SilkCentral^® Test Manager 2008 Release Notes

This file contains important information that may not appear in online Help. Read this file in its entirety.

For information about installation, deployment, and licensing issues, see the SilkCentral Test Manager Installation and Configuration Guide.

For an overview of the new features in the current release, see the What's New section below.

What's New

Following are the significant enhancements and changes that were made to SilkCentral Test Manager 2008.

Manual and Automated Testing Enhancements

A number of improvements have been made to simplify testing and increase your testing options.

Manual Testing

Manual testing has been greatly improved. The following enhancements have been made to the Manual Testing Client:

• You can now complete execution of a test package without testing all of that package's test definitions. Upon completion of test packages, you define the status of any unexecuted test definitions.
• You can modify the properties of manual test definitions within the Manual Testing Client while in both online and offline modes. This includes adding, reordering, and removing manual test steps. When uploading your test results, all changes are automatically synchronized with the server. Please note that at this time modification of data-driven manual test definitions is not supported.
• More information on past executions of test definitions is now available to improve retesting efforts. Information includes the status of previous executions and lists of open issues associated with test definitions.
• When executing manual tests you can now select and update multiple test steps in a table view. You can update the result status of selected test steps with a single command.
• You can now export execution packages from the Manual Testing Client to a file. If required, exported package files can be imported into other instances of the Manual Testing Client. This enables sharing of execution packages between testers, for example mailing work packages to contractors.
• A context menu on the Manual Testing Client's Test Definitions tab, and a button on the Execute Test dialog, allow direct access to test definitions within SilkCentral Test Manager's Web GUI.

Manual and Automated Testing

When re-running an execution definition, you can now do the following:

• Retest all test definitions in the execution definition.
• Retest all failed test definitions in the execution definition.
• Retest all test definitions in the execution definition that have not been executed since a certain build.
• Retest all test definitions in the execution definition for which related issues have been fixed since the last execution.
• Specify the build against which the test definitions are to be executed.

Performance Enhancements

SilkCentral Test Manager's Test Plan unit has been refactored to provide significant performance improvements. Working in the Test Plan unit is now smoother and faster.

Usability Enhancements

Usability enhancements have been made throughout SilkCentral Test Manager.

Working With Multiple Test Plan Objects

You can now select multiple child objects of any object in the Test Plan unit, in the new "Contents" tab. Using your mouse or keyboard shortcuts, you can cut, copy, paste, and delete multiple objects simultaneously. Working with objects in the SilkCentral Test Manager Test Plan unit is now similar to working with files in Windows Explorer. This functionality is also available when working with manual test steps.

Convenient Find & Replace Functionality

You can now find and replace values within test definition properties, manual steps, parameters, and attributes. You can easily navigate through returned items using Next, Previous, First, and Last commands.

Access to Related Test Definitions within SilkCentral Issue Manager

With Borland’s ALM Server platform and ALM URIs, elements such as issues and test definitions can be traced across SilkCentral Issue Manager and SilkCentral Test Manager repositories. For example, test definitions in a remote Test Manager repository can be associated with issues in a local Issue Manager repository. Such related artifacts are now directly accessible to one another via links within SilkCentral Issue Manager and SilkCentral Test Manager.

See SilkCentral Issue Manager documentation for detailed information on how to view associated test definitions within Issue Manager.

New Security Options

Administrators can now define custom user roles. All predefined user roles are still available (SuperUser, Administrator, Project Manager, Test Manager, Tester, Analyst, and Reporter). Custom user roles can be derived from predefined roles or built from scratch. This allows for more flexibility in how you manage the permissions that each individual user has within your SilkCentral Test Manager system.

Telelogic DOORS 8.2 Support

Telelogic DOORS version 8.2 is now supported.

System Requirements/Prerequisites

For optimal performance of SilkCentral Test Manager, the following configuration is recommended:

General server requirements

Note: To improve performance it is recommended that the database system be installed separately, as a standalone system. Alternately, you can configure MSDE/SQL Server to use only a fixed amount of memory and thus minimize resource conflicts with other applications. If you wish to install Test Manager as an enterprise system, the Test Manager servers (application server, Web server, chart server, execution server, and database system) should be installed on separate machines, as outlined in the "Custom Installation" section of the SilkCentral Test Manager Installation and Configuration Guide. You may also install any combination of these components on separate machines.

Server requirements for standalone/evaluation environments

(up to 5 execution servers)

Server requirements for distributed small business environments

(up to 15 execution servers)

Server requirements for distributed standard business environments

(up to 30 execution servers)

Server requirements for distributed enterprise business environments

(more than 30 execution servers)

Execution server requirements (for all of the above environments)

The configuration below is a minimum configuration for simple executions. The actual requirements/prerequisites for execution servers depend on the application under test (AUT) and the type of testing.
For load testing, please refer to the environment requirements of SilkPerformer. Running load tests with the minimal configuration can result in inaccurate results.
For functional testing, please refer to the environment requirements of SilkTest. However a minimum of 1024 MByte main memory is recommended for intensive testing, like Web browser replay.

Client requirements

Known Issues

This section contains a list of known issues and provides work-arounds where available.

• Administration issues
• Settings issues
• Requirements issues
• Test Plan issues
• Execution issues
• Reports issues
• Third party tools issues
• Display issues
• Issue Manager issues
• Localization issues
• SilkTest 2008 known issues
• SilkPerformer 2008 known issues

Administration issues

• Depending on the size of your Test Manager repository and the hardware that hosts the DBMS, upgrading to the current version of Test Manager can take up to several hours. Additionally, the size of the repository will increase, also depending on the size of your Test Manager repository. (36008)
  Workaround: None. Internal tests showed that MS SQL Server 64 Bit is over six times faster than MS SQL Server 32 Bit, though this value again depends on DB size and hardware.

Settings issues

• The filter categories "Issues" and "Results" cannot be used in Test Manager. (36516)
  Workaround: None.
• When entering an issue using the Bugzilla issue tracking integration, an error message appears, stating that the bugzilla.dtd file cannot be found. (35848)
  Workaround: Your Bugzilla issue tracking system must be set up to use absolute paths, rather than relative paths.
• Modifying an attribute name is not reflected in existing filters. (34991)
  Workaround: None. Attribute names should not be changed, as existing filters will report inconsistencies.
• IIS integration does not work if Java 1.4 (and possibly earlier releases) is installed on the system. (30440)
  Workaround: Uninstall Java 1.4 or lower on the front-end server machine.
• If the database is disconnected (e.g., for administrative tasks), users which continue working with Test Manager may receive Nullpointer exceptions. (27023, 31596)
  Workaround: Wait until the administrator reconnects the database and login again.

Test Plan issues

• Double-clicking items in a grid view no longer opens the selected item.
  Workaround: Use F2 instead, or Alt+Click for test steps.
• Modifying manual test steps with identical names is not possible via Web Service. (38055)
  Workaround: Make sure that manual test steps have unique names.
• When importing test definitions from Microsoft Word or Excel, that contain angle brackets ( < > ) in their descriptions, Test Manager interprets the angle brackets as HTML code and thus removes any text between angle brackets. (34408)
  Workaround: Replace angle brackets in your source document before importing test definitions to Test Manager.
• With the data-driven feature new parameters are generated from the columns of the assigned data set. If a value is empty (optional or undefined parameter) the value is marked as "<undefined>". This could be a problem with, for example, SilkTest scripts, because is also sent to the SilkTest agent via the execution interface. (31548)
  Workaround: In your data source/data set, define a valid value for optional parameters (e.g. 0 for a number) and check these values in your SilkTest scripts before using them.
• A data-driven test definition with the options "Each data row is a single test definition" and/or "Enable data-driven properties" enabled, is not supported as Setup & Cleanup test definition. Changing either of these options while a test definition is assigned to an execution definition can cause the results of a setup/cleanup test definition to vanish. (31484)
  Workaround: None.
• It is not possible to remove the data-driven properties from a test planning node. Due to this, you cannot remove an assigned data source in Administration/Configuration. (29280)
  Workaround:
  1.) Delete the test planning node
  2.) Delete the data source configuration (work cautiously with folders and test containers)
  3.) Recreate the test planning node
• Creating an automated test from a manual test does not work if the description is too long. Since the description for a new automated test is generated from the step descriptions, the resulting length for the description can exceed the allowed maximum of 2000 characters. (28564)
  Workaround: Reduce the length of the proposed description for the new automated test in the first wizard step to a maximum of 2000 characters.

Execution issues

• The Manual Testing Client allows the user to connect to multiple Test Manager instances. If the same username is used to connect to multiple Test Manager servers, this may result in undefined behaviour when reading data from the workspace. (38376)
  Workaround: Use different usernames to connect the Manual Testing Client to different Test Manager servers.
• Finishing manual execution packages without having executed all contained tests may display "pending" tests on the Properties tab of the execution definition. This problem only occurs with mixed (automated and manual tests) execution definitions, when the manual tests have been completed before the automated tests and not all tests of the manual execution package have been executed. In this case, the not executed manual tests will be marked as "pending" on the Properties tab of the execution definition (even though there are no more pending tests).
  If the automated tests are finished before the manual tests, the status is displayed correctly (not executed tests are not displayed). Also, this issue only effects the Properties tab of the execution. In the Runs tab the status is always displayed correctly. (37304)
  Workaround: None.
• Execution definitions with multiple SilkTest test definitions assigned generate code coverage results for the first test definition only. (36829)
  Workaround: It is generally recommended to use the "New SilkTest interface is used to launch tests" setting. This will solve the issue.
• After upgrading the Manual Testing Client from a previous version to the current version, the execution packages are no longer available. (37215)
  Workaround: It is generally recommended to finish existing manual test executions before upgrading to the current version of the Manual Testing Client. To recover missing packages, replace the workspace folder of the current MTC installation with the workspace folder of the previous installation.
• Data imported from a data source for data-driven tests appears in a single column. This happens when the locale of the computer on which the data source was created differ from the locale of the computer hosting Test Manager (if the default CSV separator of the two locale differ). (31145)
  Workaround: None. You need to make sure that the client on which new data sources are created uses the same CSV separator as Test Manager's application server.
• After starting an execution definition with "Run" it sometimes takes a long time for the execution definition to show up in the "Current Executions" section of the "Activities" page. The "Run Once" operation uploads all associated information of test definitions assigned to the execution definition to execution servers before initiating the execution, which takes time. If the application server is busy uploading data due other user's actions, this increases the delay further. (31542)
  Workaround: None.
• If the execution server runs as service, rather than as a Windows process, the execution server may have insufficient rights to detect the SilkTest installation directory via the file system and throws a Nullpointer exception. (31507)
  Workaround: Run the execution server in process mode to run automated SilkTest executions.
• When entering Unicode characters in the test step result field while executing a manual test, those characters are sometimes not displayed as entered when viewing the manual test results. (28194)
  Workaround: None.
• When creating a new filter (that has at least two criteria) within the Execution unit, and selecting "Execution Property" (the default) from the "Selection Criteria" drop-list box as the last of the criteria, you'll receive the error message, "Could not apply filter to tree: unknown resultingCategory: 3." (27063)
  Workaround: Select a value other than "Execution Property" from the "Selection Criteria" drop-list box on the "New Filter" dialog. Then re-select "Execution Property" from the list and continue configuring the filter.
• The last execution results of a test definition and execution definition cannot be deleted. (28563)
  Workaround: Run the execution definition again (via schedule or run once) in order to generate new results. Now the previous results can be deleted.
• If an execution server shuts down during the execution of an execution definition, the results of the already completed test definition executions are lost. (21303)
  Workaround: None.
• No warning that changes are lost is displayed if the Assigned Test Definitions tab is left without having clicked the Apply button. (19681)
  Workaround: Always apply changes before leaving the Assigned Test Definitions tab.
• When rerunning failed tests, the execution definition status (Execution/Document View) only displays the test definition executions which were re-run, not all. (21179)
  Workaround: Although the Document View does not display the total Execution definition status, reports display the status for all test executions.
• .NetExplorer Test Execution might not end if the event log is full, as in this case .NetExplorer brings up a message box. (25539)
  Workaround: None.

Reports issues

• When printing reports or other pages via SilkCentral Test Manager (Internet Explorer), colours are missing from the hard copies produced. (37061)
  Workaround: Access Internet Explorer's menu Tools -> Internet Options -> Advanced and enable the options Printing -> Print background colors and images.
• When displaying the "Report" tab of the "Reports" unit, a "refresh" operation in the browser sometimes (rarely) displays a "500 Servlet Exception" . (28418)
  Workaround: Click the "Update" button on the current Report page.
• Full-text indices can't be used on text objects in Oracle databases because Test Manager uses the NCLOB data type. (26330)
  Workaround: Contact Borland Customer Support for information about possible solutions.
• When changing the Microsoft Excel report template, a "File Download" dialog appears. (23980)
  Workaround: This problem can occur on Windows 2000 operating systems. To solve the issue, open Windows Explorer and select Tools -> Folder Options -> File Types -> XLS -> Advanced. Check the Confirm open after download checkbox.
• If Microsoft Internet Explorer's security level is set to High (which is the default setting in Windows 2003 SP1), JavaScript is disabled and Test Manager will not work correctly.
  Workaround: Add the Test Manager URL and the chart server URL to your local intranet site or to the list of trusted sites in MS Internet Explorer.

Third-party tools issues

• Telelogic DOORS: The dialog "Edit External Properties" or "Synchronize Requirements" hangs when working in a project that has DOORS integration configured. This happens if another user has the integrated modules open in either exclusive or shareable edit mode at the same time. The "Synchronize Requirements" dialog only hangs if "Upload Requirements" is enabled in Test Manager's integration configuration. (38189)
  Workaround: Disable "Upload Requirements" to disable synchonization from Test Manager to DOORS. If you encounter a hanging process, kill the doors.exe process on the front-end server machine or wait until it times out by itself.
• Mozilla Firefox: If Mozilla Firefox is set as your default browser, an error message may occur when you access a URL from another application. (36995)
  Workaround: See Firefox issue 246078.
• Microsoft Internet Explorer: Uploading a file with a very long file name to Administration -> Files results in a corrupted file name. (37975)
  Workaround: Use shorter file names.
• Microsoft Internet Explorer: Login to Test Manager with valid credentials fails. This happens if the hostname contains a non-standard character. The standard characters are the numbers from 0 through 9, uppercase and lowercase letters from A through Z, and the hyphen (-) character. (34677)
  Workaround: Use the IP address in your browser's URL instead of the DNS hostname.
• VMware Lab Manager: A VMware Lab Manager installation can only be used by a single Test Manager installation, because checking out the same configuration from multiple installations would lead to deadlocks. (33908)
  Workaround: None
• It is possible to create traces in a CaliberRM project to test definitions in a SilkCentral Test Manager project that is not configured for integration with this CaliberRM project. This will lead to inconsistency of traces in CaliberRM and assignments of test definitions in Test Manager. Such traces should not be created. (31594)
  Workaround: None.
• CVS SourceControl Integration with public key authentication does not work if the front-end server service runs under the system user. (26807)
  Workaround: Start the front-end server service with a normal user account or use another authentication mechanism for CVS.
• Using the GoTo functionality in Test Manager for an assigned external issue from StarTeam always opens a new instance of StarTeam instead of reusing an existing instance. (27640)
  Workaround: None.
• The Check Connection command on the Edit Configuration dialog for the configuration of IBM Rational RequisitePro integration projects may fail although all provided data is correct. (20000)
  Workaround: To enable access for IBM Rational RequisitePro SDK to projects in MS-Access database files (*.mdb), the access rights of the .mdb file have to be set to (rw) for the Internet Guest account (e.g.: LAB\IUSR_LABMASTER). This can be done on the parent directory to enable access for all projects in the directory.
• The Check Connection command on the Edit Configuration dialog for the configuration of IBM Rational RequisitePro integration projects may fail although all provided data is correct. (20001)
  Workaround: To be able to get access to Requisite Pro project files, you must have access to them via a UNC path. The SilkCentral Test Manager Frontend Server using this file must therefore either run under a user account (default is system account for services) with proper rights (admin), or the share must be configured for NullSessionLogins access. Otherwise the connection to the RequisitePro project will fail. See the MS article for more details. To enable NullSessionLogin, run regedt32.exe on the Requisite Pro server machine and browse to: HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanServer\Parameters\NullSessionShares. Then add a new line to the REG_MULTI_SZ field with the share name used by the service.
• If the configuration of External Traceability for SilkCentral Test Manager in Borland's Framework Administrator is changed, all existing traces to SilkCentral Test Manager test definitions may become invalid. (28566)
  Workaround: Use the synchronization functionality on the Properties tab of the Requirements unit to add the traces (assigned test definitions) a second time and delete any obsolete test definitions.
• You cannot set CaliberRM custom properties "Priority" and "Status" to map to SilkCentral Test Manager custom properties. These names are reserved by CaliberRM. (20710)
  Workaround: None.
• The PVCS support is limited to the English language version.
  Workaround: None.

Display issues

• Internet Explorer displays an error when selecting a node in the requirements, test plan, or execution unit. (35030)
  Workaround: In Internet Explorer, XMLHttpRequest objects are realized as an ActiveX component, so execution of ActiveX components has to be allowed. In Internet Explorer, go to Tools -> Internet Options -> Security -> Custom Level and enable ActiveX.
• Your browser displays no projects in Test Manager -> Projects. (36793)
  Workaround: This is a browser caching issue. Clear your browser's cache to reload the correct list of projects.
• Office Import Tool Help does not open in Firefox 2.0 browser.
  Workaround: Use another browser to display the Office Import Tool Help.
• In Issue Manager, release names within issues consist of "VersionName + BuildName". When performing an action in Test Manager, release names in the drop-down list are shown with "BuildName" only. (26970)
  Workaround: None.
• In Internet Explorer 6, drop-down menus in the background are clickable, even if a modal dialog is opened. (20471)
  Workaround: None.
• If you log in to Test Manager, and then log in again with another user account in a second browser window with the "Remember Login" option selected, the stored cookie is read by the first browser as well and the logged in user will change in the first browser. (21325)
  Workaround: If you must work with more than one open browser window with different user accounts, log in to Test Manager without selecting the "Remember Login" option.
• The preview wizard step in the Test Manager Office Import tool only shows the first 230 characters for requirements and manual tests that are imported. This is only a visual limitation on the preview page, the requirements and manual tests are actually imported with the full name. (20472)
  Workaround: None.

Issue Manager issues

• Some imported custom reports might not work anymore due to database changes in version 4.0. (25225)
  Workaround: None.
• Parameter names with blank characters are not supported, though you will not receive an error message if you use a parameter name with blank characters. (25754)
  Workaround: None.

Localization issues

• Errors occur when using SilkCentral Test Manager on Japanese Windows Vista. (35023)
  Workaround: Do not use surrogate pair characters, which are supported by JIS2004.
• When using a localized version of SilkCentral Test Manager, reports based on the BarChart, HorizontalBarChart, and PieChart template display queried data in English. (34759)
  Workaround: Make a copy of the template and customize the copy to the language that you want to display, then select your customized template for the report.
• The "Demo Project", which is automatically created when installing SilkCentral Test Manager, contains English demo data. (37450)
  Workaround: None.

Resolved Issues

The following are resolved defects in SilkCentral Test Manager 2008.

Tested Software

This section describes the software with which SilkCentral Test Manager 2008 was tested.

Getting Help

Link to Technical Support page on Borland Web site

Installation Instructions

For information about installation, deployment, and licensing issues, see the SilkCentral Test Manager Installation and Configuration Guide.