Watch the video to learn more about flaky tests and where they come from!
Flaky tests are a common challenge software developers and testers face during the software development lifecycle. Flaky tests produce inconsistent results, passing or failing unpredictably without any changes to the code under test. These tests can be frustrating and time-consuming, leading to decreased productivity and unreliable test results.
00:00 Introduction
00:10 Reasons for Falky Tests
05:45 Closing
Definition and Impact of Flaky Tests: The video begins by defining flaky tests as those that produce inconsistent results, either passing or failing without any changes to the code under test. It highlights the frustration and decreased productivity caused by these unpredictable tests.
Causes of Flaky Tests:
Various causes of flaky tests are outlined, including:
Concurrency issues.
External dependencies.
Shared state between tests.
Time sensitivity in tests.
Non-deterministic behavior.
Platform and environmental differences.
Technical Insights: The speaker provides technical insights on why flaky tests occur, often relating to code dependencies and environmental inconsistencies. Specific examples include tests failing due to external services like APIs being unavailable or behaving unexpectedly.
Solutions and Best Practices: Solutions such as using mocks and stubs to isolate tests from external dependencies are discussed. The speaker also emphasizes the importance of deterministic behavior in test suites to ensure reliability and consistency.
Real-Life Examples: The video includes real-life scenarios to illustrate how flaky tests can manifest in different environments and how they can be addressed effectively.