This topic explains how you run a load test from the command line interface.

Starting the Load Test Server on Remote Machines

If you will be running tests on remote machines, Load Test Server must be running on those machines.

Windows

To start the Load Test Server on a Windows machine, enter a command in the format:

Windows: lt -loadtestserver [portnumber]

For example:
lt -loadtestserver 10095

Linux/Mac

To start the Load Test Server on a Linux/Mac machine, enter a command in the format:

loadtest -loadtestserver [portnumber]

For example:
loadtest -loadtestserver 10095

Working with Load Test Machines Located on Different Networks

A Load Test controller machine (the one that runs in GUI mode and from which you control the load test) can communicate with a Load Test server machine located on a different network if the network equipment that bridges these networks allows communication on the port that the Load Test server machine is listening on.

For example, if you run your Load Test controller on network A and your Load Test server is started on port 10095 by a “lt -loadtestserver 10095” command on network ,B you need to make sure that the communication on port 10095 between networks A and B is not restricted by your network equipment. Allow any TCP traffic exchange for that port. Talk to your system or network administrator about the network configuration issues.

Running Load Tests

To perform the test, you create a script that specifies what .lt file to open and how to run the test, then you invoke that script whenever you want to run the test.

Create the Script

To create the script, create a text file (we’ll refer to this as your_command_file) that contains a command in the following format:

open FilePath
 
loadtest [-version] 
[-localSettings path_to_local_settings_file] [-env environment_name] 
[-minutes number] 
[-vus number | -hps number] 
[-teamServer path_inside_team_server] 
[-report path_to_report_file] 
[-html html_directory] 
ScenarioName

The loadtest command runs a test suite load test using the specified scenario. See the Load Test Command Reference table below for the list and description of the loadtest command options.

Using Variables in the Script

You can declare and use variables in the script. A variable can be declared in the following way:

var VariableName1 = VariableValue
var VariableName2 = "Variable Value with Spaces"

An already-declared variable can be assigned a new name in the following way:

var VariableName1 = NewVariableValue

Sample Script

Here is a sample script (comments in the script are preceded with a "#" sign):

#
# Using script commands
#
 
var report-home = C:\CONTINUOUS_LOAD_TEST\ENTERPRISE_LOAD_TEST 
var minutes = 1
 
var scenario = "Steady Load"
var base = tests/loadtester/accuracytest/tests 
var category = Accuracy
 
var test-name = 1-Profile-HPS
open ${base}/${test-name}.lt
loadtest -minutes ${minutes} -allReports ${report-home}/%d/${category}/${test-name} ${scenario}

Run the Script

To invoke that script while starting a Load Test Server:

• Invoke Load Test from the command line by entering a command in one of the following format
  • Windows: lt.exe -cmd -run your_command_file
  • Linux/Mac: loadtest -cmd -run your_command_file

Note that the -cmd argument starts Load Test in command line mode, while the -run argument executes the specified Load Test script. Both arguments are required to run a script from the command line.

Load Test Command Reference

The following commands allow you to start the Load Test Server and run load tests:

Load Test Startup Command

Use these commands in either the Windows Command Prompt or a Linux shell.

Load Test Script Commands

*Load Test report data is collected and saved in approximately 3 second intervals. The trimReport…

commands will discard all report collection points that fall into the specified trim intervals. Because the times of the report collection points and the specified trim values may not match, the actual duration trimmed from the beginning and end of the report may (and in most cases will) exceed the duration specified in the command line. The excess value trimmed from the head and the tail of the report will not exceed the duration of the data collection interval. For more details on how report fragments are saved, see Understanding Report Interval Selection.

Local Settings Files

Local settings files can control various Load Test options. You can create different local settings files for different projects, then use the -localSettings script option to indicate which file should be used for the current command line test.

If a parameter is specified in this file, it will override the related parameter specified in the Load Test preferences. If a parameter is not specified in this file, Load Test will use the parameter specified in the preferences. If there is no relevant parameter in the Load Test preferences, a default value setting will be used.

If you want to use a default setting, remove or comment out the setting from the file. The file contains name/value pairs and uses the following format:

nameString=valueString

Each name/value pair must be on a separate line. Use the hash “#” symbol to comment the name/value entries.

Sample

A sample local settings file may contain:

# This is a commment 
echo=false
team.server.host=localhost 
team.server.port=18888 
team.server.user=
team.server.password=

Available Settings

Console Logging

Console logging provides load test status information in command line mode as the tests are running. When console logging is enabled (see the console.log=enable local setting), the application prints the main load test run time parameters in the console. Load test status is printed in one line every 30 seconds. It contains the following information:

• System Time
• Percent complete
• Run time seconds completed/total
• Total tests passed/failed
• Average Virtual User count since last log
• Average Hit Per Second rate since last log

Example:

2011.04.21 17:54:56 MDT | 53% complete | 32/60 seconds | passed 245/failed 0 | avg. VUs 4 |avg. HPS 8