Is it possible for QTestLib to display the GUI it is testing as it runs?

Question

The use case is, I have a Qt app, and I would like to automate user-style testing of it; that is, I'd like to use keyClicks(), mouseClick(), and so on, but I would like for the Qt application window to actually be displayed while this is happening.

The issue I'm having right now is that using QTestLib involves using the QTEST_MAIN macro instead of defining main myself, so I never get an opportunity to show() the widgets being tested. So, another way to word this question is, is there a way to use QTestLib on an application that is using its main function?

I know Squish and probably Testability Driver are capable of this, but if it is possible to get this functionality without using extra tools, then that would be ideal.

Answer 1

Figured out how to do this. Makes Squish totally unnecessary, but it requires source code access.

In your test class, store a pointer to the QApplication and any widgets you want to test. For ease of use, store a pointer to your application's QMainWindow. Then, either instantiate your test class with pointers to the widgets you plan on testing, or use window->findChild() to grab any element you need. Keep in mind that you will need to call app->processEvents() after everything. Call it after showing the widget so that all of the child widgets appear. Call it after interacting with a widget so that the interaction is actually processed on the GUI. If you need things to be slow enough to watch, use QTest::qSleep().

Answer 2

@KelvinS. This is my snippet of code following @VGambit method, which tries to test adding a log to itemview.

#include <QApplication>
#include <QWidget>
#include <QtTest/QtTest>
#include "guimain.h"`
#include "xlogview.h"`

class TestLogView:public QObject
{
    Q_OBJECT
    public:
        void set_mainwindow(QWidget * qw);
    public slots:
        void startTest();
    private:
        QWidget * m_qw ;

    private slots:
        void addItem();
};
void TestLogView::startTest()
{
    QTest::qExec(this);
}

void TestLogView::set_mainwindow(QWidget * qw)
{
    m_qw = qw;
}
void TestLogView::addItem()
{
    XLogView * test_logview= m_qw->findChild<XLogView*>();
    bool ret = test_logview->addLog("new log");
    QVERIFY (ret == true);
}
#include "main.moc"
int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
    QApplication app(argc, argv);
    GUIMain window;
    window.show();
    app.processEvents();
    TestLogView test;
    test.set_mainwindow(&window);
    QTimer::singleShot(1000, &test, SLOT(startTest()));
    return app.exec();
}