The Connectivity Problem in Testing
With distributed processing, transactions are no longer processed in a single system or environment, but instead are processed across multiple platforms and multiple systems.

This distributed environment raises the level of complexity for application programmers trying to test their transactions. Because of this new complexity, to test a transaction a programmer needs a complex testing environment—one that includes multiple networks, multiple platforms, and multiple systems.

Without this complex level of connectivity, only parts of the transaction can be tested, not the entire transaction. In addition, the programmer must try to simulate the response from the other environment to continue testing. However, setting up simulation routines and test cases takes a great deal of time and makes programmers less productive.

Possible Solutions
Any solution to this testing problem has to take two things into account. First of all, each programmer requires a certain level of isolation to reliably test application transactions. Second of all, at the same time the programmer requires connectivity to other networks, terminals, systems, and so forth for testing the remaining parts of the transaction.

One approach is to provide each programmer with a complete network, terminals, systems, and so forth. This naive approach would be very expensive, however, and would require a very large amount of resources, as well as duplicate sets of resources. Another approach would be to isolate the testing routines and provide server systems that do some of the common or already tested functions. However, this approach puts a great deal of stress on the testing organization and requires constant upkeep.

In our mind, neither of these approaches is satisfactory. What is needed is an in-depth test facility where programmers can test their transactions using enhanced trace, edit features, and source level trace features. At the same time, these programmers should have nearly transparent access to other networks or systems where certain sub-functions of the transaction being tested can be performed. And all this should be provided without intensive use of resources.

CMSTPF and TPF/GI already provide programmers with the powerful trace, edit and source level trace features with a minimum use of resources. The need for network connectivity is where CTFS steps in. With CTFS and a TPF server machine connected to a network, CMSTPF and TPF/GI programmers can perform the sub-functions (network functions, and so forth) needed by their transactions. Complete testing is possible without intensive resource use.