Run tests on LRE from your IDE

You can use LoadRunner Developer to run DevWeb performance tests on LoadRunner Enterprise (LRE). This enables you to scale up the number of Vusers. The performance tests are executed from your IDE.

In this topic:

Working with LoadRunner Developer and LRE

You must have an LRE license to execute a load test on LRE, and to obtain information on available hosts.

Refer to the following information sources to help you work with LoadRunner Developer and LRE:

• To get information within your IDE on LRE usage, available flags, and examples, run a command in the IDE using the following argument:

  ScaLRD lre--help

• Review the frequently asked questions section: Scale LoadRunner Developer tests on LRE - FAQ

• LRE documentation: LoadRunner Enterprise Help Center

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Run LRE performance tests from your IDE

In your IDE, you define and run the task to execute the performance test.

For an example of running the task from Visual Studio Code, see Scale your test from VS Code

To run tests with any IDE:

1. Create your DevWeb script, and test it in LoadRunner Developer.
2. Configure the required settings in the lre_uploader.yml file. For details, see Configure the lre_uploader.yml file.
3. Open the script in your IDE.

4. Set up a task for the ScaLRD tool to run the test.

   When setting up the task in your IDE, configure the arguments and flags for the command line using the following format.

   Windows	%DEVWEB_PATH%\ScaLRD.exe lre <flags> run <DevWeb script folder path>
   Linux or macOS	$DEVWEB_PATH/ScaLRD lre <flags> run <DevWeb script folder path>

   The following flags are available:

   -host=	The LRE host name with http/https protocol.
   -tenantId=	The tenant ID of the user (if required for the environment).
   -domain=	The domain name of the user.
   -project=	The LRE project name.
   -authenticationMode=	The authentication type used to connect to LRE.
   -userName=	(For basic authentication) The user name to use to log into LRE.
   -password=	(For basic authentication) The password to use to log into LRE.
   -clientId=	(For SSO authentication) The client ID required to log into LRE.
   -clientSecret=	(For SSO authentication) The client secret required to log into LRE.
   -keyLocation=	The full path to a key file used to decrypt encrypted strings in the configuration file.
   -testPlan=	The script is uploaded to a test plan folder with this name.
   -testSet=	The performance test is created under a test set with this name.
   -testSetFolder=	The test set is created under a test set folder with this name.
   -report=	The relative or root path to the location for the results report. If a path is not specified, then the report is not generated.

   All flags apart from report can be configured in the lre_uploader.yml file. If you add them in the command line, the flag definitions override the YAML file definitions.

   For example, you might add to the command line:

   -report=<report location> -user=KimW

   Note: We recommend that you do not add sensitive information like passwords in plain text.For details, see Mask and encrypt data.

5. Run the task in the IDE.

   The DevWeb script folder is uploaded to the test plan folder configured in the lre_uploader.yml file (parameter testPlan). If a test plan name is not configured, the script is uploaded by default to AutoTestPlan.

   A performance test is created for the test in the same test set plan folder, using the label <Script Name>_PerformanceTest.

6. The performance test is executed, using the configuration settings in the relevant uploader configuration file.

   When the test is run, the test instance is assigned to the test set and test set folder that are configured in the lre_uploader.yml file. If these parameters are not defined, then AutoTestSet and AutoTestSetFolder are used by default.

   The test run is given an ID number, for example, Test Id 184.

   The ID can be used together with the test name to identify the run in LRE.

   

   You can watch the run progress from the LRE UI.

7. When the test is complete, LoadRunner Developer displays the summary report. If email notification is configured, the results are emailed.

   You do not need to wait for the task to complete. You can close it locally in your IDE, or LoadRunner Developer exits after reaching the timeout. In both these cases, the test continues to run on LRE. You can later return to the test in your IDE to see if the run is complete and to get the results. For details, see Get LRE test run results.

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Get LRE test run results

You can run a task in your IDE to check the results of the performance test on LRE. This option enables you to get the test results after LoadRunner Developer exited (before test execution was complete and results were available).

To get test run results:

1. Configure the arguments for the command line to get the test run results. The following options are available (on Windows OS):

   Purpose	Command
   Results for the last run for the specified test.	%DEVWEB_PATH%\ScaLRD.exe lre <flags> getResults <script folder path>
   Results for the specified run ID. The applied login information is taken from the lre_uploader.yml file located in the same folder as ScaLRD.exe.	%DEVWEB_PATH%\ScaLRD.exe lre <flags> getResults <test run ID in LRE>
   Results for the specified run ID. The lre_uploader.yml file located in the specified script directory overrides the one located with ScaLRD.exe.	%DEVWEB_PATH%\ScaLRD.exe lre <flags> getResults <test run ID in LRE> <script folder path>

   Note: On Linux or macOS, use $DEVWEB_PATH/ScaLRD instead of %DEVWEB_PATH%\ScaLRD.exe.

2. Run the task. The progress pane indicates if the load test is still running, or shows the summary report if it has finished.
3. If the test is still running, you can return later and run the getResults task again.

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Configure the lre_uploader.yml file

The settings in the primary lre_uploader.yml configuration file (located in the same directory as the ScaLRD executable) apply for all scripts that you execute on LRE.

For local configuration, you can copy the lre_uploader.yml file to a specific script directory, and customize the file settings for use with that specific script. During the script run, the settings in the local lre_uploader.yml file override the settings in the original (primary) file.

The lre_uploader.yml file contains customizable default values for the script run, with explanations for each parameter. These settings include:

environment	These are required values for communication with the LRE machine. These settings can be defined in the lre_uploader.yml file, or in the command line flags. (For details, see Run LRE performance tests from your IDE.) The authenticationMode key enables you to define the authentication type used to connect to LRE: basic, or accessKey for SSO authentication. If basic is defined, enter the user name and password in the basic section. The Password key can be deleted from the file, and instead entered during runtime. If accessKey is defined, enter the client ID and client secret in the accessKey section. Note: We recommend that you do not add sensitive information like passwords and client secret in plain text. For details, see Mask and encrypt data.
workspace	Define the folder structure to use in LRE for the performance test. Do this by defining names for the following parameters: testPlan, testSetFolder, and testSet. If the names are not defined, then the default name, AutoTest, is used at runtime, for example, AutoTestPlan.
hosts/controller	Define the load generators and Controller machine to use for the test. For details, see Define hosts and Controller for LRE tests.
trend report	Use to add the test run data to a trend report in LRE. The name you define indicates whether to add to an existing or new trend report: Define a unique name to create a new trend report. Define the name of an existing trend report, so that the test run data is added to that report. If required, you can define start and end points within the test run, so that the trend data is collected from between these points. To ensure the test run data is added to the trend report, you must do one of the following: Keep the task open in ScaLRD until the test completes (set waitForRunTimeout to -1). Run the getResults task after the test completes. See Get LRE test run results.
encryption	For encrypted data, define the key location. For details, see Mask and encrypt data.
Scenario and general settings	These include parameters for the number of Vusers to run, ramp up time, duration, and logging.
waitForRunTimeout	Define the number of seconds for LoadRunner Developer to wait while checking the status of the test run. After the time elapses, LoadRunner Developer exits, but the test continues to run on LRE. The default is 10 seconds. You can use -1 to wait continuously until the run is complete. You can later check status again. For details, see Get LRE test run results.
Script exclude	This is a list of regular expressions defining files to exclude from the script when it is uploaded to LRE.

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Define hosts and Controller for LRE tests

You can configure the lre_uploader.yml file to instruct LRE on what load generator hosts (on-premises or cloud-based) to use for your performance tests. You can also define a specific Controller machine to use for the test.

If you choose not to define hosts and/or a Controller machine in lre_uploader.yml, the performance test is run from LoadRunner Developer using the following rules in LRE:

• For a new test, LRE automatically selects the Controller machine and one load generator to run the test.

• For a test that already exists in LRE, nothing is changed in the existing load generator configuration for the test in LRE.

To define load generators and Controller for LRE tests:

1. To obtain a table listing the LRE load generator hosts available to use for the test run, execute the relevant command from the DEVWEB_PATH:

   List on-prem hosts	ScaLRD.exe lre info hosts
   List cloud-based host templates	ScaLRD.exe lre info cloudTemplates

   Note: If one of the listed hosts is not available at the time of the test run (because it has been scheduled for another test), then the test won't run on that load generator.

2. Open the lre_uploader.yml file (primary file, or local version for the script).

3. In the hosts section, uncomment and update each type area as relevant, to define the load generators to run the test. You can define more than one type, in any combination:

   Parameter	Description
   type: specific	Add specific on-premises hosts. Define the name of the host in the options: name property, by copying it from the on-prem hosts table. Add additional hosts by repeating the type: specific parameters. For example:
   type: automatch	Instruct LRE to automatically select on-premises hosts for the run. Define the number of hosts to use in the options: amount property. For example, amount:10. You can define an automatch value in addition to specifically named hosts or cloud hosts, up to the limit of available hosts.
   type: cloud	Add host templates, used by LRE to provision your cloud-based load generators. Define the name of the template in the options: name property, by copying valid templates from the cloud templates table. Add additional templates by repeating the type: cloud parameters. Note: Use of LRE cloud-based hosts is supported for LRP and LRE.

4. If you want to define a specific LRE Controller to run the test, uncomment the controller section and specify the machine name.

5. Save the file.

   When you run the performance test from LoadRunner Developer, any hosts/Controller defined for the test within LRE are overwritten by your definitions in lre_uploader.yml.

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Scale LoadRunner Developer tests on LRE - FAQ

Review the frequently asked questions before running your performance test.

Is a performance test run from the LoadRunner Developer integration the same as a test run from the LRE UI?	Yes—when a performance test is executed for the LoadRunner Developer integration using the ScaLRD tool, it is run like any other LRE test.
How is my performance test created in LRE the first time I run the test?	When you execute your test, the script is uploaded to the LRE folder defined in lre_uploader.yml; or, if the folder is not defined, to the AutoTestPlan folder. It also creates a performance test using the label <Script Name>_PerformanceTest.
What happens if I make changes to the test in LRE?	You can make configuration changes to the test in the LRE UI. When you execute the test again from LoadRunner Developer, some of your configuration items might be overwritten.
How can I change the script schedule settings?	You can change schedule settings, for example for number of Vusers or duration, in the scenario section of the lre_uploader.yml configuration file. When you execute the test from LoadRunner Developer, these settings overwrite the settings in the LRE UI.
How can I add additional groups to my performance test?	Whenever you execute the test from LoadRunner Developer, only the uploaded group is used for the test. You cannot run multiple groups.
How can I configure a specific load generator for my performance test?	You can configure load generators in the hosts section of the lre_uploader.yml file. For details, see Define hosts and Controller for LRE tests.

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See also:

• Scale tests from your IDE
• Scale your test from VS Code
• Scripting with your IDE