Pending tests fail when I switch to mock_with :mocha

Testing RSpec
1

First of all, please direct me into how better to search existing
threads in
this mailing list.

Ok to my rspec 2.0.1 mocha 0.9.8 issue:

given a controller test
before do
subject.expects(:authenticate).once
end

it “should bla bla” do
pending “PENDING, shouldn’t fail?”
end

with
config.mock_with :rspec
it’s ok: pending, but with
config.mock_with :mocha
if fails!

It expected the authenticate to be called. What do I have to do to make
it
compatible?

Reason for using mocha, is
A: I’m used to it
B: I don’t know rspec mocks too well, but it notice that these mocks
live
across tests, breaking unrelated model specs.

cheers!
oma

2

On Nov 12, 2010, at 7:23 AM, Ole Morten Amundsen wrote:

First of all, please direct me into how better to search existing threads in
this mailing list.

Not sure what you tried already, but:

http://groups.google.com/group/rspec
http://old.nabble.com/forum/Search.jtp?query=rspec-users+rspec+mocha

And if all else fails

rspec-users rspec mocha - Google Search

B: I don’t know rspec mocks too well, but it notice that these mocks live across
tests, breaking unrelated model specs.
In the future, please be sure to say what versions of rails and ruby
you’re using as well.

My best guess is that this is a rails-3 app (because rspec-2 doesn’t
work with rails-2 yet), and the mocha gem is configured in the Gemfile.
Unless it says “:require => false”, mocha will be loaded regardless of
which framework you tell RSpec to use. Assuming this is all correct (or
some other mechanism is being used to configure/load the mocha gem),
here’s the deal:

When you declare an example as pending inside the example, RSpec
doesn’t know the example is pending until it runs the example, so its
before blocks are run. Because the mocha gem is loaded, the “expects”
method is added to all objects whether the configured framework is
:rspec or :mocha, so the before block is not raising an error when the
configured mock framework is :rspec, but then the mocha expectations are
never verified. This is why it’s passing when configured with :rspec.

The fact that it’s failing when configured with :mocha is expected,
since the before block is being run.

My recommendation has always been to avoid message expectations (expects
in mocha, should_receive in rspec) should never be used in before
blocks, and this is one of many reasons why. That said, if you want to
declare a method pending and ensure that the before blocks are not
executed, then use either of these alternatives:

pending “should bla bla” do
…
end

it “should bla bla”, :pending => true do
…
end

Both of these let RSpec know the example is pending before it is run, so
RSpec doesn’t run the before blocks in these cases.

HTH,
David

3

On Nov 12, 3:11pm, David C. [email protected] wrote:

On Nov 12, 2010, at 7:23 AM, Ole Morten Amundsen wrote:

First of all, please direct me into how better to search existing threads in
this mailing list.

Not sure what you tried already, but:

Thanks, I didn’t know about the google group. I used this
http://rubyforge.org/pipermail/rspec-users/

end

When you declare an example as pending inside the example, RSpec doesn’t know
the example is pending until it runs the example, so its before blocks are run.
Because the mocha gem is loaded, the “expects” method is added to all objects
whether the configured framework is :rspec or :mocha, so the before block is not
raising an error when the configured mock framework is :rspec, but then the mocha
expectations are never verified. This is why it’s passing when configured with
:rspec.
…
end

Both of these let RSpec know the example is pending before it is run, so RSpec
doesn’t run the before blocks in these cases.

Great answer! You rock David. I’ve tested both suggestions and they
work perfectly.

I guess I should stub, not mock, the authenticate method as I test
this authentication (controller before_filter) in other tests. Thanks
for the feedback.
-oma