[Boost-testing] BOOST_ERROR vs BOOST_FAIL

Subject: [Boost-testing] BOOST_ERROR vs BOOST_FAIL
From: Greg Christopher (gchristopher_at_[hidden])
Date: 2009-05-06 22:12:28

Hi,
   I'm new to Boost testing and I am looking to distinguish whether boost.test has a certain facility.

   It is clear from the documentation that BOOST_FAIL reports a problem and then quits, whereas BOOST_ERROR reports a problem then continues.

  My chief concern right now is how problems are reported actually- not control flow. I am wondering if boost.test has a facility to signal that something is wrong with the testware itself (not the software under test) . For instance, a reporting entry point that says "this is an exceptional condition and not the detection of a software bug".

  I think that _both_ BOOST_FAIL (or BOOST_REQUIRE) and BOOST_ERROR (or BOOST_CHECK) do indicate that there is a software under test failure (bug properly detected by testware). I'd like to hear I'm wrong or that there is another way to signal a testware failure.

  I suppose that I can use fixture support to attempt to notice any exceptional problems during setup so that I don't even get to the test execution code when there is an exceptional condition or environment problem. However, I'd like to try to wrap my head around the capabilities of the system and understand them as best as I can before proceeding.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Greg Christopher