Creating a datapool in the workspace

You can create datapools in the workspace containing variable data that tests use when they run. Use this method to create a datapool if you have not yet created the test that will use it.

About this task

To create a datapool in the workspace:

Procedure

  1. Click File > New > Datapool.
  2. In the New Datapool window, click the project that will contain the datapool. The project is displayed in the Enter or select the parent folder field.
  3. In the Name field, type the name of the datapool, and then click Next.
  4. In the window for describing the datapool, optionally add a description, and then click Next.
  5. In the window for initializing the new datapool with the contents of a comma-separated value file, go to the CSV File field and type the name of a CSV file, or click Browse to navigate to the file.
    Note: If you do not want to use a CSV file to initialize the data, click Finish. An empty datapool opens for you to enter data directly.
  6. If the data in the CSV file is encoded differently from what the local computer expects, select the encoding from the Import Encoding list.
  7. The first row of the CSV file can contain column names. If it does, select the First row contains variable names and suggested types check box. If this check box is not selected, columns are named Variable1, Variablen ... You can change the names when you edit the datapool.
  8. Typically, leave the First column contains equivalence class names check box cleared. Equivalence classes are used in functional, rather than performance, testing. Select this check box if you are using a datapool for both functional and performance testing, and the datapool already contains equivalence classes.
  9. Click Finish.

Results

The new datapool opens. The following figure shows a datapool that has already been populated from a CSV file. For instructions on how to add data to or edit the datapool, see Editing a datapool.
 new datapool

What to do next

After you have created a datapool and added data to it, follow these steps to:
  1. Associate a test with the datapool, as discussed in Enabling a test to use a datapool.
  2. Associate a value in the test with a column in the datapool, as discussed in Associating a test value with a datapool column.

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