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# How to Set Data for Iterations

This task describes how to create iterations and define their corresponding data values.

Note: This task is part of a higher-level task. For details, see How to Handle Data in Business Process Testing.

- Prerequisites and considerations

  Take the following guidelines into account to successfully work with iterations:

  - Match an application’s post-condition with the next iteration’s pre-condition. For a business component to run iterations successfully, it is essential that the post-condition (the state of the application after the last step in the component runs) match the pre-condition (the state of the application before the first step in the component runs).

  - Link output parameters to input parameters. Iterations in a business process test or flow can result in multiple output parameter values. In these cases, each iteration passes its output value as input to the corresponding target component or flow. This is called parameter linkage. For conceptual details, see Parameter Linkage Overview .

  - Components or flows in a group with input parameters must have the same number of iterations. When grouping, ALM requests confirmation that the iteration range should be set to that of the first component's iteration range. For example, if the first component in the group is set to run iterations 2 to 3, the entire group will be set to run iterations 2 to 3.
  - For iterations of a group to be successful, the state of the application at the end of the last item in the group must match the state of the application before the first item in the group. For example, if the first component in the group assumes that the Login dialog box in an application is open, then at the point where the last component of the group ends, the Login dialog box but be in an open state before the next iteration begins.

  - Moving a group or a member within a group could cause a parameter reference conflict, for example, where a group is moved to a position preceding the component that provides an input component parameter needed by a parameter in the group. If the resulting warning message is ignored, the conflicting link to the source parameter is deleted. The value for the source parameter will be empty. You can then either supply a value for the parameter or reinstate the link in the Group Iterations dialog box.

- Iterate components, flows, and groups

  You use the Iteration pages to set the parameter values that a component, group, or flow uses for each iteration. For user interface details, see Iteration Pages.

  Tip: Alternatively, when working with dynamic data sets, if you prefer working directly in a spreadsheet, you can use Microsoft Excel. For details, see the Micro Focus Application Lifecycle Management User Guide: How to Associate Dynamic Data.

  Set the value of each input parameter for each iteration. For user interface details, see Set Values Dialog Box.

  If you want the group, component, or flow to run for a specific range of iterations, click the Select Iterations button and select the relevant iterations in the Select Iterations dialog box. The headings of the iterations that are not in the selected range are dimmed. For user interface details, see Select Iterations Dialog Box.

  Note: If a component, group, or flow has input parameters that reference the output parameters of a different business component or flow, differences between the number of iterations can result in an error at runtime. The parameter name in the Iterations dialog box is displayed in red, indicating an iteration range mismatch.

- Iterate flow run instances

  You use the Test Iterations tab in the Test Lab module to set the parameter values that a flow instance uses for each iteration. For user interface details, see Iteration Pages and Micro Focus Application Lifecycle Management User Guide: Test Iterations Tab.

- Iterate test configurations

  You use the Data tab in the Test Configurations tab in the Test Plan module to set the parameter values that a test configuration uses for each iteration. For user interface details, see Iteration Pages.

  Note: Iterations for test configurations that access dynamic data are set according to the number of rows of data in external data resource tables, and are not defined using the Iteration pages.

- Iterate according to Imported data - optional

  The task of defining lists of component or flow parameter values for iterations can be facilitated by importing the values from an external file. For task details, see How to Import and Export (Save) Parameter Values.

- Results

  When the component or flow runs, only the defined iterations run.

  The iterations that are not selected for inclusion in the run are disabled.

https://admhelp.microfocus.com ALM 8942
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