How to implement ruby on rails testing practices to build a successful web application

How to Implement
Ruby on Rails Testing
Practices To Build a
Successful Web
Application
www.bacancytechnology.com

Being an Agile full-stack Ruby on Rails
development company, we would
recommend every other developer,
entrepreneur, and start-up enthusiast to
consider RoR for your upcoming
project. You sure want to know
about our love affair with RoR. Across
the globe, 487654 websites are using
Ruby on Rails, and the credit of such
massive popularity goes to RoR’s
convention over configuration
approach.
Easy to learn, developer-friendly,
reliable, secure, fast development, cost-
convenient, etc. are just a few of the
reasons that make Ruby on Rails the
best web development technology. That
is why I would suggest you read
our guide for CTOs and tech-leaders.

[Source: Google Images]
Kent Beck, the creator of Extreme
Programming, quotes the above lines that
mention that testing your application
determines the quality of your product. I
would agree beyond any doubts.
Ruby is a permissive language that
enables you to build a quick proof of
concept; however, it can be anything but
perfect if gone wrong. To overcome such
troubles, testing your Ruby on Rails
application is the right thing to do.

The RoR community has built the famous
Test Driven Development TDD approach,
which encourages developers to write
tests before writing the program code.
Say, for example, you surely want your
application to last forever, I mean yes,
with constant updates and maintenance.
To achieve such targets, you must ensure
that your application has proven all the
tests right. Check out this fantastic video
by Agile Academy that would give you an
insight into the Test Driven Development
(TDD).
https://youtu.be/uGaNkTahrIw

However, Ruby on Rails developers does not
always stick to the Test Driven Development
(TDD) and give trials on the code first and
see if they can find an optimal solution. As
we begin testing Ruby on Rails applications,
let me tell you that there are two types of
tests, all tests can classify beneath.
Integration Tests:
Ardently, small units of the program, in the
form of independent functions, come
together to become the parts of one
application. The integration test is to verify
whether all these separate parts of our RoR
application can go smoothly without any
trouble.
Unit Tests:
The unit test justifies if small codes of
functions do their duties rightly to work out
perfectly on their own. Because when such
units of code combine, they form the entire
application.

The above tweet by the famous blogger
Dasun Hegoda gives a detailed table of
difference between unit testing and
integration testing. I have jotted the essential
points here.

Though the Test Driven Development is
very popular, it is not the sanest. Some
problems come with this approach.
Developers fail to test the actual
functionality of your application; rather,
they are confined just the test cases. By this
strategy, the final product deviates from
what you had thought to be because it
confines the test cases, not the result.
To solve this issue, another concept that
comes along with the TDD is Behavior
Driven Development (BDD) and Behavior
Driven Tests (BDT).
Behavior Driven Development BDD
This method is like an extension of the Test-
Driven Development, and it works in short
loops of feedback after applying TDD to
each feature added. So just like TDD, BDD is
also a test-first approach where developers
write the Behavior Driven Tests (BDT) in
simple English language or domain-specific
language.

All the stakeholders verify the BDT before
executing the development of the project,
which, in our case, is the Ruby on Rails
project.
BDD in Rails
Rails were the first-ever framework that
integrated with a testing framework. By
default, as you create a new Rails
application, it opens with the testing unit
scene. There are some remarkable
frameworks for implementing testing in
your Ruby on Rails application, and we will
discuss two important ones in this post:
Rspec and Cucumber.
Rspec
Rspec is a unit testing framework for Ruby
on Rails which focuses on the application’s
behavior instead of its functioning. The tests
that programmers write in rails application
on the Rspec framework are known as specs
and are easy to understand.

Installation of Rspec
The above commands will install a new
‘spec’ directory to your Ruby on Rails
project.
Next, you can execute your rspec test by the
command:
bundle exec rspec
Cucumber
The Cucumber framework has a format
where it reads plain-test scenarios and
automates interactions with code
development.
Installing Cucumber

Tests written in cucumber are divided into
features which are further sub-divided into
sequential steps (scenarios).
As we have the basics of Rspec and
Cucumber, you might be pondering how to
build and test your Ruby on Rails project
using the BDD.
The BDD Cycle in Rails
Now it is time for us to learn the Business
Driven Development in Rails application.
BDD is an Outside-In testing approach. The
programmers write the views first and then
move ahead towards modules. Here is the
step-by-step process for you.

[Image Source: BDD Cycle in Rails]
Step 1: As you have a great project idea, first
start with writing a Cucumber scenario. You
should not think much about how you will
implement the idea, just understand the
problem first and think about the user
interface.

Step 2: Run your cucumber test and analyze
how it fails. Initially, you might not define
all the steps and keep them pending.
Step 3: Define your first pending spec and
run the test. It will fail, but you should relax
because it’s going the right way.
Step 4: Use the Rspec red-green-refactor
cycle and test-drive the Rails view. At this
stage, you will realize how many instance
variables, controllers, and controller-actions,
you are going to need in your project.

Step 5: Take care of your instance variables and
actions assigned while you test the controller
through the Rspec cycle. Here you will get to
know what your custom objects should be like
while developing your Rails project.
Step 6: Repeat the above test for your objects,
and this way, you get to find your models. In
case of a new feature, you may create a new
model along with the corresponding database
migration.
Step 7: Finally, as you have tested all your objects
and methods through the Rspec red-green-
refactor, and all your specs have passed the tests,
you are ready to run the Cucumber scenario.
Here was the cycle for your first scenario. You
have to repeat the cycle for all your scenarios,
and see if anything remains left to refactor once
you are sure that you have completed the
process, set back for reviews.
If you work in a team, take reviews from your
fellow-mates, or consider feedback from the
product-manager or the client.

Epilogue
In this blog, we saw both the test-driven
development and the behavior-driven
development, though the later was built to
overcome the barriers of the prior one, we
should understand that both have pros and
cons. TDD will support the quality of your
written code, whereas BDD supports your
system’s behavior. To find a balance
between both these methods, hire Ruby on
Rails developer from the globally
renowned Ruby on Rails development
company.

How to implement ruby on rails testing practices to build a successful web application

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