Testing database transactions with AGENDA

Abstract

AGENDA is a tool set for testing relational database applications. An earlier prototype was targeted to applications consisting of a single query and included components for populating a database with data suitable for testing the application, generating inputs to the query, and checking relatively simple aspects of the results of executing the query. This paper describes substantial extensions to AGENDA, allowing it to test transactions with multiple queries and with complex intended behavior. The paper introduces a technique for checking complex properties of the database state transition performed by the transaction under test, as well as an improved input generation heuristic. Results of using AGENDA to test three applications with seeded faults are presented.