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<< Datapool Limits | Editing the DATAPOOL_CONFIG >>
<< Datapool Limits | Editing the DATAPOOL_CONFIG >>
Preparing a datapool
Planning and Creating a Datapool
10-5
þ
Problem: You delete a record during recording. During playback, each instance
and iteration of the script attempts to delete the same record, and "Record Not
Found" errors result.
Solution: Use a datapool to reference a different record in the deletion request
each time the script is played back.
þ
Problem: The client application reads a database record while you record a script
for a performance test. During playback, that same record is read hundreds of
times. Because the client application is well designed, it puts the record in cache
memory, making its retrieval deceptively fast in subsequent fetches. The
response times that the performance test yields will be inaccurate.
Solution: Use a datapool to request a different record each time the script is
played back.
Planning and Creating a Datapool
Here is a summary of the stages involved in preparing a datapool for use in testing.
The order shown is the typical order for planning and creating a datapool for session
scripts:
1. Plan the datapool.
Determine the datapool columns you need. In other words, what kinds of values
(names, addresses, dates, and so on) do you want to retrieve from the datapool
and send to the server?
Typically, you need a datapool column for each script variable that you plan to
assign datapool values to during recording.
For example, suppose your client application has a field called Order Number.
During recording, you type in a value for that field. With session scripts, the
value is automatically assigned to a script variable. During playback, that variable
can be assigned unique order numbers from a datapool column.
This stage requires some knowledge of the client application and the kinds of
data that it processes.
To help you determine the datapool columns you need, record a preliminary
session script. Rational Robot automatically captures all the values supplied to
the client application during recording and lists them in the
DATAPOOL_CONFIG
section at the end of the script. For more information, see
Finding Out What Data Types You Need on page 10-9.