Sequence and sequence files advice

[Believer]

I am embarking on a project to test two way radios using around 50 tests (receiever and transmitter).

It seems each test should be in its own sequence but should each sequence be in its own sequence file? - or should they all be in just a few files?

I am just not sure on the pros & cons of individual sequence files vs having many sequences in one file, so I'd appreciate any advice on the subject.

Many thanks,

Ronnie

[DRock]

Hey Ronnie,

I would absolutely not put each Sequence in its own Sequence File - this is completely unnecessary and will add in a lot of maintenance overhead to your development.  However, that being said, the way in which you organize your Sequences on a Sequence File basis is a matter of both personal preference and application architecture.  Placing all application Sequences within a single Sequence File will be easier to keep track of, as they'll all be contained within a single file that you need to maintain.  That being said, there are often logical reasons to involve a few different Sequence Files under the umbrella of one single application. 

For example, what if you were creating a "library" of commonly utilized tests/Sequences and you wanted to store those common Sequences in one Sequence File, but put a set of application or UUT-specific Sequences within a separate Sequence File?  This would make sense, as all applications (no matter which UUT) could then utilize your common "library" Sequence File and you'd introduce a nice modularity to your system.  This is just one example in which this might make perfect sense.

You can expand upon this and ask yourself - does each test really need its own Sequence (it might, depending on how many steps-per-test) or can each test be more simply organized in the form of an individual code module, thereby cutting down on the number of Sequences you need?

There are more architecture considerations discussed in our TestStand Customer Education courses (both online and regional).  Let me know if you'd be interested in finding out more information about the courses.

[Believer]

Thanks for the advice Derrick. What you say makes sense.

As for the TestStand courses, believe it or not I've taken TestStand I: Introduction, and TestStand II: Customization - but it was a couple of years ago...

Thanks again,

Ronnie

[DRock]

Hey Ronnie,

Well, it's pretty daunting when first thinking of how to architect your application, but at least the course did it's job and got you thinking about it early on rather than later!!  There are a ton of resources on TestStand's Support Page, the NI Community - and we're always here to help.