PowerShell-master/.github/instructions/publishing-pester-result.instructions.md

metadata

applyTo: .github/**/*.{yml,yaml}

Publishing Pester Test Results Instructions

This document describes how the PowerShell repository uses GitHub Actions to publish Pester test results.

Overview

The PowerShell repository uses a custom composite GitHub Action located at .github/actions/test/process-pester-results to process and publish Pester test results in CI/CD workflows. This action aggregates test results from NUnitXml formatted files, creates a summary in the GitHub Actions job summary, and uploads the results as artifacts.

How It Works

Action Location and Structure

Path: .github/actions/test/process-pester-results/

The action consists of two main files:

1. action.yml - The composite action definition
2. process-pester-results.ps1 - PowerShell script that processes test results

Action Inputs

The action accepts the following inputs:

• name (required): A descriptive name for the test run (e.g., "UnelevatedPesterTests-CI")

  • Used for naming the uploaded artifact and in the summary
  • Format: junit-pester-{name}

• testResultsFolder (optional): Path to the folder containing test result XML files

  • Default: ${{ runner.workspace }}/testResults
  • The script searches for all *.xml files in this folder recursively

Action Workflow

The action performs the following steps:

1. Process Test Results

   • Runs process-pester-results.ps1 with the provided name and test results folder
   • Parses all NUnitXml formatted test result files (*.xml)
   • Aggregates test statistics across all files:
     • Total test cases
     • Errors
     • Failures
     • Not run tests
     • Inconclusive tests
     • Ignored tests
     • Skipped tests
     • Invalid tests

2. Generate Summary

   • Creates a markdown summary using the $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY environment variable
   • Uses Write-Log and Write-LogGroupStart/Write-LogGroupEnd functions from build.psm1
   • Outputs a formatted summary with all test statistics
   • Example format:

   # Summary of {Name}
   
   - Total Tests: X
   - Total Errors: X
   - Total Failures: X
   - Total Not Run: X
   - Total Inconclusive: X
   - Total Ignored: X
   - Total Skipped: X
   - Total Invalid: X
   

3. Upload Artifacts

   • Uses actions/upload-artifact@v4 to upload test results
   • Artifact name: junit-pester-{name}
   • Always runs (even if previous steps fail) via if: always()
   • Uploads the entire test results folder

4. Exit Status

   • Fails the job (exit 1) if:
     • Any test errors occurred ($testErrorCount -gt 0)
     • Any test failures occurred ($testFailureCount -gt 0)
     • No test cases were run ($testCaseCount -eq 0)

Usage in Test Actions

The process-pester-results action is called by two platform-specific composite test actions:

Linux/macOS Tests: .github/actions/test/nix

Used in:

• .github/workflows/linux-ci.yml
• .github/workflows/macos-ci.yml

Example usage (lines 99-104 in nix/action.yml):

- name: Convert, Publish, and Upload Pester Test Results
  uses: "./.github/actions/test/process-pester-results"
  with:
    name: "${{ inputs.purpose }}-${{ inputs.tagSet }}"
    testResultsFolder: "${{ runner.workspace }}/testResults"

Windows Tests: .github/actions/test/windows

Used in:

• .github/workflows/windows-ci.yml

Example usage (line 78-83 in windows/action.yml):

- name: Convert, Publish, and Upload Pester Test Results
  uses: "./.github/actions/test/process-pester-results"
  with:
    name: "${{ inputs.purpose }}-${{ inputs.tagSet }}"
    testResultsFolder: ${{ runner.workspace }}\testResults

Workflow Integration

The process-pester-results action is integrated into the CI workflows through a multi-level hierarchy:

Level 1: Main CI Workflows

• linux-ci.yml
• macos-ci.yml
• windows-ci.yml

Level 2: Test Jobs

Each workflow contains multiple test jobs with different purposes and tag sets:

• UnelevatedPesterTests with tagSet CI
• ElevatedPesterTests with tagSet CI
• UnelevatedPesterTests with tagSet Others
• ElevatedPesterTests with tagSet Others

Level 3: Platform Test Actions

Test jobs use platform-specific actions:

• nix for Linux and macOS
• windows for Windows

Level 4: Process Results Action

Platform actions call process-pester-results to publish results

Test Execution Flow

1. Build Phase: Source code is built (e.g., in ci_build job)
2. Test Preparation:
   • Build artifacts are downloaded
   • PowerShell is bootstrapped
   • Test binaries are extracted
3. Test Execution:
   • Invoke-CITest is called with:
     • -Purpose: Test purpose (e.g., "UnelevatedPesterTests")
     • -TagSet: Test category (e.g., "CI", "Others")
     • -OutputFormat NUnitXml: Results format
   • Results are written to ${{ runner.workspace }}/testResults
4. Results Processing:
   • process-pester-results action runs
   • Results are aggregated and summarized
   • Artifacts are uploaded
   • Job fails if any tests failed or errored

Key Dependencies

PowerShell Modules

• build.psm1: Provides utility functions
  • Write-Log: Logging function with GitHub Actions support
  • Write-LogGroupStart: Creates collapsible log groups
  • Write-LogGroupEnd: Closes collapsible log groups

GitHub Actions Features

• GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY: Environment variable for job summary
• actions/upload-artifact@v4: For uploading test results
• Composite Actions: For reusable workflow steps

Test Result Format

• NUnitXml: XML format for test results
• Expected XML structure with test-results root element containing:
  • total: Total number of tests
  • errors: Number of errors
  • failures: Number of failures
  • not-run: Number of tests not run
  • inconclusive: Number of inconclusive tests
  • ignored: Number of ignored tests
  • skipped: Number of skipped tests
  • invalid: Number of invalid tests

Best Practices

1. Naming Convention: Use descriptive names that include both purpose and tagSet:

   • Format: {purpose}-{tagSet}
   • Example: UnelevatedPesterTests-CI

2. Test Results Location:

   • Default location: ${{ runner.workspace }}/testResults
   • Use platform-appropriate path separators (Windows: \, Unix: /)

3. Always Upload: The artifact upload step uses if: always() to ensure results are uploaded even when tests fail

4. Error Handling: The action will fail the job if:

   • Tests have errors or failures (intentional fail-fast behavior)
   • No tests were executed (potential configuration issue)
   • GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY is not set (environment issue)

Customizing for Your Repository

To use this pattern in another repository:

1. Copy the Action Files:

   • Copy .github/actions/test/process-pester-results/ directory
   • Ensure the PowerShell script has proper permissions

2. Adjust Dependencies:

   • Modify or remove the Import-Module "$PSScriptRoot/../../../../build.psm1" line
   • Implement equivalent Write-Log and Write-LogGroup* functions if needed

3. Customize Summary Format:

   • Modify the here-string in process-pester-results.ps1 to change summary format
   • Add additional metrics or formatting as needed

4. Call from Your Workflows:

   - name: Process Test Results
     uses: "./.github/actions/test/process-pester-results"
     with:
       name: "my-test-run"
       testResultsFolder: "path/to/results"
   

Related Documentation

• GitHub Actions: Creating composite actions
• GitHub Actions: Job summaries
• GitHub Actions: Uploading artifacts
• Pester: PowerShell testing framework
• NUnit XML Format

Troubleshooting

No Test Results Found

• Verify testResultsFolder path is correct
• Ensure tests are generating NUnitXml formatted output
• Check that *.xml files exist in the specified folder

Action Fails with "GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY is not set"

• Ensure the action runs within a GitHub Actions environment
• Cannot be run locally without mocking this environment variable

All Tests Pass but Job Fails

• Check if any tests are marked as errors (different from failures)
• Verify that at least some tests executed ($testCaseCount -eq 0)

Artifact Upload Fails

• Check artifact name for invalid characters
• Ensure the test results folder exists
• Verify actions/upload-artifact version compatibility