Quick Tech Tips: Fastest way to Learn Xunit for Beginners

Set up xUnit with.NET 8 for effective unit testing by following these practical steps to create, write, and run tests.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following installed:

• .NET SDK 8.0 or later: Download from the official.NET website.
• Visual Studio (recommended) or Visual Studio Code for easier development and testing.

Creating a New xUnit Project

1. Open a terminal or command prompt and navigate to the directory where you want to create your project.
2. Create a new xUnit test project by running the command:

   dotnet new xunit -n MyFirstUnitTests
   

   This will create a new folder named MyFirstUnitTests with the necessary xUnit references.
3. Navigate into the project directory with:

   cd MyFirstUnitTests
   

4. Add a class library to test. For example, create a new class library for testing:

   dotnet new classlib -n MyLibrary
   

   This command creates a project that you can later reference in your unit tests.

Writing Your First Test

1. Add a reference to the class library:

   dotnet add reference../MyLibrary/MyLibrary.csproj
   

2. Open the UnitTest1.cs file located in the MyFirstUnitTests directory and replace its content with your test code. Here is an example test:

   using Xunit;
   using MyLibrary;  // Replace with your class library namespace
   
   public class UnitTest1
   {
       [Fact]
       public void Test1()
       {
           Assert.True(true);  // Replace true with your condition
       }
   }
   

3. Run your tests using the command:

   dotnet test
   

   This will compile your tests and execute them, providing you with feedback on which tests passed or failed.

Advanced Testing with xUnit

• Parameterized Tests: Use the [Theory] attribute combined with [InlineData] to run multiple data variations through a single test method. Here is an example:

  [Theory]
  [InlineData(1, false)]
  [InlineData(2, true)]
  [InlineData(3, true)]
  public void IsPrimeTest(int number, bool expected)
  {
       Assert.Equal(expected, IsPrime(number));  // Implement IsPrime accordingly
  }
  

Running Tests in Visual Studio

If you are using Visual Studio, you can utilize the Test Explorer to run your tests visually:

1. Open Test Explorer via Test > Test Explorer.
2. Run tests by clicking the Run All button in the Test Explorer toolbar.