| 1 | <?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?>
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| 2 | <!DOCTYPE sect1 PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.4//EN"
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| 3 | "http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.4/docbookx.dtd" [
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| 4 | <!ENTITY % general-entities SYSTEM "../general.ent">
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| 5 | %general-entities;
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| 6 | ]>
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| 7 |
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| 8 | <sect1 id="ch-final-preps-abouttestsuites">
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| 9 | <?dbhtml filename="abouttestsuites.html"?>
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| 10 |
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| 11 | <title>About the Test Suites</title>
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| 12 |
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| 13 | <para>TO BE REWRITTEN (and maybe moved to final-system chapter)</para>
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| 14 |
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| 15 | <para>Most packages provide a test suite. Running the test suite for a
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| 16 | newly built package is a good idea because it can provide a <quote>sanity
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| 17 | check</quote> indicating that everything compiled correctly. A test suite
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| 18 | that passes its set of checks usually proves that the package is
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| 19 | functioning as the developer intended. It does not, however, guarantee
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| 20 | that the package is totally bug free.</para>
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| 21 |
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| 22 | <para>Some test suites are more important than others. For example,
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| 23 | the test suites for the core toolchain packages—GCC, Binutils, and
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| 24 | Glibc—are of the utmost importance due to their central role in a
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| 25 | properly functioning system. The test suites for GCC and Glibc can
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| 26 | take a very long time to complete, especially on slower hardware, but
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| 27 | are strongly recommended.</para>
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| 28 |
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| 29 | <note>
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| 30 | <para>Experience has shown that there is little to be gained
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| 31 | from running the test suites in <xref
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| 32 | linkend="chapter-temporary-tools"/>. There can be no escaping the fact
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| 33 | that the host system always exerts some influence on the tests in that
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| 34 | chapter, often causing inexplicable failures. Because the tools built
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| 35 | in <xref linkend="chapter-temporary-tools"/> are temporary and
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| 36 | eventually discarded, we do not recommend running the test suites in
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| 37 | <xref linkend="chapter-temporary-tools"/> for the average reader. The
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| 38 | instructions for running those test suites are provided for the
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| 39 | benefit of testers and developers, but they are strictly
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| 40 | optional.</para>
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| 41 | </note>
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| 42 |
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| 43 | <para>A common issue with running the test suites for Binutils and GCC
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| 44 | is running out of pseudo terminals (PTYs). This can result in a high
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| 45 | number of failing tests. This may happen for several reasons, but the
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| 46 | most likely cause is that the host system does not have the
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| 47 | <systemitem class="filesystem">devpts</systemitem> file system set up
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| 48 | correctly. This issue is discussed in greater detail in <xref
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| 49 | linkend="chapter-temporary-tools"/>.</para>
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| 50 |
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| 51 | <para>Sometimes package test suites will fail, but for reasons which the
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| 52 | developers are aware of and have deemed non-critical. Consult the logs located
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| 53 | at <ulink url="&test-results;"/> to verify whether or not these failures are
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| 54 | expected. This site is valid for all tests throughout this book.</para>
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| 55 |
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| 56 | </sect1>
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