– 16 – 61375-2 © IEC:2007(E)
Behaviour tests with capability tests are the basis for the conformance assessment process.
Behaviour tests are inappropriate:
a) for resolution of problems experienced during live usage or where other tests indicate
possible non-conformance even though the behaviour tests have been satisfied.
Behaviour tests are standardised as the bulk of a conformance test suite.
NOTE Behaviour tests include tests for valid behaviour by the IUT in response to valid, inopportune and
syntactically invalid protocol behaviour by the real tester. This includes testing the rejection by the IUT of attempts
to use features (capabilities) which are stated in the PICS as being not implemented. Thus, capability tests do not
need to include tests for capabilities omitted from the PICS.
2.2.5 Conformance resolution tests
Conformance resolution tests provide diagnostic answers, as near to definitive as possible, to
the resolution of whether an implementation satisfies particular requirements. Because of the
problems of exhaustiveness, the definite answers are gained at the expense of confining tests
to a narrow field.
The test architecture and test method will normally be chosen specifically for the requirements
to be tested, and need not be ones that are generally useful for other requirements. They may
even be ones that are regarded as being unacceptable for (standardised) abstract
conformance test suites, for example involving implementation-specific methods using, say,
the diagnostic and debugging facilities of the specific operating system.
The distinction between behaviour tests and conformance resolution tests may be illustrated
by the case of an event such as a reset. The behaviour tests may include only a representative
selection of conditions under which a reset might occur, and may fail to detect incorrect
behaviour in other circumstances. The conformance resolution tests would be confined to
conditions under which incorrect behaviour was already suspected to occur, and would confirm
whether or not the suspicions were correct.
Conformance resolution tests are appropriate:
a) for providing a yes/no answer in a strictly confined and previously identified situation (e.g.
during implementation development, to check whether a particular feature has been
correctly implemented, or during operational use, to investigate the cause of problems);
b) as a means for identifying and offering resolutions for deficiencies in a current
conformance test suite.
Conformance resolution tests are inappropriate
c) as a basis for judging whether or not an implementation conforms overall.
Conformance resolution tests are not standardised. As a by-product of conformance testing,
errors and deficiencies in protocol parts may be identified.
2.2.6 Interpretation of clauses/subclauses and statements
The TCN described in IEC 61375-1 is subject to a sort of interpretation to translate some
clauses/subclauses and requirements into realisable test suites. The complexity of most TCN
protocols makes exhaustive testing impractical on both technical and economic grounds. To
cope with a real implementation and extract from IEC 61375-1 all the relevant tests and some
criteria were used. The criteria were grouped according to their characteristics:
a) imperatives;
b) illustrative;
c) directives;
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