Referencing environment variables in the test client

In the test client, you can reference environment variables in the value editor.

1. In the assembly editor, right-click a component and select Test Component. The integration test client opens to the Events page.
2. In the Events area, ensure that the Invoke event is selected.
3. In the Name column of the value editor, locate the name of the field for which you want to reference an environment variable. The field must have a simple data type, such as string or integer.
4. In the row that contains the field name, type the environment variable that you want to reference in either the Value column and then press Enter. Alternatively, you can select XML editor to open the XML editor and type the environment variable. Regardless of which approach you use, you can reference one of the following three types of environment variables:

   Environment variable type	Description
   Proprietary	These environment variables are referenced in the test client or in the test suite editor, but they are generally defined in the test client, Component Test Explorer, or by using command-line invocation. The syntax for these environment variables is: ${proprietary_variable_name} For example: ${MY_VAR}
   WebSphere Application Server	These environment variables are defined in the server Administrative Console and referenced in either the test client or the test suite editor. The syntax for these environment variables is: $WAS{WAS_variable_name} For example: $WAS{INSTALL_ROOT}
   JVM property	These environment variables are defined in the server Administrative Console and referenced in either the test client or the test suite editor. The syntax for these environment variables is: $JVM{JVM_property_name} For example: $JVM{file.encoding}

   If you want, you can concatenate different types of environment variables using a forward slash (/) character. For example:

   $WAS{INSTALL_ROOT}/${MY_LOG_DIR_NAME}

5. If you are referencing an environment variable that will not have a value defined at run time, you can specify a default value for the environment variable in the value editor. For example:

   ${MY_VAR, customer}

   In the example, the default value customer is specified. If the environment variable is not defined at run time, it will be substituted by the string customer.

   Note: If your value editor contains environment variables and you plan to export the value editor to an XML file, you need to exercise caution. Environment variables that are referenced in the value editor are generally defined at run time rather than in the value editor, which means that they will be exported from the value editor to the XML file "as is" with only a name and without any defined value. However, if you have specified a default value for the environment variable in the value editor, it will be exported to the XML file with the defined value.