Helpers

Helpers are Ruby modules that add behavior to the test execution context without turning every method into a fixture. Use helpers when tests need reusable methods (for example, async wrappers or browser action utilities) that do not make sense as keyword-injected fixtures.

use_helper is available only inside around_test. There is no top-level use_helper DSL: helper registration is opt-in per test run, not file- or suite-wide configuration.

Registering a Helper for a Test

Pass a module to use_helper inside around_test, then call test.run:

module AsyncHelpers
  def async_promise(&block)
    Thread.new(&block)
  end

  def await_promises(*threads)
    threads.map(&:value)
  end
end

around_test do |test|
  use_helper AsyncHelpers
  test.run
end

test("waits for two async operations") do
  first = async_promise { 1 }
  second = async_promise { 2 }

  expect(await_promises(first, second)).to eq([1, 2])
end

Helper methods are extended onto a fresh ExecutionContext for that single test and made private on it. They do not mutate Smartest::ExecutionContext globally, so they do not leak into later tests that did not register the helper.

use_helper must receive a module and must be called before test.run. Calling it after test.run raises Smartest::AroundTestRunError. Multiple helper modules are applied in registration order.

Suite-Wide Helpers

To apply a helper to every test in the suite, define an around_test hook from around_suite and call use_helper before test.run:

smartest/test_helper.rb

require "smartest/autorun"

around_suite do |suite|
  around_test do |test|
    use_helper AsyncHelpers
    test.run
  end

  suite.run
end

use_helper is not callable directly inside around_suite. Register helpers from around_test so the methods are scoped to the per-test execution context.