Software Testing practice questions

test_*.py

Why wrong: Already noted.

*_test.py

Why wrong: This is a standard pytest naming convention.

test_*.py

Why wrong: This is a standard pytest naming convention.

pytest.ignore_if(platform='win32')

Why wrong: This function does not exist.

pytest.skip_on('win32')

Why wrong: This is not a valid pytest function.

@pytest.skip(os='win32')

Why wrong: The decorator does not accept 'os' as an argument.

assertGreater

Why wrong: This only checks magnitude, not equality.

assertEqual

Why wrong: This checks for strict equality and fails on minor precision differences.

assertSequenceEqual

Why wrong: This is for lists or strings, not single floats.

Use a global variable to override the module import.

Why wrong: This is unsafe and not the recommended testing pattern.

Patch the object at its definition location.

Why wrong: Patching at definition does not update existing imports.

Modify sys.modules directly.

Why wrong: While possible, it is prone to side effects and discouraged compared to patching.

setUp

Why wrong: This runs before each individual test method.

pre_test

Why wrong: This is not a standard method name in the unittest framework.

init

Why wrong: The __init__ method is not intended for test fixture setup in unittest.

call_args

Why wrong: This attribute stores history of calls, it does not determine return values.

return_value

Why wrong: This returns the same static value regardless of input.

configure_mock

Why wrong: This is a method to set attributes, not specifically for input-based logic.

pytest.catch(CustomError)

Why wrong: This method does not exist in pytest.

assert func() == CustomError

Why wrong: This checks return values, not exception raising behavior.

with pytest.assert_raises(CustomError):

Why wrong: assert_raises is a unittest style, not pytest.

scope='class'

Why wrong: This is specific to test classes, not general module-level files.

scope='function'

Why wrong: This is the default and runs for every test.

scope='session'

Why wrong: This runs once for the entire test suite, which might be overkill here.

It returns None.

Why wrong: It does not default to None.

It returns the string 'undefined'.

Why wrong: There is no such default behavior.

It raises an AttributeError.

Why wrong: That would happen with a Mock(spec=...) or non-Magic mock.

--stop

Why wrong: This is not a valid pytest flag.

-f

Why wrong: The -f flag is typically used for 'fail-fast' in other tools, but not pytest.

--halt

Why wrong: This is not a valid pytest flag.

@pytest.mark.repeat

Why wrong: This is not a built-in pytest marker.

pytest.loop()

Why wrong: pytest does not provide a loop function for tests.

@pytest.fixture(params=...)

Why wrong: While fixtures can be parametrized, the test marker is the standard way to run the test itself multiple times.

You must check 'self.failureException'.

Why wrong: This does not guarantee teardown execution.

You must use the 'addCleanup' method.

Why wrong: While 'addCleanup' is an alternative, the default 'tearDown' is the standard way.

Use a try-finally block inside the test method.

Why wrong: While this works, it is not the framework's intended way to handle teardown.

pytest --all

Why wrong: The --all flag does not exist in pytest.

python -m unittest discover

Why wrong: This uses unittest, not pytest.

pytest --execute-all

Why wrong: This flag does not exist.

Define it in __init__.py.

Why wrong: Fixtures are not typically defined in __init__.py.

Use the --shared-fixtures flag.

Why wrong: This flag does not exist.

Import it in every file.

Why wrong: Fixtures are discovered automatically via conftest.py, not manual imports.

pytest_configure

Why wrong: This hook is for initial configuration, not option definition.

pytest_runtest_setup

Why wrong: This is for test setup logic.

pytest_init

Why wrong: This hook does not exist in pytest.

mock.verify_args()

Why wrong: This is not a method.

mock.check_args()

Why wrong: This is not a method.

mock.called_with()

Why wrong: This is not a method of the mock object.

It speeds up test execution.

Why wrong: It actually adds a small overhead due to introspection.

It automatically generates a return value.

Why wrong: That is the role of return_value.

It automatically documents the mock calls.

Why wrong: This is not its purpose.

mock.called_times

Why wrong: This attribute does not exist.

len(mock.calls)

Why wrong: The attribute is 'call_args_list', not 'calls'.

mock.get_call_count()

Why wrong: This is not a method of the mock object.

To debug a failing test.

Why wrong: It is not for debugging.

To force a test to fail.

Why wrong: It marks the test as expected to fail, not force it.

To skip a test temporarily.

Why wrong: That is the purpose of skip.

Defining global variables in the same file

Why wrong: Globals are not automatically injected.

Accessing the 'sys.argv' list

Why wrong: This is not a test data injection pattern.

Using the 'unittest.TestCase' setup method

Why wrong: This is for unittest, not pytest dependency injection.