Test Client overview

Use the Test Client to test message flows in a safe environment before they are used on a production system.

You can use the Test Client to put test messages to message flows that use the following nodes:

You can change the content of the test messages that are put to the message flow in the Test Client to help determine if your message flows are working as expected. If the input node in the message flow that you select expects an XML message from an associated message set, the message structure is provided, and it can be edited to produce the appropriate test message. Alternatively, you can create a new test message, or import an existing message from the file system. You can also configure an appropriate header for the test message, if the message format is WebSphere MQ.

The Test Client monitors output nodes in the message flow so that you can see which nodes output messages are received on. You can also view the content of the output message, or view the content of any error messages that are received when the test message is passed through the message flow. When a message is received on an output node, or when an error is produced when the test message passes through the message flow, a test event is recorded in the Test Client.

The default behavior of the Test Client is to stop the test when the first output message is received. You can configure the Test Client to wait for multiple output messages to be received. In this case, you can stop the test manually. Stopping the test disconnects the monitors that are running, but does not stop the message flow. A synchronous test, such as when the message flow is invoked from an HTTPInput node, is stopped automatically when a reply message is received. An asynchronous test, such as when the message flow is invoked from an MQInput node, can be stopped manually depending on the monitor setting in the configuration panel. All test events are stopped when the Test Client is closed, and any test monitors are removed.

If you change your message flow, you can use the same test configuration to test the changes. The default behavior of the Test Client is to deploy the message flow that you want to test automatically to an execution group, whenever a change is made to the message flow. You can therefore make a change to a message flow, and quickly test the result using the Test Client, without the need to manually deploy your message flows. The first time that you put a test message to the input node on a message flow, you configure the execution group to deploy the message flow by using the Deployment location wizard. You can configure the deployment options to override the default behavior of the Test Client to deploy the message flow manually, or to deploy the message flow every time that you pass a test message to the message flow.

You can run the Test Client using the Debug mode to view more information about the path that the message takes through the message flow using the flow debugger.

The details of the test configuration and the test events can be saved as an .mbtest file. You can use this file to repeat the test or to review the results later.

Related tasks
Testing a message flow
Configuring the test settings
Creating and editing a test message
Debug: putting a test message on an input queue
Debug: getting a test message from an output queue
Related reference
Test Client
Notices | Trademarks | Downloads | Library | Support | Feedback

Copyright IBM Corporation 1999, 2009Copyright IBM Corporation 1999, 2009.
Last updated : 2009-01-07 15:21:53

af52200_