Laravel Testing

Priority: P1 (HIGH)

Workflow: Test New Feature

1. Generate factory —

   php artisan make:factory PostFactory --model=Post

   .
2. Write feature test — Use Pest with

   RefreshDatabase

   for isolation.
3. Mock externals — Use

   $this->mock(Service::class)

   for third-party calls.
4. Assert response — Chain

   assertStatus()

   ,

   assertJson()

   ,

   assertJsonStructure()

   .
5. Run with SQLite — Set

   DB_CONNECTION=sqlite

   and

   DB_DATABASE=:memory:

   in

   phpunit.xml

   .

Pest Feature Test Example

See implementation examples for Pest feature tests and test directory structure.

Implementation Guidelines

Pest & Modern Testing

• Feature Tests: Use

  uses(RefreshDatabase::class)

  at top of Pest files. Example:

  it('creates post', fn() => $this->postJson('/api/posts', [...])

  verifies database rolled back after each test.
• Transactions: For faster but non-truncating isolation, use

  DatabaseTransactions

  .

Mocking & External Services

• Service Mocking: Use

  $this->mock(PaymentService::class)

  with

  shouldReceive('charge')->once()->with(100)

  to assert interaction.
• Loose Verification: Use

  $this->spy()

  for behavior validation without strict ordering.
• Network Safety: Never make real network calls in automated tests.

Test Data & Infrastructure

• Factories: Create test data via

  Post::factory()->count(3)->create(['user_id' => $id])

  .
• Definition: Implement

  definition(): array

  using

  fake()

  in factory classes.
• Generation: Run

  php artisan make:factory PostFactory --model=Post

  .
• SQLite Support: In

  phpunit.xml

  , set

  DB_CONNECTION' value='sqlite'

  and

  DB_DATABASE' value=':memory:'

  for in-memory, lightning-fast tests.

HTTP Assertions

• Fluent Assertions: Chain

  assertStatus(201)

  ,

  assertJson(['data' => ...])

  , and

  assertJsonStructure

  .
• Header Verification: Use

  assertHeader('Content-Type', 'application/json')

  .

Anti-Patterns

• No real network calls: Always mock or stub external services.
• No state leakage between tests: Use

  RefreshDatabase

  trait.
• No

  DB::table()->insert()

  : Never DB::table()->insert() raw data in tests — use Eloquent Factories instead.
• No heavy computations in unit tests: Move to Feature layer.

References

• Testing & Mocking Guide