OSDL rev's free online Linux testing tools

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Aug. 19, 2004

The Open Source Development Labs (OSDL) has revised its Scalable Test Platform (STP), an "enterprise-grade" testing service for the Linux kernel that is used to test mainstream Linux kernel releases and which is also freely available to qualifying developers through the OSDL's website.

Version 3

According to the OSDL, STP version 3.0 broadens the test suite's capability to simulate real-world workloads involving the open source databases MySQL, PostgreSQL and SAPDb. It also adds support for new process architectures, with cross-compile filters now available for PPC, PPC64, Sparc, Sparc64, x86_64, and Alpha chip architectures.

Additionally, a new, advanced search tool is said to facilitate researching and retrieving archived test results.

STP -- a free Linux testing suite

STP, first introduced in 2001, provides test suites for a range of hardware platforms and can be used to validate changes to code in the Linux kernel, "automatically tracking performance and quantifying stability," according to the OSDL. STP is intended to enable enterprises to test patches and company-specific Linux systems for stability and performance prior to production deployment.

According to the OSDL, developers and testers use STP in two ways. They can automatically test the main kernel tree and critical sub-trees using tests such as LTP, reaim, tiobench, iozone, dbt2, dt3, and more. They can also test for specific changes to the kernel by uploading patches to a specific kernel tree, and requesting a test or suite of tests to be run across a variety of server configurations, from simple single processor systems to large, 8-way SMP servers. All test data are archived and posted publicly on the OSDL website.

STP has added many critical test suites since its inception, including Kernbench, contest, reaim, and the Open POSIX Testsuite, the OSDL says. Test result summary pages are also available for tiobench, reaim, and iozone.

Linus, Andrew, et. al. use it, too

STP is also used to test mainstream kernel releases. The OSDL says STP was used to perform more than 1,000 kernel tests each month during the transition from the 2.5 "develoment" version of Linux to the 2.6 "stable" release. The results of STP tests on various Linux kernels are available online.

Linux hacker supreme Andrew Morton said, "The STP was helpful to us in delivering a stable 2.6 kernel at the first release. Any developer or organization working around the kernel will find this a useful tool."

IDC VP Dan Kusnetzky said, "Linux is increasingly seen running critical applications. Tools such as STP could be a valuable addition to an organization's test environment."

OSDL CTO Timothy Witham said, "A mandate from our members and the development community is to make OSDL a leader in Linux testing. That's why we created STP and why we invested more than $15 million in our data center testing systems and make them available to developers around the world."

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