Test definition syntax

Information about how the test is defined as a YAML file.

The test is defined as a YAML file with the following sections:

configs - Displays the configuration values for the variables that are specified in the file.
steps - Displays the flow for the test case and runs through the list of steps in order. Each step has a common set of parameters.

The type attribute in the test definition YAML file describes the type of steps.

requirements: {}

info: 
  title: "New Configuration YAML File"
  version: 2

configs:
  globalVariables:
    protocol: https://
    domain: sample-api.us-east-a.apiconnect.automation.ibm.com
    basePath: /bank
  
  inputs:
    - default:
        value: string
        type: array
    - second:
        value: number
        type: string

  steps:
    - type: request
      method: get
      url: "{{ configs.globalVariables.protocol }}{{ domain }}{{ globalVariables.basePath }}/branches"
      var: branches
      mode: json
    
    - type: assert-is
      expression: branches
      value: "{{ type }}"
    
    - type: assert-exists 
      expression: branches.[1]
      stoponfail: true
    
    - type: assert-is 
      expression: branches.[0].type
      value: string
      stoponfail: true    
    
    - type: assert-is 
      expression: branches.[0].address.city
      value: string
      stoponfail: true  
    
    - type: assert-compares 
      expression1: branches.[0].type
      expression2: branches.[7].type  
    
    - type: request
      method: get
      url: https://sample-api.us-east-a.apiconnect.automation.ibm.com/orders/order/AB1234
      var: payload
      mode: json
    
    - type: assert-equals 
      expression: payload_response_statusCode
      value: 200
      ifexists: false
      stoponfail: false
    
    - type: assert-equals 
      expression: payload_response_header_Content-Type
      value: application/json
    
    - type: assert-in 
      expression: payload_response_header_Content-Type
      values: 
        - application/json
        - application/swagger+yaml
    
    - type: assert-contains 
      expression: payload_response_header_Content-Type
      value: app
    
    - type: assert-matches 
      expression: payload_response_header_Content-Type
      value: ^[a-z]+/json
    
    - type: assert-exists 
      expression: "payload"  
      stoponfail: false
    
    - type: assert-is 
      expression: "payload.tracking_reference"
      value: "string"
      ifexists: "false" 
      stoponfail: false
    
    - type: assert-exists 
      expression: payload.shipped_at
      stoponfail: false
    
    - type: assert-exists 
      expression: payload.status
      stoponfail: false
    
    - type: assert-exists 
      expression: payload.created_at  
      stoponfail: false

The following table summarizes the set of parameters that are supported by the type attribute.

Table 1. Summary of the parameters supported by the `type` attribute
Parameters	Description	Subattributes
`globalVariables`	Global variables are settings that remain consistent across the entire test and typically do not change between runs.	You can define any attributes here based on your requirements. For example: `https://` - Used in all requests, ensuring secure communication `domain`: Specifies the primary server address for API requests `basepath`: Defines the base path for all API endpoints. For example, `/bank`), which is appended to the domain for constructing request URLs
inputs	Defines various sets of input parameters that are used across multiple test scenarios.	You can create multiple datasets with any attributes for specific test scenarios. For example, `default` and `second` are two datasets, each with its own attributes tailored for different scenarios. Note: At least one dataset must be present to run the test.
`request`	Make an HTTP request.	`method` - defines the HTTP method to use. `url` - defines the URL to make the request to. `params` - defines the key value mapping of parameters to send. `headers` - defines the key value mapping of headers to send. `var` - defines the name of the variable to store the response in. `mode` - defines what type of data to expect and how to parse it (`supported: json`). For example, `- type: request method: get url: https://sample-api.us-east-a.apiconnect.automation.ibm.com/bank/branches var: branches mode: json`
`assert-is`	Assert that the type of variable from the response is `value`.	`expression` - defines the variable to test. `value` - defines the `type` that is expected in response. For example, `- type: assert-is expression: branches value: array`
`assert-exists`	Assert that a particular variable specified in `expression` exists.	`expression` - defines the variable to test. `stoponfail` - If one of the test fails, the `stoponfail` attribute stops the execution of the remaining tests. For this, `stoponfail` must be set to `true`. For example, `- type: assert-exists expression: branches.[1] stoponfail: true`
`assert-equals`	Assert that a variable is equal to `value`.	`expression` - defines the variable to test. `value` - defines the `value` to compare against. For example, `- type: assert-equals expression: payload_response_header_Content-Type value: application/json`
`assert-greater`	Assert that the variable is greater than `value`.	`expression` - defines the variable to test. `value` - defines the `value` to compare against. For example, `- type: assert-greater expression: payload_temperature value: application/json`
`assert-less`	Assert that the variable is lesser than `value`.	`expression` - defines the variable to test. `value` - defines the `value` to compare against. For example, `- type: assert-less expression: payload_temperature value: application/json`
`assert-in`	Assert that the element that is identified by a given expression matches at least one item from a given list.	`expression` - defines the variable to test. `value` - defines an array of values to compare against. For example, `- type: assert-in expression: payload_response_status value: application/json`
`assert-matches`	Assert that the value of the element that is identified by a given expression matches a specified format.	`expression` - defines the variable to test. `value` - defines the regex value to compare against. For example, `- type: assert-matches expression: payload_response_header_Content-Type value: ^[a-z]+/json`
`assert-compares`	Assert that the two elements are equivalent in some way.	`expression1` - defines the path to the first element for comparison. `expression2` - defines the path to the second element for comparison. For example, `- type: assert-compares expression1: branches.[0].type expression2: branches.[7].type`
`assert-contains`	Assert that the value of the element that is identified by a given expression contains a specific substring.	`expression` - defines the variable to test. `value` - defines the substring to compare against. For example, `- type: assert-contains expression: payload_response_header_Content-Type value: app`
`each`	Loop over the array that is referenced in the expression carrying out the substeps for each item found.	`expression` - defines the variable to test. For example, `- type: each expression: "analytics.events"`

For more information about assigning variables on a YAML configuration file, see Variable assignment in YAML configuration.