Test-Driven Development with .NET 8+ & Visual Studio 2022

Course Syllabus

Benjamin Day Consulting, Inc.
17 Roberts St #2
Brookline, MA 02445
617-645-0188
https://benday.com

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Course Overview

Unit testing enables you and your team to write high-quality software with fewer bugs. It also allows you to say with confidence when something in your code is working and – more importantly – know when it is not working. Test-Driven Development (TDD) is a methodology for writing software that ensures that your application and your application code are testable and tested from the very start.

This course gives students hands-on experience and knowledge for writing and maintaining applications using Test-Driven Development with modern .NET and Visual Studio 2022. Throughout the course we discuss the options, process, and motivations for unit testing and TDD and reemphasize these concepts using hands-on labs.

What You'll Learn

TDD Fundamentals & Methodology

• What is a unit test?
• What is Test-Driven Development (TDD)? Why is TDD important?
• The TDD process: Red-Green-Refactor cycle
• Common (bogus) excuses for NOT doing Unit Testing & TDD
• How do I sell my team on Unit Testing & TDD?
• Best practices for fixing bugs & defects using TDD

Unit Testing Frameworks & Tools

• xUnit.NET - Modern, extensible testing framework (primary focus)
• NUnit - Popular alternative testing framework
• MSTest - Microsoft's built-in testing framework
• Choosing the right framework for your project
• Test runners and Visual Studio 2022 integration
• Test discovery and execution

Creating and Writing Unit Tests

• Test structure: Arrange-Act-Assert pattern
• Naming conventions for tests and test classes
• Test categories and organization
• Parameterized tests and data-driven testing
• Testing edge cases and boundary conditions
• What is Code Coverage and why do I care?

Designing Applications for Testability

• SOLID Principles for testable design
  • Single Responsibility Principle (SRP)
  • Dependency Inversion Principle (DIP)
• Design Patterns for testability
  • Repository pattern (persistence abstraction)
  • Adapter pattern (object transformation)
  • Strategy pattern (algorithm abstraction)
  • Model-View-Controller (MVC) pattern

Testing Different Application Layers

ASP.NET Core Testing

• Testing controllers and Web API endpoints
• Testing views and Razor Pages
• Testing routing and URL generation
• Testing security logic and authorization
• Testing configuration and dependency injection
• Integration testing with WebApplicationFactory

Database and Persistence Testing

• Testing Entity Framework Core
• Repository pattern implementation and testing
• In-memory databases for testing
• Test data management strategies
• Transaction handling in tests

Business Logic Testing

• Testing validation logic
• Testing calculation logic
• Testing service layer/use case patterns
• Testing domain models and business rules

Mocking and Test Doubles

• Fakes, Mocks, & Stubs - Understanding the differences
• Moq - Popular .NET mocking framework
• Using mocks to avoid "The Huge Integration Test" pitfall
• Dealing with databases and test data in unit tests
• Mocking web services, APIs, and external dependencies
• Mocking Entity Framework and database contexts
• Using mocks to reach hard-to-test scenarios

Advanced Testing Scenarios

• Testing user interfaces and UI logic
• Testing non-public methods (when appropriate)
• Strategies for unit testing legacy code
• Refactoring for testability
• Testing asynchronous code (async/await)
• Testing middleware and custom filters

Integration with DevOps

• Where does testing fit with DevOps pipelines?
• Automated testing in CI/CD workflows
• Test reporting and metrics
• Code coverage in build pipelines
• Quality gates and deployment decisions

Additional Testing Types

• Integration testing patterns
• Performance and load testing considerations
• End-to-end testing strategies
• API testing with ASP.NET Core

Lab Exercises

Throughout the course, students will work on hands-on exercises including:

• Writing your first unit tests using TDD
• Refactoring existing code for testability
• Testing ASP.NET Core controllers and services
• Implementing repository pattern with tests
• Creating comprehensive test suites
• Using mocks to isolate dependencies
• Measuring and improving code coverage

Prerequisites

• Basic understanding of C# and .NET development
• Familiarity with Visual Studio 2022
• Some experience with ASP.NET Core helpful but not required
• Basic understanding of object-oriented programming concepts

Course Details

Technologies: .NET 8+, Visual Studio 2022, xUnit.NET, Moq, Entity Framework Core
Programming Languages: Primarily C#
Duration: 2 days, 9am to 5pm
Format: Interactive lectures with extensive hands-on labs

Lab Machine Requirements

Operating System: Windows 10/11 or macOS (latest versions)
Memory: 8GB RAM minimum, 16GB recommended
Required Applications:

• Visual Studio 2022 (Community, Professional, or Enterprise)
• .NET 8+ SDK
• Modern web browser
• SQL Server LocalDB (included with Visual Studio)

Network Requirements: Internet connection for NuGet package restoration

Student Permissions: Administrative rights on laptop helpful for installing packages

Course Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

• Apply Test-Driven Development methodology effectively
• Choose appropriate testing frameworks for their projects
• Design applications with testability as a primary concern
• Write comprehensive unit test suites
• Use mocking frameworks to isolate dependencies
• Test different layers of .NET applications
• Integrate testing practices into DevOps workflows
• Refactor legacy code for improved testability
• Measure and improve code coverage

Customization Options

This course can be customized for your organization's specific needs:

• Focus on specific testing frameworks (xUnit, NUnit, or MSTest)
• Emphasis on particular application types (Web API, Blazor, etc.)
• Integration with your existing DevOps tools and processes
• Legacy code testing strategies for your codebase
• Shortened format (1-1.5 days) or extended format (3 days)
• Advanced topics (performance testing, security testing)

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Course content is regularly updated to reflect the latest .NET and Visual Studio capabilities, testing frameworks, and industry best practices.