XML-based representation of test cases for distributed systems

Nowadays, a large number of solutions for the model-based test case generation are available. Many of these tools generate test cases directly in the designated target language. Only a few of them support a generic adaption to different test languages. In contrast to existing solutions, the presented approach of an XML-based representation format for test cases enables the integration of various tools from different vendors. This solution has the advantage that prior developed target language adaptors can be reused. Apart from that, the representation format facilitates the combination of modules, used for different tasks during the generation process, to an all-embracing toolchain. First an overview about related work is provided. Next a short introduction is given to the toolchain for model-based test generation which utilizes the XML-based representation format. The design objectives are discussed, the structure of the representation format and its mapping to TTCN-3 (Testing and Test Control Notation) are the topic of the next section. A brief conclusion and an outlook are provided in the last part of this paper.