js
│
├── fixtures/                       # Shared test data
│   ├── users.js
│   └── orders.js
│
├── helpers/                        # Shared test utilities
│   ├── setup.js
│   ├── factories.js
│   └── matchers.js
│
└── mocks/                          # Shared mocks
    ├── emailService.js
    └── paymentGateway.js

Test Naming Convention

// Format: should [expected behavior] when [condition]
it('should return 404 when user does not exist', () => {});
it('should apply 10% discount when order total exceeds $100', () => {});
it('should send confirmation email when order is placed', () => {});
it('should throw ValidationError when email is invalid', () => {});

Decision Log Integration

Read CODE phase decision logs at docs/decision-logs/{feature}-{domain}.md for:

• Areas of uncertainty: Where bugs often hide
• Assumptions made: Validate them with tests
• Known limitations: Test boundaries
• Trade-offs: Verify acceptable behavior

Test Quality Checklist

Before completing TEST phase:

Coverage

• Unit tests cover business logic (80%+ coverage)
• Integration tests verify API contracts
• E2E tests cover critical user journeys
• Edge cases and error scenarios tested

Quality

• Tests are independent (no shared state)
• Tests have clear names describing behavior
• No flaky tests (all tests deterministic)
• Tests run quickly (unit < 1s, integration < 10s)

Maintenance

• Tests use factories/fixtures (DRY)
• Mocks are minimal and focused
• Test data is realistic
• CI/CD pipeline runs all tests

Security

• Authentication tests verify access control
• Input validation tests check edge cases
• Error messages don't leak sensitive info
• Rate limiting is tested

Detailed References

For comprehensive testing guidance:

• Test Pyramid: references/test-pyramid.md

  • Detailed guidance per test layer
  • When to use each layer
  • Anti-patterns to avoid

• Integration Patterns: references/integration-patterns.md

  • Database testing strategies
  • API testing patterns
  • External service testing

• Performance Testing: references/performance-testing.md

  • Load testing approaches
  • Benchmark patterns
  • Performance metrics