Get rid of dotnet test runner by nightskylark · Pull Request #32792 · DevExpress/DevExtreme

nightskylark · 2026-03-04T17:09:48Z

Summary

This PR removes the .NET dependency from the DevExtreme QUnit browser runner by replacing the legacy ASP.NET Core runner with a Node.js implementation, while preserving the existing runner behavior and endpoint contract.

Motivation

The previous runner required a .NET toolchain only for QUnit execution. This increased CI/setup complexity and made long-term maintenance harder.
The new implementation keeps the same workflow but runs fully on Node.js.

What was changed

1. Replaced legacy `.NET` QUnit runner with Node.js

Implemented a Node-based runner at packages/devextreme/testing/runner/index.js.
Kept legacy-compatible routes and semantics for:
- suite/category discovery,
- run pages (/run, /main/runall, /main/runsuite),
- test lifecycle notifications,
- results saving/reporting (Results.xml, misc/raw logs),
- vector map helper endpoints,
- static file serving.

2. Removed `.NET` artifacts and configuration

Deleted legacy C# runner sources and project files:
- packages/devextreme/testing/runner/**/*.cs
- packages/devextreme/testing/runner/runner.csproj
- old MVC views and model/controller/tool files.
Removed obsolete solution:
- packages/devextreme/build/build-dotnet.sln
Removed obsolete VSCode runner configs:
- packages/devextreme/testing/runner/.vscode/*

3. Updated scripts and CI to be Node-only

packages/devextreme/testing/launch: now starts node testing/runner/index.js.
packages/devextreme/docker-ci.sh: runner startup switched from runner.dll to Node runner.
packages/devextreme/package.json: removed dotnet build from dev script.
.github/actions/run-qunit-tests/action.yml: removed .NET build step.
.github/workflows/qunit_tests.yml and packages/devextreme/project.json: removed DOTNET_* env usage.

4. Security and robustness improvements

Moved large inline HTML pages to dedicated templates:
- packages/devextreme/testing/runner/templates/*.template.html
Added safe template rendering and escaping in Node runner.
Replaced dynamic string URL concatenation in getJSON with query params object for suite loading.
Improved cache-buster handling (DX_HTTP_CACHE) by URL-encoding values.

5. CI fixes after migration

Added HEAD handling for run endpoints used by readiness checks.
Fixed SystemJS mapping for @preact/signals-core.
Added fallback when theme bundles directory is missing.
Fixed vector map output parsing for non-JSON mode (trailing ; / assignment parsing).

6. Maintainability refactor

Split the monolithic runner into focused modules under packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/:
- http, logger, pages, results, static, suites, templates, utils, vectormap.
Reduced index.js from ~1550 lines to an orchestration layer (~446 lines).

Compatibility notes

No intentional functional changes in test execution behavior.
Existing runner endpoints and overall flow are preserved.

- Created `index.template.html` for the main testing interface, including category selection and suite display. - Added `run-all.template.html` for running all test suites with worker management and result reporting. - Introduced `run-suite.template.html` for individual suite execution with QUnit integration and CSP support.

Copilot

Pull request overview

This PR removes the .NET (ASP.NET Core) dependency from the DevExtreme QUnit browser runner and replaces it with a functionally equivalent Node.js implementation. The legacy runner required a .NET 8 toolchain solely for QUnit test execution, making CI/setup unnecessarily complex.

Changes:

Replaces the ASP.NET Core runner (C# controllers, models, Razor views, runner.csproj, build-dotnet.sln) with a new Node.js runner (index.js + modular lib/ files), preserving all existing HTTP routes and behavior.
Migrates inline Razor HTML to standalone .template.html files with a custom {{{raw}}}/{{escaped}} template engine and adds safe HTML escaping.
Updates CI workflows, scripts, and package.json to remove all .NET build steps.

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 44 out of 44 changed files in this pull request and generated 3 comments.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
`packages/devextreme/testing/runner/index.js`	New Node.js server replacing the entire .NET runner
`packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/vectormap.js`	Vector map service (spawning helper server, console app)
`packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/utils.js`	Shared utilities (parsing, escaping, file I/O)
`packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/templates.js`	Template renderer with escaping support
`packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/suites.js`	Test suite/category discovery
`packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/static.js`	Static file serving with directory listings
`packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/results.js`	XML results generation and text reporting
`packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/pages.js`	Page renderers (index, run-all, run-suite)
`packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/logger.js`	Colored console + file logger
`packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/http.js`	HTTP response helpers
`packages/devextreme/testing/runner/templates/*.template.html`	HTML templates for runner UI pages
`.github/actions/run-qunit-tests/action.yml`	Removed `dotnet build` CI step
`.github/workflows/qunit_tests.yml`	Removed DOTNET env variables
`packages/devextreme/package.json`	Removed `dotnet build` from `dev` script
`packages/devextreme/project.json`	Removed DOTNET_* env pass-throughs
`packages/devextreme/docker-ci.sh`	Updated runner startup command
`packages/devextreme/testing/launch`	Updated to launch Node.js runner
All deleted C# files	Legacy .NET runner source removed

packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/vectormap.js

packages/devextreme/testing/runner/templates/run-suite.template.html

Copilot

Pull request overview

Copilot reviewed 48 out of 48 changed files in this pull request and generated 2 comments.

Copilot · 2026-03-05T11:49:17Z

packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/utils.ts

+}
+
+export function isContinuousIntegration(): boolean {
+  return Boolean(process.env.CCNetWorkingDirectory ?? process.env.DEVEXTREME_TEST_CI);


The isContinuousIntegration function uses the nullish coalescing operator ?? to check the two environment variables: Boolean(process.env.CCNetWorkingDirectory ?? process.env.DEVEXTREME_TEST_CI). The ?? operator only falls through to the right-hand side when the left side is null or undefined. If CCNetWorkingDirectory is set but empty (""), "" ?? process.env.DEVEXTREME_TEST_CI evaluates to "", and Boolean("") is false — so CI mode would not be detected even if DEVEXTREME_TEST_CI is also set.

The old C# implementation used an explicit OR: !IsNullOrEmpty(CCNetWorkingDirectory) || !IsNullOrEmpty(DEVEXTREME_TEST_CI), which correctly falls through to check DEVEXTREME_TEST_CI whenever CCNetWorkingDirectory is null, undefined, or empty.

The fix is to use the logical OR || operator instead: Boolean(process.env.CCNetWorkingDirectory || process.env.DEVEXTREME_TEST_CI).

Copilot · 2026-03-05T11:49:17Z

packages/devextreme/testing/runner/lib/vectormap.ts

+  function executeVectorMapConsoleApp(
+    arg: string,
+    searchParams: URLSearchParams,
+  ): VectorMapOutputItem[] {
+    const inputDirectory = `${path.join(packageRoot, 'testing', 'content', 'VectorMapData')}${path.sep}`;
+    const outputDirectory = path.join(inputDirectory, '__Output');
+    const settingsPath = path.join(inputDirectory, '_settings.js');
+    const processFileContentPath = path.join(inputDirectory, '_processFileContent.js');
+    const vectorMapUtilsNodePath = path.resolve(path.join(packageRoot, 'artifacts/js/vectormap-utils/dx.vectormaputils.node.js'));
+
+    const args = [vectorMapUtilsNodePath, inputDirectory];
+    const fileArgument = searchParams.get('file');
+    if (fileArgument !== null) {
+      args[1] += fileArgument;
+    }
+


The executeVectorMapConsoleApp function in vectormap.ts accepts an arg: string parameter (from the URL path) but never uses it in the function body. The function only uses searchParams and packageRoot to construct paths. While this matches the old C# controller behavior (the arg route parameter was also unused there), having an unused parameter in the function signature is misleading and may create confusion.

nightskylark · 2026-03-05T16:07:04Z

@copilot open a new pull request to apply changes based on the comments in this thread

Copilot · 2026-03-05T16:07:22Z

@nightskylark I've opened a new pull request, #32809, to work on those changes. Once the pull request is ready, I'll request review from you.

…32809) Co-authored-by: copilot-swe-agent[bot] <198982749+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> Co-authored-by: nightskylark <2280467+nightskylark@users.noreply.github.com>

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nightskylark added 7 commits March 4, 2026 19:08

Get rid of dotnet test runner

dbc8806

Remove obsolete testing runner files and views

e149cdc

Fix JSON request and improve cache buster handling in runner

77a5ab7

Fix CI

f86f9d2

Fix CI pt 2

faaa990

Refactor

0419cb1

nightskylark added github_actions Pull requests that update GitHub Actions code 26_1 labels Mar 4, 2026

nightskylark self-assigned this Mar 4, 2026

nightskylark marked this pull request as ready for review March 4, 2026 21:47

nightskylark requested a review from a team as a code owner March 4, 2026 21:47

Copilot AI review requested due to automatic review settings March 4, 2026 21:47

Copilot started reviewing on behalf of nightskylark March 4, 2026 21:48 View session

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Fix after Copilot review

dfd5dca

nightskylark added the WIP Work in progress label Mar 5, 2026

nightskylark added 2 commits March 5, 2026 13:13

Convert to TS

94a2cd5

Improve types

8e42f38

Copilot AI review requested due to automatic review settings March 5, 2026 11:43

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nightskylark removed the WIP Work in progress label Mar 5, 2026

mpreyskurantov mentioned this pull request Mar 5, 2026

WIP: Test CI / runner debug vs release #29863

Closed

alexslavr previously approved these changes Mar 5, 2026

View reviewed changes

Merge branch '26_1' into kill-dotnet-runner

1986572

Copilot AI mentioned this pull request Mar 5, 2026

Fix CI detection operator and remove unused parameter in Node runner #32809

Merged

Fix CI detection operator and remove unused parameter in Node runner (#…

6fbc970

…32809) Co-authored-by: copilot-swe-agent[bot] <198982749+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com> Co-authored-by: nightskylark <2280467+nightskylark@users.noreply.github.com>

Copilot AI review requested due to automatic review settings March 5, 2026 16:28

nightskylark dismissed alexslavr’s stale review via 6fbc970 March 5, 2026 16:28

nightskylark requested a review from alexslavr March 5, 2026 16:28

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Get rid of dotnet test runner#32792

Get rid of dotnet test runner#32792
nightskylark wants to merge 12 commits into26_1from
kill-dotnet-runner

nightskylark commented Mar 4, 2026 •

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nightskylark commented Mar 4, 2026 • edited Loading Uh oh! There was an error while loading. Please reload this page.

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Summary

Motivation

What was changed

1. Replaced legacy .NET QUnit runner with Node.js

2. Removed .NET artifacts and configuration

3. Updated scripts and CI to be Node-only

4. Security and robustness improvements

5. CI fixes after migration

6. Maintainability refactor

Compatibility notes

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nightskylark commented Mar 4, 2026 •

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1. Replaced legacy `.NET` QUnit runner with Node.js

2. Removed `.NET` artifacts and configuration