Question

I would like to start using TDD in my PHP projects using Symfony 1.4 framework. Writing unit tests for my classes in /lib directories is fairly stright forward. But my question is, what steps do you proceed developing your applications?

I mean specifically:

1. Do you write tests for model classes as well? If yes, how?
2. Do you write unit tests for controllers somehow, or do you use only functional tests?
3. Using functional tests, how deeply do you go? Just checking 200 status code, or going through DOM? If so, how deeply?

I think, I’ve got a general idea of TDD and I really like the approach, but I’m struggling with an execution on MVC PHP project especially using Symfony 1.4.

Answer 1

1. I think the most important tests in TDD are the model classes tests, because the model classes should hold a maximum of code (you’re supposed to have fat models ands skinny controllers). This page recommends using lime for this, and I did it for some projects, but as PHPUnit is now the de facto standard (and is used in Symfony 2.0, I think you’d better go that way directly). You can achieve this by using this plugin : http://www.symfony-project.org/plugins/sfPhpunitPlugin
2. I test controllers only through functional tests.
3. Not very deep, but if I test a form, for instance, I make sure the modifications appear on the next page.