Purpose

This example demonstrates the Auto Schedule and Use Auto Scheduled Resource step types. These step types are used to dynamically determine the order in which a UUT uses its required resources to minimize delays that occur while the UUT waits for a resource to become available.

Example File Location

<TestStand Public>\Examples\Built-In Step Types\Synchronization Step Types\Synchronization Step Types - Auto Schedule.seq

Highlighted Features

  • Auto Schedule step type
  • Use Auto Scheduled Resource step type
  • Batch process model

Major API

None

Prerequisites

None

How to Use This Example

Complete the following steps to review the sequences and steps in the example.

  1. On the Sequences pane, select the MainSequence. The Auto Schedule step at the beginning of the test defines a block of Use Auto Scheduled Resource sub-blocks. When the test sequence executes, each test socket executes each Use Auto Scheduled Resource sub-block once. The order in which the sub-blocks execute can vary between test sockets to improve execution time.
  2. Select one of the Use Auto Scheduled Resource steps and navigate to the Auto Scheduled Resource Settings Edit Tab on the Step Settings pane. Notice that at least one resource name is defined in the Resource Lock Alternatives list. The UUT does not execute the test steps in this Use Auto Scheduled Resource sub-block until it has exclusive access to the resources in this list.
  3. Select each of the Use Auto Scheduled Resource steps to compare the settings for the Resource Lock Alternatives. You can specify multiple resource lock alternatives to indicate that the sub-block can execute if any of the alternatives are available. To lock access to all of these resources before executing the sub-block, use an array of lock names to specify that a section must lock multiple resources. In this case, no locks are reserved unless all resources are available.

Complete the following steps to run the example.

  1. Select Execute»Single Pass to run the sequence.
  2. A prompt appears that describes the Resource Usage Profiler, which is a tool to monitor the status of synchronization objects in a test sequence. You can use this tool to observe the execution order of test steps in a test sequence with Auto Schedule steps. You can choose to launch the tool to view additional details during the test.
  3. As the test sequence executes, dialog boxes indicate the current status of the tests. Notice that each UUT is only able to execute a Use Auto Scheduled Resource sub-block if it is able to gain exclusive access to the required resources.
  4. Once execution completes, you can examine the test report for each UUT to notice the order of execution. The Auto Schedule steps do not guarantee a specific execution order for each test step. The order can vary among test sockets and among executions. You can run the test sequence additional times to compare the execution order among different test runs.