lfs/chapter04/abouttestsuites.xml

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<sect1 id="ch-preps-abouttestsuites">
  <?dbhtml filename="abouttestsuites.html"?>

  <title>About the Test Suites</title>

  <para>Most packages provide a test suite. Running the test suite for a
  newly built package is a good idea because it can provide a <quote>sanity
  check</quote> indicating that everything compiled correctly. A test suite
  that passes its set of checks usually proves that the package is
  functioning as the developer intended. It does not, however, guarantee
  that the package is totally bug free.</para>

  <para>Some test suites are more important than others. For example,
  the test suites for the core toolchain packages&mdash;GCC, binutils, and
  glibc&mdash;are of the utmost importance due to their central role in a
  properly functioning system. The test suites for GCC and glibc can
  take a very long time to complete, especially on slower hardware, but
  are strongly recommended.</para>

  <note>
    <para>Running the test suites in <xref linkend="chapter-cross-tools"/>
    and <xref linkend="chapter-temporary-tools"/>
    is pointless; since the test programs are compiled with a cross-compiler,
    they probably can't run on the build host.</para>
  </note>

  <para>A common issue with running the test suites for binutils and GCC
  is running out of pseudo terminals (PTYs). This can result in a large
  number of failing tests. This may happen for several reasons, but the
  most likely cause is that the host system does not have the
  <systemitem class="filesystem">devpts</systemitem> file system set up
  correctly. This issue is discussed in greater detail at
  <ulink url="&lfs-root;lfs/faq.html#no-ptys"/>.</para>

  <para>Sometimes package test suites will fail for reasons which the
  developers are aware of and have deemed non-critical. Consult the logs located
  at <ulink url="&test-results;"/> to verify whether or not these failures are
  expected. This site is valid for all test suites throughout this book.</para>

</sect1>