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This post is part of a series about Database Integration Tests:

Part 1: Database Integration Tests – considering it
Part 2: Database Integration Tests – understanding it
Part 3: Database Integration Tests – implementing it

The purpose of the series is to present you the concepts and implementation aspects related to this technique.

In this first part of the series, I want to expose some ideas that you should consider before deciding to go with Database Integration Tests.

Integration Testing is about the behavior of more than one software component

It’s important to note the differences between unit and integration tests.
An unit test should cover expectations around an isolated piece of software – commonly a class, thinking in an object-oriented software.

An integration test, on the other hand, should cover expectations over the interactions between different software or infrastructure components.

Database can be saw as entry and exit points

Relational databases tend to play a key role for enterprise software.
There are two important aspects in their interaction with the software:
The database owns the needed data by the software for performing a given task.
The database receives from the software the resulting data of a performed given task.

Recognizing the importance of this interaction is what should lead you to the use of this kind of integration testing.

Different testing strategies solve different problems

It’s crucial to understand that there is no single testing strategy guiding you to the quality assurance of your software.

Each testing strategy will help you in different ways:
You should go with unit testing when you need to assure the correctness of many business rules and also the quality of your code.
You should go with integration testing when you need to assure that your software as a whole is playing it’s role in the expected way.

This is the end of the first part of the series.
In the next parts, I’m going to talk about the understanding and implementation of Database Integration Tests.

Sorry, this entry is only available in Portuguese.

“some thoughts on Pair Programming” is a talk that I created in the last month.

I presented it to my English teacher and found out that the material is interesting enough to be shared.
Good enough to leverage the big picture even to a non programmer public.

The purpose of this talk is to make the people think about the major aspects to consider when talking about the practice of Pair Programming.

Please let me know if you have interest in leveraging this message to your audience.