The following sections describe the built-in TestStand rules.

  • General
  • Statistics
  • Analysis Errors
  • Performance
  • Best Practices

General

Rule Severity Description
Expressions must evaluate to a value of the expected type Error Each expression property must not include syntax errors and must evaluate to a value of the type the property expects. Syntax errors and incorrect value types can cause errors at run time. If you are certain that the expression will evaluate correctly at run time, such as when you dynamically create variables or when you propagate variables, use the #NoValidation directive in the expression to suppress the error.
Step properties must have valid values Error All step properties must have valid values. Invalid property values can cause errors at run time. Use the Step Settings pane to set the property to a valid value. Ignore this message if the property will be set dynamically to a correct value at run time.
Files must be found on disk Error File paths must refer to existing files on disk. TestStand can report errors at run time if it cannot find the file the path specifies. Correct the problem by correcting the path or by creating the file on disk. You can safely ignore this message if the file is created dynamically at run time.
Files should be found on disk Warning File paths should refer to existing files on disk. TestStand does not report errors at run time for these files, but the path specified cannot be found. Correct the problem by changing the path to point to the correct file or by creating the file on disk. Ignore this message if the file is created dynamically at run time.
Code modules must be able to load Error TestStand must be able to load all code modules without error. TestStand reports errors at run time when it cannot load a code module. Correct this problem by editing the step in the sequence editor.
Code modules should load without warnings Warning TestStand should be able to load all code modules without warnings. Module load warnings are issues that occur when trying to load a code module that might or might not be fatal or cause unexpected behavior. Correct this problem by editing the step in the sequence editor.
Code modules must have expected prototype Error The prototype for the code module must match the prototype the step module specifies. TestStand reports errors at run time when it loads a code module with an incompatible prototype. Correct the problem by editing the step module in TestStand to match the code module or by changing the code module prototype to match the step module.
Remote computer must be on the network Error Step properties that refer to remote computers must specify a valid network computer by IP address or by computer name. Ignore this message if the computer will exist at run time.
Steps must have expected block structure Error Steps with block structures, such as the Flow Control steps and the Auto Schedule step, must have matching End steps, and End steps must have a matching Begin step. Other block requirements exist for Select/Case and Auto Schedule/Use Auto Scheduled Resource steps. TestStand reports errors at run time for invalid block structures.
Variables should be used Warning Unused variables and parameters add unnecessary complexity and extraneous information to sequence files. Delete variables if you never access them. You can ignore this rule for variables that you access in code modules or that you access using a lookup string with the TestStand API.
Sequences should be used Warning Unused sequences add extraneous information to sequence files and needlessly increase the size of the file. Delete sequences if you never use them. You can ignore this error for sequences that you call by expression or if you call the sequence from a sequence file that was not analyzed.
Steps should have Normal run mode Warning The run mode option for step should be set to Normal instead of Force Pass, Force Fail, or Skip to ensure that tests are performed correctly. Correct the setting on the Run Options Panel of the Step Settings pane in the TestStand Sequence Editor. Ignore this message if a step is intentionally set to this run mode.
Sequence calls should match the sequence prototype Warning The prototype for the sequence that a sequence call step calls should match the prototype the step specifies. You can ignore this rule for sequence calls in which you intend to pass a different set of parameters and if you check the parameters in the called sequence.
Find file paths that expressions specify Information Files that path expressions reference might not be included in the set of files to analyze. This rule provides a list of those expressions. You might need to manually add files expressions reference to the workspace for correct deployment.
All escape sequences used in expressions must be valid Error The sequence analyzer checks expressions for valid escape sequences. Improperly escaping paths usually leads to using invalid escape sequences, which are rarely intended.
Expression error caused by missing dynamic property Warning Expressions that use dynamic properties, such as RunState, will evaluate with errors at edit time. Ensure that the variable referenced will exist at run time. This message occurs when an expression evaluation error occurs because of a missing variable that starts with RunState or Parameters and the parameter is a container or object reference. If this variable will exist at run time, you can safely ignore this message.
Types should have the correct version Warning Ensure that all types have versions that will not conflict with the default versions TestStand installs. This message can occur when you have a copy of CommonResults that is less than 3.1.0.100. National Instruments recommends that you set the version of CommonResults to the default of 3.1.0.100 if it contains no subproperties and set the version of CommonResults greater than 3.1.0.100 if it contains subproperties. Failure to change the version might cause type conflicts when loading files.
Steps that call LabVIEW modules configured with LabVIEW 7.1.1 or earlier should reload module prototypes Warning The prototype information stored on steps that call LabVIEW code modules might not be compatible with LabVIEW 2012 or later. This warning occurs for a step that calls a LabVIEW code module and the step was last configured using LabVIEW 7.1.1 or earlier. The step calls the code module correctly, but TestStand might generate an error when executing the step using LabVIEW 2012 or later. National Instruments recommends that you reload the prototype for the step or select Tools»Update VI Calls to run the Update VI Calls tool on any sequence file that return this warning.
Delete subelements of an output array parameter if you intend to log the entire array Warning If you enable additional result logging for an output array parameter on a LabVIEW or .NET step and the parameter contains subelements, the step logs only the subelements and not the entire array. An array parameter contains subelements if you added them manually when you specified the code module or if the code module is a LabVIEW VI that defines default element values for the array. To log the entire array, delete all the parameter subelements when you specify the code module. Ignore this message if you intend to log only the parameter subelements.
Find expressions that suppress evaluation errors Information Expressions that use the #NoValidation directive to suppress semantic evaluation errors might contain actual run-time errors.
Disable result recording for all process model sequences except the MainSequence callback Warning If you enable result recording for a process model sequence other than the MainSequence callback, On-The-Fly reporting might not work correctly. Disable result recording for all process model sequences except the MainSequence callback.
Property Loader source should be proper Error Property Loader source should exist. The source should be according to valid format.
Enumeration values must be valid Error Each instance of an enumeration point must have a value that the type defines as valid.
Code modules should be up-to-date Warning Code modules should be up-to-date. The Sequence Analyzer checks that the file modification time for the code module is more recent than those of source files specified in the adapter step.
Note The Sequence Analyzer only checks source code files, project files, and solution/workspace files specified in the adapter step. It does not perform general dependency checking on included header files, other source files used by the code module, etc.
Feature is not supported Error Feature is not supported in the current bitness of TestStand that you are using.

Statistics

Rule Severity Description
Count steps Information The total number of steps in all the analyzed files, including count per sequence, count per sequence file, and count per analysis.
Count sequences Information The total number of sequences in all the analyzed files, including count per sequence file and count per analysis.
Count sequence files Information The total number of sequence files analyzed.

Analysis Errors

Rule Severity Description
Internal Error Error The sequence analyzer uses this rule to report internal errors that occur during analysis. These messages usually indicate a serious problem with a component of the sequence analyzer. Report the information to the component owner or to National Instruments. You cannot disable this rule.
File Open Error Error The sequence analyzer uses this rule to report errors that occur when opening files during analysis. You cannot disable this rule.
File Locked Error Warning The sequence analyzer uses this rule to report errors for files that it could not analyze because the files are locked and not viewable. You cannot disable this rule.

Performance

Rule Severity Description
Watch expressions are enabled Warning Using watch expressions during execution can negatively affect performance and cause slower execution speed. Use watch expressions only when debugging. Select Debug»Breakpoints/Watch Expressions to remove unused watch expressions.

Best Practices

Rule Severity Description
Avoid using absolute paths Warning Absolute paths make moving files among test systems difficult. Use relative paths to specify files.
All file paths must have a valid format Error All file path variables must contain valid syntax. The sequence analyzer verifies only that the syntax of the path is correct and does not confirm that a file exists at each location.