What is a Module? What is a Compiled Module? (In WinRunner)

Modules are the basic elements of any software system or application that make up the foundation of that software system or application. In winrunner usually the term “compiled module” is used. We shall see in this article that what are the compiled modules and how they can be created in winrunner. 

What are Compiled Modules?

- Compiled modules store the frequently used functions and so are considered to be a kind of libraries. 

- In compiled modules, the functions defined by users i.e., the user defined functions can be stored and later these stored user defined functions can be called from the test scripts. 

- Compiled modules are considered to be a library since they are actually a script containing all the user defined functions which are required to be called many times from other tests. 

- Whenever a compiled module is loaded, the functions that it contains are subjected to automatic compilation and reside in the memory itself. 

- After this, they can be called directly and from within any test. 

- With the compiled modules, the performances as well as the organization of the tests that you create are improved significantly.

- This happens so because the compiled modules are debugged before they are used and therefore the tests that we created require very less error- checking. - In addition to all this, the interpretation of a function in a test script is quite slower than the calling of a function that has already been compiled.

There are 2 ways available for compiling a module as mentioned below:

1. Loading the module to be compiled from a test script with the help of the TSL load function.
2. Running the script of the module to be compiled with the help of the winrunner run commands.

- The step commands can be used for performing the incremental compilation if in case you need to debug or modify an already existing module. 

- After this, the part of the compiled module that you made changes to needs to be run so that the entire compiled module will be updated. 

- It is necessary that the user defined functions present in your compiled modules are automatically compiled every time the winrunner starts up. 

- For this you need to add load statements top the start up tests. 

- However, you should know that for loading the recovery compiled module there is no need for adding the load statements to the start up tests or any other tests.

- This is so bacuse the recovery compiled module loads by itself when the winrunner is started. 

- Another point to be taken care of is that the compiled modules cannot load the GUI map files when you are working in the GUI map file per test mode.

- If the compiled module has to make references to any of the GUI objects present in the application software then it is required that the referred GUI objects must also be referred in the test which is responsible for loading that particular compiled module. 

- Like a regular TSL test the compiled module can be opened, edited or saved.  - However, there is a big difference in the contents of a compiled module or ordinary tests. 

- Like a regular test, a compiled module does not contain any analog input or check points. 

- This is so because a compiled module is designed to store user defined functions rather than just performing a test. 

- The purpose why it stores all the frequently user defined functions is to speed up the execution process by providing a quick and convenient access from the other tests. 

- Its contents are:

1. Function definitions and declarations,
2. External functions prototypes
3. Load statements etc.