Mocking in AngularJS: Utilizing the same service with varied functions for unit testing with Jasmine

Exploring a new service, Service A, with various functionalities:

The snippet of application code is as follows:

angular.module('app').factory('ServiceA', function() {
    var ServiceA = {
        _retryItem: null,

        retryItem: function(type, data) {
            ServiceA._retryItem = {
                type: type,
                data: data
            };

            return this;
        },

        clear: function() {
            ServiceA._retryItem = null;

            return this;
        },

        start: function(options, retryFn) {
            ServiceA.clear();
            ServiceA.retryItem('action', {url: '/my-url', options: options, retryFn: retryFn});
        }
    };

    return ServiceA;
});

To test the "start" function, two options are available:

1) Utilize the real functions clear and retryItem:

...    

describe('...', function() {
        var options, retryFn;

        beforeEach(function() {
            options = {};
            retryFn = function() {};
        });

        it('...', function() {
            ServiceA.start(options, retryFn);

            expect(ServiceA._retryItem).toEqual({type: 'action', data:  {url: '/my-url', options: options, retryFn: retryFn});

        });
    });

2) Mock both functions clear and retryItem:

...    

describe('...', function() {
        var options, retryFn;

        beforeEach(function() {
            options = {};
            retryFn = function() {};

            spyOn(ServiceA, 'clear');
            spyOn(ServiceA, 'retryItem');
        });

        it('...', function() {
            ServiceA.start(options, retryFn);

            expect(ServiceA.clear).toHaveBeenCalled();
            expect(ServiceA.retryItem).toHaveBeenCalledWith('action', {url: '/my-url', options: options, retryFn: retryFn});
        });
    });

Which method should be adopted? In unit testing, the focus is on testing the specific unit, here being the "start" function. The other functions like clear and retryItem can be mocked to ensure efficient and isolated testing, offering greater control over the test scenarios.

Answer №1

When considering what to test, it ultimately comes down to your objectives, level of rigidity, and personal taste. My suggestion would be to select option two and conduct separate unit tests for the remaining functionalities. This approach ensures that you are not duplicating efforts, provides a form of documentation, and guarantees that key functions are executed with appropriate parameters. To me, this methodology appears quite promising! :)

Answer №2

When testing a function, I always start by understanding what it is supposed to do. For example, in the case of the start function, it simply calls clear and retryItem. These two functions are the ones actually performing the tasks, while start merely ensures they are executed. To properly test the start function, I suggest checking that clear and retryItem are called, and then writing separate tests for each of them.

One way to confirm if other functions are called is by using spyOn:

spyOn(ServiceA, 'retryItem');

ServiceA.start(options, retryFn);

expect(ServiceA.retryItem).toHaveBeenCalled();

You can also verify that the expected parameters are passed into the functions:

expect(ServiceA.retryItem).toHaveBeenCalledWith(['Expected Parameter']);

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