How to Configure Test Helper App

[jimmymcp]

Hi,

I have an app which is designed to be a helper for writing test apps. It is the only app contained in its repo. It depends on the test libraries and other test apps depend upon it. It has some generic methods for setting up blank companies, creating no. series etc.

I'm not sure how I can configure this Test Helper repo with AL-Go. If I add it to appFolders then the build fails because the test libraries dependency cannot be resolved. If I add to testFolders then the CI/CD build succeeds but I can't get the dependency resolution for other apps to work. Maybe because I need to create a release of the Test-Helper app (sorry, still learning AL-Go)? I can't create a release of the app though (presumably because there is no app to release, only a test app?)

Any help gratefully received. Thanks

[mazhelez]

Hi @jimmymcp

Quite an interesting setup you have there.
I assume "the test libraries" are the one that Microsoft provides in the BC artifacts for partners.

How do you set up the other test apps to point to your test library app? Do you use appDependencyProbingPaths?

[jimmymcp]

I've just invited you to collaborate on the dependent app so that you can see the setup and the workflow logs, but this is what I have in the settings file:

  "appDependencyProbingPaths": [
    {
      "repo": "https://github.com/jimmymcp/test-helper",
      "version": "latest",
      "release_status": "prerelease",
      "projects": "*"
    }
  ]

The build fails with the following:

Downloading project dependencies from probing paths
  Checking type
  Checking appFolders, testFolders and bcptTestFolders
  Application Dependency 27.0.0.0
  Updating app- and test Dependencies
  Analyzing Test App Dependencies
  No performance test apps found in bcptTestFolders in .AL-Go\settings.json
  Checking appDependencyProbingPaths
  Dependency to projects '*' in https://github.com/jimmymcp/test-helper@main, version latest, release status prerelease
  Using GITHUB_TOKEN for access to repository
  Locating Apps artifacts for projects: *
  Analyzing releases https://api.github.com/repos/jimmymcp/test-helper/releases
  The remote server returned an error: (404) Not Found. 

[mazhelez]

Before I accept your invitation, the 404 tells me your "test-helper" repo is private, and the default GITHUB_TOKEN cannot access it.
Try setting appDependencyProbingPaths.AuthTokenSecret with the name of the secret that is a PAT that can access the releases in "test-helper" repo.

[jimmymcp]

Thanks, I've added the AuthTokenSecret but am now getting an error that a release doesn't exist in the dependency repo (which is right, I wasn't able to successfully run the create release workflow).

Analyzing releases https://api.github.com/repos/jimmymcp/test-helper/releases
  Enabling Microsoft telemetry...
  Error: Unexpected error when running action. Error Message: Could not find a release that matches the criteria., StackTrace: at GetDependencies, D:\a\_actions\microsoft\AL-Go-Actions\v8.1\Github-Helper.psm1: line 222 <- at DownloadDependenciesFromProbingPaths, D:\a\_actions\microsoft\AL-Go-Actions\v8.1\DownloadProjectDependencies\DownloadProjectDependencies.Action.ps1: line 24 <- at <ScriptBlock>, D:\a\_actions\microsoft\AL-Go-Actions\v8.1\DownloadProjectDependencies\DownloadProjectDependencies.Action.ps1: line 123 <- at <ScriptBlock>, D:\a\_temp\65f11256-78e3-4425-9436-2c5c8b756941.ps1: line 3 <- at <ScriptBlock>, D:\a\_actions\microsoft\AL-Go-Actions\v8.1\Invoke-AlGoAction.ps1: line 21 <- at <ScriptBlock>, D:\a\_temp\65f11256-78e3-4425-9436-2c5c8b756941.ps1: line 2 <- at <ScriptBlock>, <No file>: line 1

[mazhelez]

Alternatively, you can set appDependencyProbingPaths.release_status to latestBuild. That way you only need to have a successful CICD in the test-helper repo that contains all the needed artifacts.

Using releases is recommended when you have to support multiple versions at the same time.

[jimmymcp]

Great, thanks. Using latestBuild seems to work and is fine for my scenario. Incidentally, I didn't know that was an option for the release_status. It isn't mentioned on this page (https://github.com/microsoft/AL-Go/blob/main/Scenarios/AppDependencies.md) is there somewhere else where this is documented?

Thanks for the help 🙂

[freddydk]

The settings documentation is here: http://aka.ms/algosettings#appdependencyprobingpaths

It is mentioned, not not very well described.