# `test` — Regression tests package for Python

Note

The `test` package is meant for internal use by Python only. It is documented for the benefit of the core developers of Python. Any use of this package outside of Python’s standard library is discouraged as code mentioned here can change or be removed without notice between releases of Python.

The `test` package contains all regression tests for Python as well as the modules `test.support` and `test.regrtest`. `test.support` is used to enhance your tests while `test.regrtest` drives the testing suite.

Each module in the `test` package whose name starts with `test_` is a testing suite for a specific module or feature. All new tests should be written using the `unittest` or `doctest` module. Some older tests are written using a “traditional” testing style that compares output printed to `sys.stdout`; this style of test is considered deprecated.

See also

Module `unittest`

  Writing PyUnit regression tests.

Module `doctest`

  Tests embedded in documentation strings.

## Writing Unit Tests for the `test` package

It is preferred that tests that use the `unittest` module follow a few guidelines. One is to name the test module by starting it with `test_` and end it with the name of the module being tested. The test methods in the test module should start with `test_` and end with a description of what the method is testing. This is needed so that the methods are recognized by the test driver as test methods. Also, no documentation string for the method should be included. A comment (such as `# Tests function returns only True or False`) should be used to provide documentation for test methods. This is done because documentation strings get printed out if they exist and thus what test is being run is not stated.

A basic boilerplate is often used:

    import unittest
    from test import support

    class MyTestCase1(unittest.TestCase):

        # Only use setUp() and tearDown() if necessary

        def setUp(self):
            ... code to execute in preparation for tests ...

        def tearDown(self):
            ... code to execute to clean up after tests ...

        def test_feature_one(self):
            # Test feature one.
            ... testing code ...

        def test_feature_two(self):
            # Test feature two.
            ... testing code ...

        ... more test methods ...

    class MyTestCase2(unittest.TestCase):
        ... same structure as MyTestCase1 ...

    ... more test classes ...

    if __name__ == '__main__':
        unittest.main()

This code pattern allows the testing suite to be run by `test.regrtest`, on its own as a script that supports the `unittest` CLI, or via the `python -m unittest` CLI.

The goal for regression testing is to try to break code. This leads to a few guidelines to be followed:

- The testing suite should exercise all classes, functions, and constants. This includes not just the external API that is to be presented to the outside world but also “private” code.

- Whitebox testing (examining the code being tested when the tests are being written) is preferred. Blackbox testing (testing only the published user interface) is not complete enough to make sure all boundary and edge cases are tested.

- Make sure all possible values are tested including invalid ones. This makes sure that not only all valid values are acceptable but also that improper values are handled correctly.

- Exhaust as many code paths as possible. Test where branching occurs and thus tailor input to make sure as many different paths through the code are taken.

- Add an explicit test for any bugs discovered for the tested code. This will make sure that the error does not crop up again if the code is changed in the future.

- Make sure to clean up after your tests (such as close and remove all temporary files).

- If a test is dependent on a specific condition of the operating system then verify the condition already exists before attempting the test.

- Import as few modules as possible and do it as soon as possible. This minimizes external dependencies of tests and also minimizes possible anomalous behavior from side-effects of importing a module.

- Try to maximize code reuse. On occasion, tests will vary by something as small as what type of input is used. Minimize code duplication by subclassing a basic test class with a class that specifies the input:

      class TestFuncAcceptsSequencesMixin:

          func = mySuperWhammyFunction

          def test_func(self):
              self.func(self.arg)

      class AcceptLists(TestFuncAcceptsSequencesMixin, unittest.TestCase):
          arg = [1, 2, 3]

      class AcceptStrings(TestFuncAcceptsSequencesMixin, unittest.TestCase):
          arg = 'abc'

      class AcceptTuples(TestFuncAcceptsSequencesMixin, unittest.TestCase):
          arg = (1, 2, 3)

  When using this pattern, remember that all classes that inherit from `unittest.TestCase` are run as tests. The `TestFuncAcceptsSequencesMixin` class in the example above does not have any data and so can’t be run by itself, thus it does not inherit from `unittest.TestCase`.

See also

Test Driven Development

  A book by Kent Beck on writing tests before code.

## Running tests using the command-line interface

The `test` package can be run as a script to drive Python’s regression test suite, thanks to the `-m` option: python -m test. Under the hood, it uses `test.regrtest`; the call python -m test.regrtest used in previous Python versions still works. Running the script by itself automatically starts running all regression tests in the `test` package. It does this by finding all modules in the package whose name starts with `test_`, importing them, and executing the function `test_main()` if present or loading the tests via unittest.TestLoader.loadTestsFromModule if `test_main` does not exist. The names of tests to execute may also be passed to the script. Specifying a single regression test (python -m test test_spam) will minimize output and only print whether the test passed or failed.

Running `test` directly allows what resources are available for tests to use to be set. You do this by using the `-u` command-line option. Specifying `all` as the value for the `-u` option enables all possible resources: python -m test -uall. If all but one resource is desired (a more common case), a comma-separated list of resources that are not desired may be listed after `all`. The command python -m test -uall,-audio,-largefile will run `test` with all resources except the `audio` and `largefile` resources. For a list of all resources and more command-line options, run python -m test -h.

Some other ways to execute the regression tests depend on what platform the tests are being executed on. On Unix, you can run make test at the top-level directory where Python was built. On Windows, executing rt.bat from your `PCbuild` directory will run all regression tests.

Added in version 3.14: Output is colorized by default and can be controlled using environment variables.

# `test.support` — Utilities for the Python test suite

The `test.support` module provides support for Python’s regression test suite.

Note

`test.support` is not a public module. It is documented here to help Python developers write tests. The API of this module is subject to change without backwards compatibility concerns between releases.

This module defines the following exceptions:

exception test.support.TestFailed

  Exception to be raised when a test fails. This is deprecated in favor of `unittest`-based tests and `unittest.TestCase`’s assertion methods.

exception test.support.ResourceDenied

  Subclass of `unittest.SkipTest`. Raised when a resource (such as a network connection) is not available. Raised by the `requires()` function.

The `test.support` module defines the following constants:

test.support.verbose

  `True` when verbose output is enabled. Should be checked when more detailed information is desired about a running test. verbose is set by `test.regrtest`.

test.support.is_jython

  `True` if the running interpreter is Jython.

test.support.is_android

  `True` if `sys.platform` is `android`.

test.support.is_emscripten

  `True` if `sys.platform` is `emscripten`.

test.support.is_wasi

  `True` if `sys.platform` is `wasi`.

test.support.is_apple_mobile

  `True` if `sys.platform` is `ios`, `tvos`, or `watchos`.

test.support.is_apple

  `True` if `sys.platform` is `darwin` or `is_apple_mobile` is `True`.

test.support.unix_shell

  Path for shell if not on Windows; otherwise `None`.

test.support.LOOPBACK_TIMEOUT

  Timeout in seconds for tests using a network server listening on the network local loopback interface like `127.0.0.1`.

  The timeout is long enough to prevent test failure: it takes into account that the client and the server can run in different threads or even different processes.

  The timeout should be long enough for `connect()`, `recv()` and `send()` methods of `socket.socket`.

  Its default value is 5 seconds.

  See also `INTERNET_TIMEOUT`.

test.support.INTERNET_TIMEOUT

  Timeout in seconds for network requests going to the internet.

  The timeout is short enough to prevent a test to wait for too long if the internet request is blocked for whatever reason.

  Usually, a timeout using `INTERNET_TIMEOUT` should not mark a test as failed, but skip the test instead: see `transient_internet()`.

  Its default value is 1 minute.

  See also `LOOPBACK_TIMEOUT`.

test.support.SHORT_TIMEOUT

  Timeout in seconds to mark a test as failed if the test takes “too long”.

  The timeout value depends on the regrtest `--timeout` command line option.

  If a test using `SHORT_TIMEOUT` starts to fail randomly on slow buildbots, use `LONG_TIMEOUT` instead.

  Its default value is 30 seconds.

test.support.LONG_TIMEOUT

  Timeout in seconds to detect when a test hangs.

  It is long enough to reduce the risk of test failure on the slowest Python buildbots. It should not be used to mark a test as failed if the test takes “too long”. The timeout value depends on the regrtest `--timeout` command line option.

  Its default value is 5 minutes.

  See also `LOOPBACK_TIMEOUT`, `INTERNET_TIMEOUT` and `SHORT_TIMEOUT`.

test.support.PGO

  Set when tests can be skipped when they are not useful for PGO.

test.support.PIPE_MAX_SIZE

  A constant that is likely larger than the underlying OS pipe buffer size, to make writes blocking.

test.support.Py_DEBUG

  `True` if Python was built with the `Py_DEBUG` macro defined, that is, if Python was built in debug mode.

  Added in version 3.12.

test.support.SOCK_MAX_SIZE

  A constant that is likely larger than the underlying OS socket buffer size, to make writes blocking.

test.support.TEST_SUPPORT_DIR

  Set to the top level directory that contains `test.support`.

test.support.TEST_HOME_DIR

  Set to the top level directory for the test package.

test.support.TEST_DATA_DIR

  Set to the `data` directory within the test package.

test.support.MAX_Py_ssize_t

  Set to `sys.maxsize` for big memory tests.

test.support.max_memuse

  Set by `set_memlimit()` as the memory limit for big memory tests. Limited by `MAX_Py_ssize_t`.

test.support.real_max_memuse

  Set by `set_memlimit()` as the memory limit for big memory tests. Not limited by `MAX_Py_ssize_t`.

test.support.MISSING_C_DOCSTRINGS

  Set to `True` if Python is built without docstrings (the `WITH_DOC_STRINGS` macro is not defined). See the `configure --without-doc-strings` option.

  See also the `HAVE_DOCSTRINGS` variable.

test.support.HAVE_DOCSTRINGS

  Set to `True` if function docstrings are available. See the `python -OO` option, which strips docstrings of functions implemented in Python.

  See also the `MISSING_C_DOCSTRINGS` variable.

test.support.TEST_HTTP_URL

  Define the URL of a dedicated HTTP server for the network tests.

test.support.ALWAYS_EQ

  Object that is equal to anything. Used to test mixed type comparison.

test.support.NEVER_EQ

  Object that is not equal to anything (even to `ALWAYS_EQ`). Used to test mixed type comparison.

test.support.LARGEST

  Object that is greater than anything (except itself). Used to test mixed type comparison.

test.support.SMALLEST

  Object that is less than anything (except itself). Used to test mixed type comparison.

The `test.support` module defines the following functions:

test.support.busy_retry(timeout, err_msg=None, /, *, error=True)

  Run the loop body until `break` stops the loop.

  After timeout seconds, raise an `AssertionError` if error is true, or just stop the loop if error is false.

  Example:

      for _ in support.busy_retry(support.SHORT_TIMEOUT):
          if check():
              break

  Example of error=False usage:

      for _ in support.busy_retry(support.SHORT_TIMEOUT, error=False):
          if check():
              break
      else:
          raise RuntimeError('my custom error')

test.support.sleeping_retry(timeout, err_msg=None, /, *, init_delay=0.010, max_delay=1.0, error=True)

  Wait strategy that applies exponential backoff.

  Run the loop body until `break` stops the loop. Sleep at each loop iteration, but not at the first iteration. The sleep delay is doubled at each iteration (up to max_delay seconds).

  See `busy_retry()` documentation for the parameters usage.

  Example raising an exception after SHORT_TIMEOUT seconds:

      for _ in support.sleeping_retry(support.SHORT_TIMEOUT):
          if check():
              break

  Example of error=False usage:

      for _ in support.sleeping_retry(support.SHORT_TIMEOUT, error=False):
          if check():
              break
      else:
          raise RuntimeError('my custom error')

test.support.is_resource_enabled(resource)

  Return `True` if resource is enabled and available. The list of available resources is only set when `test.regrtest` is executing the tests.

test.support.python_is_optimized()

  Return `True` if Python was not built with `-O0` or `-Og`.

test.support.with_pymalloc()

  Return `_testcapi.WITH_PYMALLOC`.

test.support.requires(resource, msg=None)

  Raise `ResourceDenied` if resource is not available. msg is the argument to `ResourceDenied` if it is raised. Always returns `True` if called by a function whose `__name__` is `'__main__'`. Used when tests are executed by `test.regrtest`.

test.support.sortdict(dict)

  Return a repr of dict with keys sorted.

test.support.findfile(filename, subdir=None)

  Return the path to the file named filename. If no match is found filename is returned. This does not equal a failure since it could be the path to the file.

  Setting subdir indicates a relative path to use to find the file rather than looking directly in the path directories.

test.support.get_pagesize()

  Get size of a page in bytes.

  Added in version 3.12.

test.support.setswitchinterval(interval)

  Set the `sys.setswitchinterval()` to the given interval. Defines a minimum interval for Android systems to prevent the system from hanging.

test.support.check_impl_detail(**guards)

  Use this check to guard CPython’s implementation-specific tests or to run them only on the implementations guarded by the arguments. This function returns `True` or `False` depending on the host platform. Example usage:

      check_impl_detail()               # Only on CPython (default).
      check_impl_detail(jython=True)    # Only on Jython.
      check_impl_detail(cpython=False)  # Everywhere except CPython.

test.support.set_memlimit(limit)

  Set the values for `max_memuse` and `real_max_memuse` for big memory tests.

test.support.record_original_stdout(stdout)

  Store the value from stdout. It is meant to hold the stdout at the time the regrtest began.

test.support.get_original_stdout()

  Return the original stdout set by `record_original_stdout()` or `sys.stdout` if it’s not set.

test.support.args_from_interpreter_flags()

  Return a list of command line arguments reproducing the current settings in `sys.flags` and `sys.warnoptions`.

test.support.optim_args_from_interpreter_flags()

  Return a list of command line arguments reproducing the current optimization settings in `sys.flags`.

test.support.captured_stdin()
test.support.captured_stdout()
test.support.captured_stderr()

  A context managers that temporarily replaces the named stream with `io.StringIO` object.

  Example use with output streams:

      with captured_stdout() as stdout, captured_stderr() as stderr:
          print("hello")
          print("error", file=sys.stderr)
      assert stdout.getvalue() == "hello\n"
      assert stderr.getvalue() == "error\n"

  Example use with input stream:

      with captured_stdin() as stdin:
          stdin.write('hello\n')
          stdin.seek(0)
          # call test code that consumes from sys.stdin
          captured = input()
      self.assertEqual(captured, "hello")

test.support.disable_faulthandler()

  A context manager that temporary disables `faulthandler`.

test.support.gc_collect()

  Force as many objects as possible to be collected. This is needed because timely deallocation is not guaranteed by the garbage collector. This means that `__del__` methods may be called later than expected and weakrefs may remain alive for longer than expected.

test.support.disable_gc()

  A context manager that disables the garbage collector on entry. On exit, the garbage collector is restored to its prior state.

test.support.swap_attr(obj, attr, new_val)

  Context manager to swap out an attribute with a new object.

  Usage:

      with swap_attr(obj, "attr", 5):
          ...

  This will set `obj.attr` to 5 for the duration of the `with` block, restoring the old value at the end of the block. If `attr` doesn’t exist on `obj`, it will be created and then deleted at the end of the block.

  The old value (or `None` if it doesn’t exist) will be assigned to the target of the “as” clause, if there is one.

test.support.swap_item(obj, attr, new_val)

  Context manager to swap out an item with a new object.

  Usage:

      with swap_item(obj, "item", 5):
          ...

  This will set `obj["item"]` to 5 for the duration of the `with` block, restoring the old value at the end of the block. If `item` doesn’t exist on `obj`, it will be created and then deleted at the end of the block.

  The old value (or `None` if it doesn’t exist) will be assigned to the target of the “as” clause, if there is one.

test.support.flush_std_streams()

  Call the `flush()` method on `sys.stdout` and then on `sys.stderr`. It can be used to make sure that the logs order is consistent before writing into stderr.

  Added in version 3.11.

test.support.print_warning(msg)

  Print a warning into `sys.__stderr__`. Format the message as: `f"Warning -- {msg}"`. If msg is made of multiple lines, add `"Warning -- "` prefix to each line.

  Added in version 3.9.

test.support.wait_process(pid, *, exitcode, timeout=None)

  Wait until process pid completes and check that the process exit code is exitcode.

  Raise an `AssertionError` if the process exit code is not equal to exitcode.

  If the process runs longer than timeout seconds (`SHORT_TIMEOUT` by default), kill the process and raise an `AssertionError`. The timeout feature is not available on Windows.

  Added in version 3.9.

test.support.calcobjsize(fmt)

  Return the size of the `PyObject` whose structure members are defined by fmt. The returned value includes the size of the Python object header and alignment.

test.support.calcvobjsize(fmt)

  Return the size of the `PyVarObject` whose structure members are defined by fmt. The returned value includes the size of the Python object header and alignment.

test.support.checksizeof(test, o, size)

  For testcase test, assert that the `sys.getsizeof` for o plus the GC header size equals size.

@test.support.anticipate_failure(condition)

  A decorator to conditionally mark tests with `unittest.expectedFailure()`. Any use of this decorator should have an associated comment identifying the relevant tracker issue.

test.support.system_must_validate_cert(f)

  A decorator that skips the decorated test on TLS certification validation failures.

@test.support.run_with_locale(catstr, *locales)

  A decorator for running a function in a different locale, correctly resetting it after it has finished. catstr is the locale category as a string (for example `"LC_ALL"`). The locales passed will be tried sequentially, and the first valid locale will be used.

@test.support.run_with_tz(tz)

  A decorator for running a function in a specific timezone, correctly resetting it after it has finished.

@test.support.requires_freebsd_version(*min_version)

  Decorator for the minimum version when running test on FreeBSD. If the FreeBSD version is less than the minimum, the test is skipped.

@test.support.requires_linux_version(*min_version)

  Decorator for the minimum version when running test on Linux. If the Linux version is less than the minimum, the test is skipped.

@test.support.requires_mac_version(*min_version)

  Decorator for the minimum version when running test on macOS. If the macOS version is less than the minimum, the test is skipped.

@test.support.requires_gil_enabled

  Decorator for skipping tests on the free-threaded build. If the GIL is disabled, the test is skipped.

@test.support.requires_IEEE_754

  Decorator for skipping tests on non-IEEE 754 platforms.

@test.support.requires_zlib

  Decorator for skipping tests if `zlib` doesn’t exist.

@test.support.requires_gzip

  Decorator for skipping tests if `gzip` doesn’t exist.

@test.support.requires_bz2

  Decorator for skipping tests if `bz2` doesn’t exist.

@test.support.requires_lzma

  Decorator for skipping tests if `lzma` doesn’t exist.

@test.support.requires_resource(resource)

  Decorator for skipping tests if resource is not available.

@test.support.requires_docstrings

  Decorator for only running the test if `HAVE_DOCSTRINGS`.

@test.support.requires_limited_api

  Decorator for only running the test if Limited C API is available.

@test.support.cpython_only

  Decorator for tests only applicable to CPython.

@test.support.impl_detail(msg=None, **guards)

  Decorator for invoking `check_impl_detail()` on guards. If that returns `False`, then uses msg as the reason for skipping the test.

@test.support.thread_unsafe(reason=None)

  Decorator for marking tests as thread-unsafe. This test always runs in one thread even when invoked with `--parallel-threads`.

@test.support.no_tracing

  Decorator to temporarily turn off tracing for the duration of the test.

@test.support.refcount_test

  Decorator for tests which involve reference counting. The decorator does not run the test if it is not run by CPython. Any trace function is unset for the duration of the test to prevent unexpected refcounts caused by the trace function.

@test.support.bigmemtest(size, memuse, dry_run=True)

  Decorator for bigmem tests.

  size is a requested size for the test (in arbitrary, test-interpreted units.) memuse is the number of bytes per unit for the test, or a good estimate of it. For example, a test that needs two byte buffers, of 4 GiB each, could be decorated with `@bigmemtest(size=_4G, memuse=2)`.

  The size argument is normally passed to the decorated test method as an extra argument. If dry_run is `True`, the value passed to the test method may be less than the requested value. If dry_run is `False`, it means the test doesn’t support dummy runs when `-M` is not specified.

@test.support.bigaddrspacetest

  Decorator for tests that fill the address space.

test.support.linked_with_musl()

  Return `False` if there is no evidence the interpreter was compiled with `musl`, otherwise return a version triple, either `(0, 0, 0)` if the version is unknown, or the actual version if it is known. Intended for use in `skip` decorators. `emscripten` and `wasi` are assumed to be compiled with `musl`; otherwise `platform.libc_ver` is checked.

test.support.check_syntax_error(testcase, statement, errtext='', *, lineno=None, offset=None)

  Test for syntax errors in statement by attempting to compile statement. testcase is the `unittest` instance for the test. errtext is the regular expression which should match the string representation of the raised `SyntaxError`. If lineno is not `None`, compares to the line of the exception. If offset is not `None`, compares to the offset of the exception.

test.support.open_urlresource(url, *args, **kw)

  Open url. If open fails, raises `TestFailed`.

test.support.reap_children()

  Use this at the end of `test_main` whenever sub-processes are started. This will help ensure that no extra children (zombies) stick around to hog resources and create problems when looking for refleaks.

test.support.get_attribute(obj, name)

  Get an attribute, raising `unittest.SkipTest` if `AttributeError` is raised.

test.support.catch_unraisable_exception()

  Context manager catching unraisable exception using `sys.unraisablehook()`.

  Storing the exception value (`cm.unraisable.exc_value`) creates a reference cycle. The reference cycle is broken explicitly when the context manager exits.

  Storing the object (`cm.unraisable.object`) can resurrect it if it is set to an object which is being finalized. Exiting the context manager clears the stored object.

  Usage:

      with support.catch_unraisable_exception() as cm:
          # code creating an "unraisable exception"
          ...

          # check the unraisable exception: use cm.unraisable
          ...

      # cm.unraisable attribute no longer exists at this point
      # (to break a reference cycle)

  Added in version 3.8.

test.support.load_package_tests(pkg_dir, loader, standard_tests, pattern)

  Generic implementation of the `unittest` `load_tests` protocol for use in test packages. pkg_dir is the root directory of the package; loader, standard_tests, and pattern are the arguments expected by `load_tests`. In simple cases, the test package’s `__init__.py` can be the following:

      import os
      from test.support import load_package_tests

      def load_tests(*args):
          return load_package_tests(os.path.dirname(__file__), *args)

test.support.detect_api_mismatch(ref_api, other_api, *, ignore=())

  Returns the set of attributes, functions or methods of ref_api not found on other_api, except for a defined list of items to be ignored in this check specified in ignore.

  By default this skips private attributes beginning with ‘_’ but includes all magic methods, i.e. those starting and ending in ‘__’.

  Added in version 3.5.

test.support.patch(test_instance, object_to_patch, attr_name, new_value)

  Override object_to_patch.attr_name with new_value. Also add cleanup procedure to test_instance to restore object_to_patch for attr_name. The attr_name should be a valid attribute for object_to_patch.

test.support.run_in_subinterp(code)

  Run code in subinterpreter. Raise `unittest.SkipTest` if `tracemalloc` is enabled.

test.support.check_free_after_iterating(test, iter, cls, args=())

  Assert instances of cls are deallocated after iterating.

test.support.missing_compiler_executable(cmd_names=[])

  Check for the existence of the compiler executables whose names are listed in cmd_names or all the compiler executables when cmd_names is empty and return the first missing executable or `None` when none is found missing.

test.support.check__all__(test_case, module, name_of_module=None, extra=(), not_exported=())

  Assert that the `__all__` variable of module contains all public names.

  The module’s public names (its API) are detected automatically based on whether they match the public name convention and were defined in module.

  The name_of_module argument can specify (as a string or tuple thereof) what module(s) an API could be defined in order to be detected as a public API. One case for this is when module imports part of its public API from other modules, possibly a C backend (like `csv` and its `_csv`).

  The extra argument can be a set of names that wouldn’t otherwise be automatically detected as “public”, like objects without a proper `__module__` attribute. If provided, it will be added to the automatically detected ones.

  The not_exported argument can be a set of names that must not be treated as part of the public API even though their names indicate otherwise.

  Example use:

      import bar
      import foo
      import unittest
      from test import support

      class MiscTestCase(unittest.TestCase):
          def test__all__(self):
              support.check__all__(self, foo)

      class OtherTestCase(unittest.TestCase):
          def test__all__(self):
              extra = {'BAR_CONST', 'FOO_CONST'}
              not_exported = {'baz'}  # Undocumented name.
              # bar imports part of its API from _bar.
              support.check__all__(self, bar, ('bar', '_bar'),
                                   extra=extra, not_exported=not_exported)

  Added in version 3.6.

test.support.skip_if_broken_multiprocessing_synchronize()

  Skip tests if the `multiprocessing.synchronize` module is missing, if there is no available semaphore implementation, or if creating a lock raises an `OSError`.

  Added in version 3.10.

test.support.check_disallow_instantiation(test_case, tp, *args, **kwds)

  Assert that type tp cannot be instantiated using args and kwds.

  Added in version 3.10.

test.support.adjust_int_max_str_digits(max_digits)

  This function returns a context manager that will change the global `sys.set_int_max_str_digits()` setting for the duration of the context to allow execution of test code that needs a different limit on the number of digits when converting between an integer and string.

  Added in version 3.11.

The `test.support` module defines the following classes:

class test.support.SuppressCrashReport

  A context manager used to try to prevent crash dialog popups on tests that are expected to crash a subprocess.

  On Windows, it disables Windows Error Reporting dialogs using SetErrorMode.

  On UNIX, `resource.setrlimit()` is used to set `resource.RLIMIT_CORE`’s soft limit to 0 to prevent coredump file creation.

  On both platforms, the old value is restored by `__exit__()`.

class test.support.SaveSignals

  Class to save and restore signal handlers registered by the Python signal handler.

  save(self)

    Save the signal handlers to a dictionary mapping signal numbers to the current signal handler.

  restore(self)

    Set the signal numbers from the `save()` dictionary to the saved handler.

class test.support.Matcher
  matches(self, d, **kwargs)

    Try to match a single dict with the supplied arguments.

  match_value(self, k, dv, v)

    Try to match a single stored value (dv) with a supplied value (v).

# `test.support.socket_helper` — Utilities for socket tests

The `test.support.socket_helper` module provides support for socket tests.

Added in version 3.9.

test.support.socket_helper.IPV6_ENABLED

  Set to `True` if IPv6 is enabled on this host, `False` otherwise.

test.support.socket_helper.find_unused_port(family=socket.AF_INET, socktype=socket.SOCK_STREAM)

  Returns an unused port that should be suitable for binding. This is achieved by creating a temporary socket with the same family and type as the `sock` parameter (default is `AF_INET`, `SOCK_STREAM`), and binding it to the specified host address (defaults to `0.0.0.0`) with the port set to 0, eliciting an unused ephemeral port from the OS. The temporary socket is then closed and deleted, and the ephemeral port is returned.

  Either this method or `bind_port()` should be used for any tests where a server socket needs to be bound to a particular port for the duration of the test. Which one to use depends on whether the calling code is creating a Python socket, or if an unused port needs to be provided in a constructor or passed to an external program (i.e. the `-accept` argument to openssl’s s_server mode). Always prefer `bind_port()` over `find_unused_port()` where possible. Using a hard coded port is discouraged since it can make multiple instances of the test impossible to run simultaneously, which is a problem for buildbots.

test.support.socket_helper.bind_port(sock, host=HOST)

  Bind the socket to a free port and return the port number. Relies on ephemeral ports in order to ensure we are using an unbound port. This is important as many tests may be running simultaneously, especially in a buildbot environment. This method raises an exception if the `sock.family` is `AF_INET` and `sock.type` is `SOCK_STREAM`, and the socket has `SO_REUSEADDR` or `SO_REUSEPORT` set on it. Tests should never set these socket options for TCP/IP sockets. The only case for setting these options is testing multicasting via multiple UDP sockets.

  Additionally, if the `SO_EXCLUSIVEADDRUSE` socket option is available (i.e. on Windows), it will be set on the socket. This will prevent anyone else from binding to our host/port for the duration of the test.

test.support.socket_helper.bind_unix_socket(sock, addr)

  Bind a Unix socket, raising `unittest.SkipTest` if `PermissionError` is raised.

@test.support.socket_helper.skip_unless_bind_unix_socket

  A decorator for running tests that require a functional `bind()` for Unix sockets.

test.support.socket_helper.transient_internet(resource_name, *, timeout=30.0, errnos=())

  A context manager that raises `ResourceDenied` when various issues with the internet connection manifest themselves as exceptions.

# `test.support.script_helper` — Utilities for the Python execution tests

The `test.support.script_helper` module provides support for Python’s script execution tests.

test.support.script_helper.interpreter_requires_environment()

  Return `True` if `sys.executable interpreter` requires environment variables in order to be able to run at all.

  This is designed to be used with `@unittest.skipIf()` to annotate tests that need to use an `assert_python*()` function to launch an isolated mode (`-I`) or no environment mode (`-E`) sub-interpreter process.

  A normal build & test does not run into this situation but it can happen when trying to run the standard library test suite from an interpreter that doesn’t have an obvious home with Python’s current home finding logic.

  Setting `PYTHONHOME` is one way to get most of the testsuite to run in that situation. `PYTHONPATH` or `PYTHONUSERSITE` are other common environment variables that might impact whether or not the interpreter can start.

test.support.script_helper.run_python_until_end(*args, **env_vars)

  Set up the environment based on env_vars for running the interpreter in a subprocess. The values can include `__isolated`, `__cleanenv`, `__cwd`, and `TERM`.

  Changed in version 3.9: The function no longer strips whitespaces from stderr.

test.support.script_helper.assert_python_ok(*args, **env_vars)

  Assert that running the interpreter with args and optional environment variables env_vars succeeds (`rc == 0`) and return a `(return code, stdout, stderr)` tuple.

  If the __cleanenv keyword-only parameter is set, env_vars is used as a fresh environment.

  Python is started in isolated mode (command line option `-I`), except if the __isolated keyword-only parameter is set to `False`.

  Changed in version 3.9: The function no longer strips whitespaces from stderr.

test.support.script_helper.assert_python_failure(*args, **env_vars)

  Assert that running the interpreter with args and optional environment variables env_vars fails (`rc != 0`) and return a `(return code, stdout, stderr)` tuple.

  See `assert_python_ok()` for more options.

  Changed in version 3.9: The function no longer strips whitespaces from stderr.

test.support.script_helper.spawn_python(*args, stdout=subprocess.PIPE, stderr=subprocess.STDOUT, **kw)

  Run a Python subprocess with the given arguments.

  kw is extra keyword args to pass to `subprocess.Popen()`. Returns a `subprocess.Popen` object.

test.support.script_helper.kill_python(p)

  Run the given `subprocess.Popen` process until completion and return stdout.

test.support.script_helper.make_script(script_dir, script_basename, source, omit_suffix=False)

  Create script containing source in path script_dir and script_basename. If omit_suffix is `False`, append `.py` to the name. Return the full script path.

test.support.script_helper.make_zip_script(zip_dir, zip_basename, script_name, name_in_zip=None)

  Create zip file at zip_dir and zip_basename with extension `zip` which contains the files in script_name. name_in_zip is the archive name. Return a tuple containing `(full path, full path of archive name)`.

test.support.script_helper.make_pkg(pkg_dir, init_source='')

  Create a directory named pkg_dir containing an `__init__` file with init_source as its contents.

test.support.script_helper.make_zip_pkg(zip_dir, zip_basename, pkg_name, script_basename, source, depth=1, compiled=False)

  Create a zip package directory with a path of zip_dir and zip_basename containing an empty `__init__` file and a file script_basename containing the source. If compiled is `True`, both source files will be compiled and added to the zip package. Return a tuple of the full zip path and the archive name for the zip file.

# `test.support.bytecode_helper` — Support tools for testing correct bytecode generation

The `test.support.bytecode_helper` module provides support for testing and inspecting bytecode generation.

Added in version 3.9.

The module defines the following class:

class test.support.bytecode_helper.BytecodeTestCase(unittest.TestCase)

  This class has custom assertion methods for inspecting bytecode.

BytecodeTestCase.get_disassembly_as_string(co)

  Return the disassembly of co as string.

BytecodeTestCase.assertInBytecode(x, opname, argval=_UNSPECIFIED)

  Return instr if opname is found, otherwise throws `AssertionError`.

BytecodeTestCase.assertNotInBytecode(x, opname, argval=_UNSPECIFIED)

  Throws `AssertionError` if opname is found.

# `test.support.threading_helper` — Utilities for threading tests

The `test.support.threading_helper` module provides support for threading tests.

Added in version 3.10.

test.support.threading_helper.join_thread(thread, timeout=None)

  Join a thread within timeout. Raise an `AssertionError` if thread is still alive after timeout seconds.

@test.support.threading_helper.reap_threads

  Decorator to ensure the threads are cleaned up even if the test fails.

test.support.threading_helper.start_threads(threads, unlock=None)

  Context manager to start threads, which is a sequence of threads. unlock is a function called after the threads are started, even if an exception was raised; an example would be `threading.Event.set()`. `start_threads` will attempt to join the started threads upon exit.

test.support.threading_helper.threading_cleanup(*original_values)

  Cleanup up threads not specified in original_values. Designed to emit a warning if a test leaves running threads in the background.

test.support.threading_helper.threading_setup()

  Return current thread count and copy of dangling threads.

test.support.threading_helper.wait_threads_exit(timeout=None)

  Context manager to wait until all threads created in the `with` statement exit.

test.support.threading_helper.catch_threading_exception()

  Context manager catching `threading.Thread` exception using `threading.excepthook()`.

  Attributes set when an exception is caught:

  - `exc_type`

  - `exc_value`

  - `exc_traceback`

  - `thread`

  See `threading.excepthook()` documentation.

  These attributes are deleted at the context manager exit.

  Usage:

      with threading_helper.catch_threading_exception() as cm:
          # code spawning a thread which raises an exception
          ...

          # check the thread exception, use cm attributes:
          # exc_type, exc_value, exc_traceback, thread
          ...

      # exc_type, exc_value, exc_traceback, thread attributes of cm no longer
      # exists at this point
      # (to avoid reference cycles)

  Added in version 3.8.

# `test.support.os_helper` — Utilities for os tests

The `test.support.os_helper` module provides support for os tests.

Added in version 3.10.

test.support.os_helper.FS_NONASCII

  A non-ASCII character encodable by `os.fsencode()`.

test.support.os_helper.SAVEDCWD

  Set to `os.getcwd()`.

test.support.os_helper.TESTFN

  Set to a name that is safe to use as the name of a temporary file. Any temporary file that is created should be closed and unlinked (removed).

test.support.os_helper.TESTFN_NONASCII

  Set to a filename containing the `FS_NONASCII` character, if it exists. This guarantees that if the filename exists, it can be encoded and decoded with the default filesystem encoding. This allows tests that require a non-ASCII filename to be easily skipped on platforms where they can’t work.

test.support.os_helper.TESTFN_UNENCODABLE

  Set to a filename (str type) that should not be able to be encoded by file system encoding in strict mode. It may be `None` if it’s not possible to generate such a filename.

test.support.os_helper.TESTFN_UNDECODABLE

  Set to a filename (bytes type) that should not be able to be decoded by file system encoding in strict mode. It may be `None` if it’s not possible to generate such a filename.

test.support.os_helper.TESTFN_UNICODE

  Set to a non-ASCII name for a temporary file.

class test.support.os_helper.EnvironmentVarGuard

  Class used to temporarily set or unset environment variables. Instances can be used as a context manager and have a complete dictionary interface for querying/modifying the underlying `os.environ`. After exit from the context manager all changes to environment variables done through this instance will be rolled back.

  Changed in version 3.1: Added dictionary interface.

class test.support.os_helper.FakePath(path)

  Simple path-like object. It implements the `__fspath__()` method which just returns the path argument. If path is an exception, it will be raised in `__fspath__()`.

EnvironmentVarGuard.set(envvar, value)

  Temporarily set the environment variable `envvar` to the value of `value`.

EnvironmentVarGuard.unset(envvar, *others)

  Temporarily unset one or more environment variables.

  Changed in version 3.14: More than one environment variable can be unset.

test.support.os_helper.can_symlink()

  Return `True` if the OS supports symbolic links, `False` otherwise.

test.support.os_helper.can_xattr()

  Return `True` if the OS supports xattr, `False` otherwise.

test.support.os_helper.change_cwd(path, quiet=False)

  A context manager that temporarily changes the current working directory to path and yields the directory.

  If quiet is `False`, the context manager raises an exception on error. Otherwise, it issues only a warning and keeps the current working directory the same.

test.support.os_helper.create_empty_file(filename)

  Create an empty file with filename. If it already exists, truncate it.

test.support.os_helper.fd_count()

  Count the number of open file descriptors.

test.support.os_helper.fs_is_case_insensitive(directory)

  Return `True` if the file system for directory is case-insensitive.

test.support.os_helper.make_bad_fd()

  Create an invalid file descriptor by opening and closing a temporary file, and returning its descriptor.

test.support.os_helper.rmdir(filename)

  Call `os.rmdir()` on filename. On Windows platforms, this is wrapped with a wait loop that checks for the existence of the file, which is needed due to antivirus programs that can hold files open and prevent deletion.

test.support.os_helper.rmtree(path)

  Call `shutil.rmtree()` on path or call `os.lstat()` and `os.rmdir()` to remove a path and its contents. As with `rmdir()`, on Windows platforms this is wrapped with a wait loop that checks for the existence of the files.

@test.support.os_helper.skip_unless_symlink

  A decorator for running tests that require support for symbolic links.

@test.support.os_helper.skip_unless_xattr

  A decorator for running tests that require support for xattr.

test.support.os_helper.temp_cwd(name='tempcwd', quiet=False)

  A context manager that temporarily creates a new directory and changes the current working directory (CWD).

  The context manager creates a temporary directory in the current directory with name name before temporarily changing the current working directory. If name is `None`, the temporary directory is created using `tempfile.mkdtemp()`.

  If quiet is `False` and it is not possible to create or change the CWD, an error is raised. Otherwise, only a warning is raised and the original CWD is used.

test.support.os_helper.temp_dir(path=None, quiet=False)

  A context manager that creates a temporary directory at path and yields the directory.

  If path is `None`, the temporary directory is created using `tempfile.mkdtemp()`. If quiet is `False`, the context manager raises an exception on error. Otherwise, if path is specified and cannot be created, only a warning is issued.

test.support.os_helper.temp_umask(umask)

  A context manager that temporarily sets the process umask.

test.support.os_helper.unlink(filename)

  Call `os.unlink()` on filename. As with `rmdir()`, on Windows platforms, this is wrapped with a wait loop that checks for the existence of the file.

# `test.support.import_helper` — Utilities for import tests

The `test.support.import_helper` module provides support for import tests.

Added in version 3.10.

test.support.import_helper.forget(module_name)

  Remove the module named module_name from `sys.modules` and delete any byte-compiled files of the module.

test.support.import_helper.import_fresh_module(name, fresh=(), blocked=(), deprecated=False)

  This function imports and returns a fresh copy of the named Python module by removing the named module from `sys.modules` before doing the import. Note that unlike `reload()`, the original module is not affected by this operation.

  fresh is an iterable of additional module names that are also removed from the `sys.modules` cache before doing the import.

  blocked is an iterable of module names that are replaced with `None` in the module cache during the import to ensure that attempts to import them raise `ImportError`.

  The named module and any modules named in the fresh and blocked parameters are saved before starting the import and then reinserted into `sys.modules` when the fresh import is complete.

  Module and package deprecation messages are suppressed during this import if deprecated is `True`.

  This function will raise `ImportError` if the named module cannot be imported.

  Example use:

      # Get copies of the warnings module for testing without affecting the
      # version being used by the rest of the test suite. One copy uses the
      # C implementation, the other is forced to use the pure Python fallback
      # implementation
      py_warnings = import_fresh_module('warnings', blocked=['_warnings'])
      c_warnings = import_fresh_module('warnings', fresh=['_warnings'])

  Added in version 3.1.

test.support.import_helper.import_module(name, deprecated=False, *, required_on=())

  This function imports and returns the named module. Unlike a normal import, this function raises `unittest.SkipTest` if the module cannot be imported.

  Module and package deprecation messages are suppressed during this import if deprecated is `True`. If a module is required on a platform but optional for others, set required_on to an iterable of platform prefixes which will be compared against `sys.platform`.

  Added in version 3.1.

test.support.import_helper.modules_setup()

  Return a copy of `sys.modules`.

test.support.import_helper.modules_cleanup(oldmodules)

  Remove modules except for oldmodules and `encodings` in order to preserve internal cache.

test.support.import_helper.unload(name)

  Delete name from `sys.modules`.

test.support.import_helper.make_legacy_pyc(source)

  Move a PEP 3147/PEP 488 pyc file to its legacy pyc location and return the file system path to the legacy pyc file. The source value is the file system path to the source file. It does not need to exist, however the PEP 3147/488 pyc file must exist.

class test.support.import_helper.CleanImport(*module_names)

  A context manager to force import to return a new module reference. This is useful for testing module-level behaviors, such as the emission of a `DeprecationWarning` on import. Example usage:

      with CleanImport('foo'):
          importlib.import_module('foo')  # New reference.

class test.support.import_helper.DirsOnSysPath(*paths)

  A context manager to temporarily add directories to `sys.path`.

  This makes a copy of `sys.path`, appends any directories given as positional arguments, then reverts `sys.path` to the copied settings when the context ends.

  Note that all `sys.path` modifications in the body of the context manager, including replacement of the object, will be reverted at the end of the block.

# `test.support.warnings_helper` — Utilities for warnings tests

The `test.support.warnings_helper` module provides support for warnings tests.

Added in version 3.10.

test.support.warnings_helper.ignore_warnings(*, category)

  Suppress warnings that are instances of category, which must be `Warning` or a subclass. Roughly equivalent to `warnings.catch_warnings()` with `warnings.simplefilter('ignore', category=category)`. For example:

      @warning_helper.ignore_warnings(category=DeprecationWarning)
      def test_suppress_warning():
          # do something

  Added in version 3.8.

test.support.warnings_helper.check_no_resource_warning(testcase)

  Context manager to check that no `ResourceWarning` was raised. You must remove the object which may emit `ResourceWarning` before the end of the context manager.

test.support.warnings_helper.check_syntax_warning(testcase, statement, errtext='', *, lineno=1, offset=None)

  Test for syntax warning in statement by attempting to compile statement. Test also that the `SyntaxWarning` is emitted only once, and that it will be converted to a `SyntaxError` when turned into error. testcase is the `unittest` instance for the test. errtext is the regular expression which should match the string representation of the emitted `SyntaxWarning` and raised `SyntaxError`. If lineno is not `None`, compares to the line of the warning and exception. If offset is not `None`, compares to the offset of the exception.

  Added in version 3.8.

test.support.warnings_helper.check_warnings(*filters, quiet=True)

  A convenience wrapper for `warnings.catch_warnings()` that makes it easier to test that a warning was correctly raised. It is approximately equivalent to calling `warnings.catch_warnings(record=True)` with `warnings.simplefilter()` set to `always` and with the option to automatically validate the results that are recorded.

  `check_warnings` accepts 2-tuples of the form `("message regexp", WarningCategory)` as positional arguments. If one or more filters are provided, or if the optional keyword argument quiet is `False`, it checks to make sure the warnings are as expected: each specified filter must match at least one of the warnings raised by the enclosed code or the test fails, and if any warnings are raised that do not match any of the specified filters the test fails. To disable the first of these checks, set quiet to `True`.

  If no arguments are specified, it defaults to:

      check_warnings(("", Warning), quiet=True)

  In this case all warnings are caught and no errors are raised.

  On entry to the context manager, a `WarningRecorder` instance is returned. The underlying warnings list from `catch_warnings()` is available via the recorder object’s `warnings` attribute. As a convenience, the attributes of the object representing the most recent warning can also be accessed directly through the recorder object (see example below). If no warning has been raised, then any of the attributes that would otherwise be expected on an object representing a warning will return `None`.

  The recorder object also has a `reset()` method, which clears the warnings list.

  The context manager is designed to be used like this:

      with check_warnings(("assertion is always true", SyntaxWarning),
                          ("", UserWarning)):
          exec('assert(False, "Hey!")')
          warnings.warn(UserWarning("Hide me!"))

  In this case if either warning was not raised, or some other warning was raised, `check_warnings()` would raise an error.

  When a test needs to look more deeply into the warnings, rather than just checking whether or not they occurred, code like this can be used:

      with check_warnings(quiet=True) as w:
          warnings.warn("foo")
          assert str(w.args[0]) == "foo"
          warnings.warn("bar")
          assert str(w.args[0]) == "bar"
          assert str(w.warnings[0].args[0]) == "foo"
          assert str(w.warnings[1].args[0]) == "bar"
          w.reset()
          assert len(w.warnings) == 0

  Here all warnings will be caught, and the test code tests the captured warnings directly.

  Changed in version 3.2: New optional arguments filters and quiet.

class test.support.warnings_helper.WarningsRecorder

  Class used to record warnings for unit tests. See documentation of `check_warnings()` above for more details.