Development and Testing

Development and Testing

Repository layout

• Generator LIB/Core — validation, errors, model, builder, type unification, and shared settings.
• Generator LIB/Delphi — Delphi facade, naming, settings, and writer.
• Generator LIB/CSharp — C# facade, naming, settings, and writer.
• Generator GUI — VCL desktop client and syntax highlighting.
• Runtime — support required by generated Delphi DTOs.
• Components — GUI services, resources, and VCL/FMX demo templates.
• Demo Data — representative JSON inputs and regression examples.
• Generator LIB/Tests — core, backend, smoke, and compatibility tests.
• Unit Test — runtime-focused DUnitX tests.
• End To End Test — full generation/build test application.

Where a change belongs

• JSON syntax, locations, or shape errors: Core.Validation.
• Type inference, numeric promotion, nullability, or object merging: Core.TypeUnification and Core.Builder.
• Model ownership or metadata: Core.Model.
• Delphi identifiers/types/source layout: Delphi naming or writer.
• C# identifiers/types/source layout: C# naming or writer.
• Serialization behavior of generated Delphi DTOs: Runtime.
• Editor, visualization, settings UI, output selection, or demo workflow: Generator GUI/Components.

Keep the core free of Delphi- or C#-specific identifiers and type spellings. Add a semantic kind to the neutral model only when it describes the input independently of an output language.

Test layers

• Core tests cover validation, model construction, builder behavior, type unification, and object matrices.
• Backend tests cover Delphi and C# naming and emitted source.
• Smoke tests compile generated output and exercise representative demo cases.
• Legacy compatibility tests protect intentional historical output behavior.
• Runtime tests cover DTO serialization, JSON-name handling, matrices, nullability, and zero suppression.
• End-to-end tests cover the complete generator integration.
• Component smoke tests build generated VCL/FMX demo projects and their embedded resources.

Build commands

From a PowerShell prompt at the repository root:

& '.\Unit Test\build.ps1'
& '.\End To End Test\build.ps1'
& '.\Components\Tests\build.ps1'

The minimum supported compiler is Delphi 2009. The scripts currently reference a RAD Studio 37/Delphi 13 compiler at C:\Program Files (x86)\Embarcadero\Studio\37.0\bin\dcc32.exe; this is only the checked-in development configuration. Update the local path when using another supported compiler version.

The generator-library projects and test runners can also be built through their .dproj files or from the repository project group.

Adding a backend

1. Add a backend directory under Generator LIB.
2. Implement backend settings derived from TGeneratorSettings.
3. Implement naming and reserved-word rules without changing the model.
4. Implement a writer that consumes TGeneratorModel read-only.
5. Add a small public facade following the Delphi/C# parse-and-generate pattern.
6. Add unit tests for every neutral type, arrays/matrices, optional/nullable fields, naming collisions, and required imports.
7. Add smoke compilation in the target toolchain when practical.

Documentation maintenance

Update Features when externally visible behavior changes and Architecture when responsibilities or dependency direction changes. Settings and runtime additions should be documented on their dedicated pages in the same change.