Chapter 8. In-container testing

 

The secret of success is sincerity. Once you can fake that you’ve got it made.

Jean Giraudoux

This chapter covers

  • The drawbacks of mock objects
  • In-container testing
  • Comparing stubs, mock objects, and in-container testing

This chapter examines one approach to unit testing components in an application container: in-container unit testing, or integration unit testing. We discuss in-container testing pros and cons and show what can be achieved using the mock objects approach introduced in chapter 7, where mock objects fall short, and how in-container testing enables you to write integration unit tests. Finally, we compare the stubs, mock objects, and in-container approaches we’ve already covered in this second part of this book.

8.1. Limitations of standard unit testing

Let’s start with the example servlet in listing 8.1, which implements the HttpServlet method isAuthenticated, the method we want to unit test.

Listing 8.1. Servlet implementing isAuthenticated

8.2. The mock objects solution

8.3. In-container testing

8.4. Comparing stubs, mock objects, and in-container testing

8.5. Summary