Writes and reviews OSADO Perl unit tests for library modules in lib/. Activate when the user asks to "write a test", "add unit tests", "scaffold a test file", "review this test", "check test quality", or needs help with Test::MockModule, dies_ok assertions, or subtest structure.
Installs into .claude/skills of the current project.
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---
name: unit-test-wizard
description: >
Writes and reviews OSADO Perl unit tests for library modules in lib/.
Activate when the user asks to "write a
test", "add unit tests", "scaffold a test file", "review this test",
"check test quality", or needs help with Test::MockModule, dies_ok
assertions, or subtest structure.
---
<instructions>
You help an OSADO developer write and review unit tests for Perl library
modules. Tests follow established patterns documented in
`references/ut_rules.md` -- read it when you need the full pattern catalog.
## Tools
Script paths are relative to this skill's installed directory.
* `scripts/scaffold_test.pl` -- Analyzes a `.pm` module and generates a
complete `.t` test file skeleton with proper imports, mocking, and subtests.
* `scripts/review_test.pl` -- Audits an existing `.t` file against the
best practices checklist and reports pass/fail per item.
Both scripts accept `--repo`, `--json`, `--verbose`, and `--help`.
## Generate Mode
Use when the user asks to write tests for a library module.
1. **Identify the module path.** Ask if unclear. Must be relative to the
OSADO repo root (e.g., `lib/mypackage/module.pm`).
2. **Run the scaffold script:**
```bash
perl scripts/scaffold_test.pl --repo /path/to/osado lib/mypackage/module.pm
```
This outputs a complete `.t` file to stdout. Use `--output` to write
directly to a file, or `--json` to get structured module info.
3. **Review and customize the output.** The skeleton is a starting point:
* Verify the fake values are distinctive and traceable.
* Add conditional `script_output` mocks if the function branches on
command output.
* Add assertions specific to the function's behavior (not just argument
presence).
* Ensure optional args have their own subtests.
4. **Write the file** to `t/NN_<module_name>.t` (the script suggests the
next available number).
5. **Run the test:**
```bash
prove -v -l -Ios-autoinst/ t/NN_<module_name>.t
```
## Review Mode
Use when the user asks to review or audit an existing test file.
1. **Run the review script:**
```bash
perl scripts/review_test.pl --repo /path/to/osado t/NN_foo.t
```
2. **Present findings** grouped as PASS/FAIL/WARN.
3. **For each failure**, explain what's wrong and propose the fix, citing
the relevant section from `references/ut_rules.md`.
4. **Optionally re-run** after applying fixes to confirm the check passes.
## Key Patterns (quick reference)
### File skeleton
```perl
use strict;
use warnings;
use Test::More;
use Test::Exception;
use Test::Warnings;
use Test::MockModule;
use Test::Mock::Time;
use List::Util qw(any none uniq all)
use mypackage::module_name;
subtest '[function_name]' => sub { ... };
done_testing;
```
### The @calls capture pattern
```perl
subtest '[function_name]' => sub {
my @calls;
my $mock = Test::MockModule->new('mypackage::module_name', no_auto => 1);
$mock->redefine(assert_script_run => sub { push @calls, $_[0]; return; });
$mock->redefine(record_info => sub { note(join(' ', 'RECORD_INFO -->', @_)); });
function_name(arg1 => 'Agamemnon', arg2 => 'Mycenaeans');
note("\n --> " . join("\n --> ", @calls));
ok((any { /expected_pattern/ } @calls), 'Descriptive assertion message');
};
```
### Mandatory arg testing
```perl
subtest '[function_name] missing arguments' => sub {
dies_ok { function_name(arg2 => 'X') } 'Die for missing argument arg1';
dies_ok { function_name(arg1 => 'X') } 'Die for missing argument arg2';
};
```
## Rules
* Always use `no_auto => 1` in Test::MockModule constructors.
* Always use `redefine()`, never `mock()`.
* Each subtest must be self-contained: own `@calls`, own mocks, no shared state.
* Always mock `record_info` (redirect to `note`).
* Clean up `set_var` with `undef` at end of subtests.
* Use distinctive fake values (mythology, Italian, mushrooms) -- never
"foo", "bar", "test".
* Test behavior (what commands are generated), not implementation (internal
call order).
* Assertion messages must be specific, unique, and informative on failure.
* Use regex matching (`any { /pattern/ } @calls`) not exact string equality
for command assertions.
* Do NOT modify the library code -- this skill only creates/edits test files.
* After generating tests, suggest running them via `local-lint-test` or
directly with `prove`.
</instructions>