Module: Shoulda::Matchers::ActiveModel

Overview

This module provides matchers that are used to test behavior within ActiveModel or ActiveRecord classes.

Testing conditional validations

If your model defines a validation conditionally -- meaning that the validation is declared with an :if or :unless option -- how do you test it? You might expect the validation matchers here to have corresponding if or unless qualifiers, but this isn't what you use. Instead, before using the matcher in question, you place the record you're testing in a state such that the validation you're also testing will be run. A common way to do this is to make a new context and override the subject to populate the record accordingly. You'll also want to make sure to test that the validation is not run when the conditional fails.

Here's an example to illustrate what we mean:

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model

  attr_accessor :role, :admin

  validates_presence_of :role, if: :admin
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  context "when an admin" do
    subject { User.new(admin: true) }

    it { should validate_presence_of(:role) }
  end

  context "when not an admin" do
    subject { User.new(admin: false) }

    it { should_not validate_presence_of(:role) }
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  context "when an admin" do
    subject { User.new(admin: true) }

    should validate_presence_of(:role)
  end

  context "when not an admin" do
    subject { User.new(admin: false) }

    should_not validate_presence_of(:role)
  end
end

Instance Method Summary collapse

#allow_mass_assignment_of(value) ⇒ AllowMassAssignmentOfMatcher
The allow_mass_assignment_of matcher tests usage of Rails 3's attr_accessible and attr_protected macros, asserting that an attribute in your model is contained in either the whitelist or blacklist and thus can or cannot be set via mass assignment.
#allow_value(*values) ⇒ AllowValueMatcher (also: #allow_values)
The allow_value matcher (or its alias, allow_values) is used to ensure that an attribute is valid or invalid if set to one or more values.
#have_secure_password ⇒ HaveSecurePasswordMatcher
The have_secure_password matcher tests usage of the has_secure_password macro.
#validate_absence_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateAbsenceOfMatcher
The validate_absence_of matcher tests the usage of the validates_absence_of validation.
#validate_acceptance_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateAcceptanceOfMatcher
The validate_acceptance_of matcher tests usage of the validates_acceptance_of validation.
#validate_confirmation_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateConfirmationOfMatcher
The validate_confirmation_of matcher tests usage of the validates_confirmation_of validation.
#validate_exclusion_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateExclusionOfMatcher
The validate_exclusion_of matcher tests usage of the validates_exclusion_of validation, asserting that an attribute cannot take a blacklist of values, and inversely, can take values outside of this list.
#validate_inclusion_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateInclusionOfMatcher
The validate_inclusion_of matcher tests usage of the validates_inclusion_of validation, asserting that an attribute can take a whitelist of values and cannot take values outside of this list.
#validate_length_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateLengthOfMatcher
The validate_length_of matcher tests usage of the validates_length_of matcher.
#validate_numericality_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateNumericalityOfMatcher
The validate_numericality_of matcher tests usage of the validates_numericality_of validation.
#validate_presence_of(attr) ⇒ ValidatePresenceOfMatcher
The validate_presence_of matcher tests usage of the validates_presence_of validation.

Instance Method Details

#allow_mass_assignment_of(value) ⇒ `AllowMassAssignmentOfMatcher`

The allow_mass_assignment_of matcher tests usage of Rails 3's attr_accessible and attr_protected macros, asserting that an attribute in your model is contained in either the whitelist or blacklist and thus can or cannot be set via mass assignment.

class Post
  include ActiveModel::Model
  include ActiveModel::MassAssignmentSecurity
  attr_accessor :title

  attr_accessible :title
end

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  include ActiveModel::MassAssignmentSecurity
  attr_accessor :encrypted_password

  attr_protected :encrypted_password
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Post, type: :model do
  it { should allow_mass_assignment_of(:title) }
end

RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it { should_not allow_mass_assignment_of(:encrypted_password) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PostTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should allow_mass_assignment_of(:title)
end

class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should_not allow_mass_assignment_of(:encrypted_password)
end

Optional qualifiers

as

Use as if your mass-assignment rules apply only under a certain role (Rails >= 3.1 only).

class Post
  include ActiveModel::Model
  include ActiveModel::MassAssignmentSecurity
  attr_accessor :title

  attr_accessible :title, as: :admin
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Post, type: :model do
  it { should allow_mass_assignment_of(:title).as(:admin) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PostTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should allow_mass_assignment_of(:title).as(:admin)
end



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# File 'lib/shoulda/matchers/active_model/allow_mass_assignment_of_matcher.rb', line 70

def allow_mass_assignment_of(value)
  AllowMassAssignmentOfMatcher.new(value)
end

#allow_value(*values) ⇒ `AllowValueMatcher` Also known as: allow_values

The allow_value matcher (or its alias, allow_values) is used to ensure that an attribute is valid or invalid if set to one or more values.

Take this model for example:

class UserProfile
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :website_url

  validates_format_of :website_url, with: URI.regexp
end

You can use allow_value to test one value at a time:

# RSpec
RSpec.describe UserProfile, type: :model do
  it { should allow_value('http://foo.com').for(:website_url) }
  it { should allow_value('http://bar.com').for(:website_url) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserProfileTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should allow_value('http://foo.com').for(:website_url)
  should allow_value('http://bar.com').for(:website_url)
end

You can also test multiple values in one go, if you like. In the positive sense, this makes an assertion that none of the values cause the record to be invalid. In the negative sense, this makes an assertion that none of the values cause the record to be valid:

# RSpec
RSpec.describe UserProfile, type: :model do
  it do
    should allow_values('http://foo.com', 'http://bar.com').
      for(:website_url)
  end

  it do
    should_not allow_values('foo', 'buz').
      for(:website_url)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserProfileTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should allow_values('http://foo.com', 'http://bar.com/baz').
    for(:website_url)

  should_not allow_values('foo', 'buz').
    for(:website_url)
end

Caveats

When using allow_value or any matchers that depend on it, you may encounter an AttributeChangedValueError. This exception is raised if the matcher, in attempting to set a value on the attribute, detects that the value set is different from the value that the attribute returns upon reading it back.

This usually happens if the writer method (foo=, bar=, etc.) for that attribute has custom logic to ignore certain incoming values or change them in any way. Here are three examples we've seen:

You're attempting to assert that an attribute should not allow nil, yet the attribute's writer method contains a conditional to do nothing if the attribute is set to nil:

class Foo
  include ActiveModel::Model

  attr_reader :bar

  def bar=(value)
    return if value.nil?
    @bar = value
  end
end

RSpec.describe Foo, type: :model do
  it do
    foo = Foo.new
    foo.bar = "baz"
    # This will raise an AttributeChangedValueError since `foo.bar` is now "123"
    expect(foo).not_to allow_value(nil).for(:bar)
  end
end

You're attempting to assert that a numeric attribute should not allow a string that contains non-numeric characters, yet the writer method for that attribute strips out non-numeric characters:

class Foo
  include ActiveModel::Model

  attr_reader :bar

  def bar=(value)
    @bar = value.gsub(/\D+/, '')
  end
end

RSpec.describe Foo, type: :model do
  it do
    foo = Foo.new
    # This will raise an AttributeChangedValueError since `foo.bar` is now "123"
    expect(foo).not_to allow_value("abc123").for(:bar)
  end
end

You're passing a value to allow_value that the model typecasts into another value:

RSpec.describe Foo, type: :model do
  # Assume that `attr` is a string
  # This will raise an AttributeChangedValueError since `attr` typecasts `[]` to `"[]"`
  it { should_not allow_value([]).for(:attr) }
end

Fortunately, if you understand why this is happening, and wish to get around this exception, it is possible to do so. You can use the ignoring_interference_by_writer qualifier like so:

    it do
      should_not allow_value([]).
        for(:attr).
        ignoring_interference_by_writer
    end

Please note, however, that this qualifier won't magically cause your test to pass. It may just so happen that the final value that ends up being set causes the model to fail validation. In that case, you'll have to figure out what to do. You may need to write your own test, or perhaps even remove your test altogether.

Qualifiers

on

Use on if your validation applies only under a certain context.

class UserProfile
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :birthday_as_string

  validates_format_of :birthday_as_string,
    with: /^(\d+)-(\d+)-(\d+)$/,
    on: :create
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe UserProfile, type: :model do
  it do
    should allow_value('2013-01-01').
      for(:birthday_as_string).
      on(:create)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserProfileTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should allow_value('2013-01-01').
    for(:birthday_as_string).
    on(:create)
end

with_message

Use with_message if you are using a custom validation message.

class UserProfile
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :state

  validates_format_of :state,
    with: /^(open|closed)$/,
    message: 'State must be open or closed'
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe UserProfile, type: :model do
  it do
    should allow_value('open', 'closed').
      for(:state).
      with_message('State must be open or closed')
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserProfileTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should allow_value('open', 'closed').
    for(:state).
    with_message('State must be open or closed')
end

Use with_message with a regexp to perform a partial match:

class UserProfile
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :state

  validates_format_of :state,
    with: /^(open|closed)$/,
    message: 'State must be open or closed'
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe UserProfile, type: :model do
  it do
    should allow_value('open', 'closed').
      for(:state).
      with_message(/open or closed/)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserProfileTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should allow_value('open', 'closed').
    for(:state).
    with_message(/open or closed/)
end

Use with_message with the :against option if the attribute the validation message is stored under is different from the attribute being validated:

class UserProfile
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :sports_team

  validate :sports_team_must_be_valid

  private

  def sports_team_must_be_valid
    if sports_team !~ /^(Broncos|Titans)$/i
      self.errors.add :chosen_sports_team,
        'Must be either a Broncos fan or a Titans fan'
    end
  end
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe UserProfile, type: :model do
  it do
    should allow_value('Broncos', 'Titans').
      for(:sports_team).
      with_message('Must be either a Broncos or Titans fan',
        against: :chosen_sports_team
      )
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserProfileTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should allow_value('Broncos', 'Titans').
    for(:sports_team).
    with_message('Must be either a Broncos or Titans fan',
      against: :chosen_sports_team
    )
end

ignoring_interference_by_writer

Use ignoring_interference_by_writer to bypass an AttributeChangedValueError that you have encountered. Please read the Caveats section above for more information.

class Address < ActiveRecord::Base
  # Address has a zip_code field which is a string
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Address, type: :model do
  it do
    should_not allow_value([]).
      for(:zip_code).
      ignoring_interference_by_writer
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class AddressTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should_not allow_value([]).
    for(:zip_code).
    ignoring_interference_by_writer
end

# File 'lib/shoulda/matchers/active_model/allow_value_matcher.rb', line 296

def allow_value(*values)
  if values.empty?
    raise ArgumentError, 'need at least one argument'
  else
    AllowValueMatcher.new(*values)
  end
end

#have_secure_password ⇒ `HaveSecurePasswordMatcher`

The have_secure_password matcher tests usage of the has_secure_password macro.

Example

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  include ActiveModel::SecurePassword
  attr_accessor :password

  has_secure_password
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it { should have_secure_password }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should have_secure_password
end



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# File 'lib/shoulda/matchers/active_model/have_secure_password_matcher.rb', line 29

def have_secure_password
  HaveSecurePasswordMatcher.new
end

#validate_absence_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateAbsenceOfMatcher`

The validate_absence_of matcher tests the usage of the validates_absence_of validation.

class PowerHungryCountry
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :nuclear_weapons

  validates_absence_of :nuclear_weapons
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe PowerHungryCountry, type: :model do
  it { should validate_absence_of(:nuclear_weapons) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PowerHungryCountryTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_absence_of(:nuclear_weapons)
end

Qualifiers

on

Use on if your validation applies only under a certain context.

class PowerHungryCountry
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :nuclear_weapons

  validates_absence_of :nuclear_weapons, on: :create
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe PowerHungryCountry, type: :model do
  it { should validate_absence_of(:nuclear_weapons).on(:create) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PowerHungryCountryTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_absence_of(:nuclear_weapons).on(:create)
end

with_message

Use with_message if you are using a custom validation message.

class PowerHungryCountry
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :nuclear_weapons

  validates_absence_of :nuclear_weapons,
    message: "there shall be peace on Earth"
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe PowerHungryCountry, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_absence_of(:nuclear_weapons).
      with_message("there shall be peace on Earth")
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PowerHungryCountryTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_absence_of(:nuclear_weapons).
    with_message("there shall be peace on Earth")
end



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# File 'lib/shoulda/matchers/active_model/validate_absence_of_matcher.rb', line 75

def validate_absence_of(attr)
  ValidateAbsenceOfMatcher.new(attr)
end

#validate_acceptance_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateAcceptanceOfMatcher`

The validate_acceptance_of matcher tests usage of the validates_acceptance_of validation.

class Registration
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :eula

  validates_acceptance_of :eula
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Registration, type: :model do
  it { should validate_acceptance_of(:eula) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class RegistrationTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_acceptance_of(:eula)
end

Qualifiers

on

Use on if your validation applies only under a certain context.

class Registration
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :terms_of_service

  validates_acceptance_of :terms_of_service, on: :create
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Registration, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_acceptance_of(:terms_of_service).
      on(:create)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class RegistrationTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_acceptance_of(:terms_of_service).on(:create)
end

with_message

Use with_message if you are using a custom validation message.

class Registration
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :terms_of_service

  validates_acceptance_of :terms_of_service,
    message: 'You must accept the terms of service'
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Registration, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_acceptance_of(:terms_of_service).
      with_message('You must accept the terms of service')
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class RegistrationTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_acceptance_of(:terms_of_service).
    with_message('You must accept the terms of service')
end



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# File 'lib/shoulda/matchers/active_model/validate_acceptance_of_matcher.rb', line 78

def validate_acceptance_of(attr)
  ValidateAcceptanceOfMatcher.new(attr)
end

#validate_confirmation_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateConfirmationOfMatcher`

The validate_confirmation_of matcher tests usage of the validates_confirmation_of validation.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :email

  validates_confirmation_of :email
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it { should validate_confirmation_of(:email) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_confirmation_of(:email)
end

Qualifiers

on

Use on if your validation applies only under a certain context.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :password

  validates_confirmation_of :password, on: :create
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it { should validate_confirmation_of(:password).on(:create) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_confirmation_of(:password).on(:create)
end

with_message

Use with_message if you are using a custom validation message.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :password

  validates_confirmation_of :password,
    message: 'Please re-enter your password'
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_confirmation_of(:password).
      with_message('Please re-enter your password')
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_confirmation_of(:password).
    with_message('Please re-enter your password')
end



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# File 'lib/shoulda/matchers/active_model/validate_confirmation_of_matcher.rb', line 75

def validate_confirmation_of(attr)
  ValidateConfirmationOfMatcher.new(attr)
end

#validate_exclusion_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateExclusionOfMatcher`

The validate_exclusion_of matcher tests usage of the validates_exclusion_of validation, asserting that an attribute cannot take a blacklist of values, and inversely, can take values outside of this list.

If your blacklist is an array of values, use in_array:

class Game
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :supported_os

  validates_exclusion_of :supported_os, in: ['Mac', 'Linux']
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Game, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_exclusion_of(:supported_os).
      in_array(['Mac', 'Linux'])
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class GameTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_exclusion_of(:supported_os).
    in_array(['Mac', 'Linux'])
end

If your blacklist is a range of values, use in_range:

class Game
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :supported_os

  validates_exclusion_of :supported_os, in: 5..8
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Game, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_exclusion_of(:floors_with_enemies).
      in_range(5..8)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class GameTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_exclusion_of(:floors_with_enemies).
    in_range(5..8)
end

Qualifiers

on

Use on if your validation applies only under a certain context.

class Game
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :weapon

  validates_exclusion_of :weapon,
    in: ['pistol', 'paintball gun', 'stick'],
    on: :create
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Game, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_exclusion_of(:weapon).
      in_array(['pistol', 'paintball gun', 'stick']).
      on(:create)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class GameTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_exclusion_of(:weapon).
    in_array(['pistol', 'paintball gun', 'stick']).
    on(:create)
end

with_message

Use with_message if you are using a custom validation message.

class Game
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :weapon

  validates_exclusion_of :weapon,
    in: ['pistol', 'paintball gun', 'stick'],
    message: 'You chose a puny weapon'
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Game, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_exclusion_of(:weapon).
      in_array(['pistol', 'paintball gun', 'stick']).
      with_message('You chose a puny weapon')
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class GameTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_exclusion_of(:weapon).
    in_array(['pistol', 'paintball gun', 'stick']).
    with_message('You chose a puny weapon')
end



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# File 'lib/shoulda/matchers/active_model/validate_exclusion_of_matcher.rb', line 117

def validate_exclusion_of(attr)
  ValidateExclusionOfMatcher.new(attr)
end

#validate_inclusion_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateInclusionOfMatcher`

The validate_inclusion_of matcher tests usage of the validates_inclusion_of validation, asserting that an attribute can take a whitelist of values and cannot take values outside of this list.

If your whitelist is an array of values, use in_array:

class Issue
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :state

  validates_inclusion_of :state,
    in: ['open', 'resolved', 'unresolved']
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Issue, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_inclusion_of(:state).
      in_array(['open', 'resolved', 'unresolved'])
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class IssueTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_inclusion_of(:state).
    in_array(['open', 'resolved', 'unresolved'])
end

If your whitelist is a range of values, use in_range:

class Issue
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :priority

  validates_inclusion_of :priority, in: 1..5
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Issue, type: :model do
  it { should validate_inclusion_of(:state).in_range(1..5) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class IssueTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_inclusion_of(:state).in_range(1..5)
end

Caveats

We discourage using validate_inclusion_of with boolean columns. In fact, there is never a case where a boolean column will be anything but true, false, or nil, as ActiveRecord will type-cast an incoming value to one of these three values. That means there isn't any way we can refute this logic in a test. Hence, this will produce a warning:

it do
  should validate_inclusion_of(:imported).
    in_array([true, false])
end

The only case where validate_inclusion_of could be appropriate is for ensuring that a boolean column accepts nil, but we recommend using allow_value instead, like this:

it { should allow_value(nil).for(:imported) }

Qualifiers

Use on if your validation applies only under a certain context.

class Issue
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :severity

  validates_inclusion_of :severity,
    in: %w(low medium high),
    on: :create
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Issue, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_inclusion_of(:severity).
      in_array(%w(low medium high)).
      on(:create)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class IssueTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_inclusion_of(:severity).
    in_array(%w(low medium high)).
    on(:create)
end

with_message

Use with_message if you are using a custom validation message.

class Issue
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :severity

  validates_inclusion_of :severity,
    in: %w(low medium high),
    message: 'Severity must be low, medium, or high'
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Issue, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_inclusion_of(:severity).
      in_array(%w(low medium high)).
      with_message('Severity must be low, medium, or high')
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class IssueTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_inclusion_of(:severity).
    in_array(%w(low medium high)).
    with_message('Severity must be low, medium, or high')
end

with_low_message

Use with_low_message if you have a custom validation message for when a given value is too low.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :age

  validate :age_must_be_valid

  private

  def age_must_be_valid
    if age < 65
      self.errors.add :age, 'You do not receive any benefits'
    end
  end
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_inclusion_of(:age).
      in_range(0..65).
      with_low_message('You do not receive any benefits')
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_inclusion_of(:age).
    in_range(0..65).
    with_low_message('You do not receive any benefits')
end

with_high_message

Use with_high_message if you have a custom validation message for when a given value is too high.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :age

  validate :age_must_be_valid

  private

  def age_must_be_valid
    if age > 21
      self.errors.add :age, "You're too old for this stuff"
    end
  end
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_inclusion_of(:age).
      in_range(0..21).
      with_high_message("You're too old for this stuff")
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_inclusion_of(:age).
    in_range(0..21).
    with_high_message("You're too old for this stuff")
end

allow_nil

Use allow_nil to assert that the attribute allows nil.

class Issue
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :state

  validates_presence_of :state
  validates_inclusion_of :state,
    in: ['open', 'resolved', 'unresolved'],
    allow_nil: true
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Issue, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_inclusion_of(:state).
      in_array(['open', 'resolved', 'unresolved']).
      allow_nil
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class IssueTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_inclusion_of(:state).
    in_array(['open', 'resolved', 'unresolved']).
    allow_nil
end

allow_blank

Use allow_blank to assert that the attribute allows blank.

class Issue
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :state

  validates_presence_of :state
  validates_inclusion_of :state,
    in: ['open', 'resolved', 'unresolved'],
    allow_blank: true
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Issue, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_inclusion_of(:state).
      in_array(['open', 'resolved', 'unresolved']).
      allow_blank
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class IssueTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_inclusion_of(:state).
    in_array(['open', 'resolved', 'unresolved']).
    allow_blank
end



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# File 'lib/shoulda/matchers/active_model/validate_inclusion_of_matcher.rb', line 265

def validate_inclusion_of(attr)
  ValidateInclusionOfMatcher.new(attr)
end

#validate_length_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateLengthOfMatcher`

The validate_length_of matcher tests usage of the validates_length_of matcher. Note that this matcher is intended to be used against string columns and not integer columns.

Qualifiers

Use on if your validation applies only under a certain context.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :password

  validates_length_of :password, minimum: 10, on: :create
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_length_of(:password).
      is_at_least(10).
      on(:create)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_length_of(:password).
    is_at_least(10).
    on(:create)
end

is_at_least

Use is_at_least to test usage of the :minimum option. This asserts that the attribute can take a string which is equal to or longer than the given length and cannot take a string which is shorter.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :bio

  validates_length_of :bio, minimum: 15
end

# RSpec

RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it { should validate_length_of(:bio).is_at_least(15) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)

class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_length_of(:bio).is_at_least(15)
end

is_at_most

Use is_at_most to test usage of the :maximum option. This asserts that the attribute can take a string which is equal to or shorter than the given length and cannot take a string which is longer.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :status_update

  validates_length_of :status_update, maximum: 140
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it { should validate_length_of(:status_update).is_at_most(140) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_length_of(:status_update).is_at_most(140)
end

is_equal_to

Use is_equal_to to test usage of the :is option. This asserts that the attribute can take a string which is exactly equal to the given length and cannot take a string which is shorter or longer.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :favorite_superhero

  validates_length_of :favorite_superhero, is: 6
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it { should validate_length_of(:favorite_superhero).is_equal_to(6) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_length_of(:favorite_superhero).is_equal_to(6)
end

is_at_least + is_at_most

Use is_at_least and is_at_most together to test usage of the :in option.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :password

  validates_length_of :password, in: 5..30
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_length_of(:password).
      is_at_least(5).is_at_most(30)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_length_of(:password).
    is_at_least(5).is_at_most(30)
end

with_message

Use with_message if you are using a custom validation message.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :password

  validates_length_of :password,
    minimum: 10,
    message: "Password isn't long enough"
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_length_of(:password).
      is_at_least(10).
      with_message("Password isn't long enough")
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_length_of(:password).
    is_at_least(10).
    with_message("Password isn't long enough")
end

with_short_message

Use with_short_message if you are using a custom "too short" message.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :secret_key

  validates_length_of :secret_key,
    in: 15..100,
    too_short: 'Secret key must be more than 15 characters'
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_length_of(:secret_key).
      is_at_least(15).
      with_short_message('Secret key must be more than 15 characters')
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_length_of(:secret_key).
    is_at_least(15).
    with_short_message('Secret key must be more than 15 characters')
end

with_long_message

Use with_long_message if you are using a custom "too long" message.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :secret_key

  validates_length_of :secret_key,
    in: 15..100,
    too_long: 'Secret key must be less than 100 characters'
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_length_of(:secret_key).
      is_at_most(100).
      with_long_message('Secret key must be less than 100 characters')
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_length_of(:secret_key).
    is_at_most(100).
    with_long_message('Secret key must be less than 100 characters')
end

allow_nil

Use allow_nil to assert that the attribute allows nil.

class User
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :bio

  validates_length_of :bio, minimum: 15, allow_nil: true
end

# RSpec
describe User do
  it { should validate_length_of(:bio).is_at_least(15).allow_nil }
end

# Test::Unit
class UserTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_length_of(:bio).is_at_least(15).allow_nil
end



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# File 'lib/shoulda/matchers/active_model/validate_length_of_matcher.rb', line 242

def validate_length_of(attr)
  ValidateLengthOfMatcher.new(attr)
end

#validate_numericality_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateNumericalityOfMatcher`

The validate_numericality_of matcher tests usage of the validates_numericality_of validation.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :gpa

  validates_numericality_of :gpa
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it { should validate_numericality_of(:gpa) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:gpa)
end

Qualifiers

on

Use on if your validation applies only under a certain context.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :number_of_dependents

  validates_numericality_of :number_of_dependents, on: :create
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_numericality_of(:number_of_dependents).
      on(:create)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:number_of_dependents).on(:create)
end

only_integer

Use only_integer to test usage of the :only_integer option. This asserts that your attribute only allows integer numbers and disallows non-integer ones.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :age

  validates_numericality_of :age, only_integer: true
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it { should validate_numericality_of(:age).only_integer }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:age).only_integer
end

is_less_than

Use is_less_than to test usage of the the :less_than option. This asserts that the attribute can take a number which is less than the given value and cannot take a number which is greater than or equal to it.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :number_of_cars

  validates_numericality_of :number_of_cars, less_than: 2
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_numericality_of(:number_of_cars).
      is_less_than(2)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:number_of_cars).
    is_less_than(2)
end

is_less_than_or_equal_to

Use is_less_than_or_equal_to to test usage of the :less_than_or_equal_to option. This asserts that the attribute can take a number which is less than or equal to the given value and cannot take a number which is greater than it.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :birth_year

  validates_numericality_of :birth_year, less_than_or_equal_to: 1987
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_numericality_of(:birth_year).
      is_less_than_or_equal_to(1987)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:birth_year).
    is_less_than_or_equal_to(1987)
end

is_equal_to

Use is_equal_to to test usage of the :equal_to option. This asserts that the attribute can take a number which is equal to the given value and cannot take a number which is not equal.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :weight

  validates_numericality_of :weight, equal_to: 150
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it { should validate_numericality_of(:weight).is_equal_to(150) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:weight).is_equal_to(150)
end

is_greater_than_or_equal_to

Use is_greater_than_or_equal_to to test usage of the :greater_than_or_equal_to option. This asserts that the attribute can take a number which is greater than or equal to the given value and cannot take a number which is less than it.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :height

  validates_numericality_of :height, greater_than_or_equal_to: 55
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_numericality_of(:height).
      is_greater_than_or_equal_to(55)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:height).
    is_greater_than_or_equal_to(55)
end

is_greater_than

Use is_greater_than to test usage of the :greater_than option. This asserts that the attribute can take a number which is greater than the given value and cannot take a number less than or equal to it.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :legal_age

  validates_numericality_of :legal_age, greater_than: 21
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_numericality_of(:legal_age).
      is_greater_than(21)
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:legal_age).
    is_greater_than(21)
end

even

Use even to test usage of the :even option. This asserts that the attribute can take odd numbers and cannot take even ones.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :birth_month

  validates_numericality_of :birth_month, even: true
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it { should validate_numericality_of(:birth_month).even }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:birth_month).even
end

odd

Use odd to test usage of the :odd option. This asserts that the attribute can take a number which is odd and cannot take a number which is even.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :birth_day

  validates_numericality_of :birth_day, odd: true
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it { should validate_numericality_of(:birth_day).odd }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:birth_day).odd
end

with_message

Use with_message if you are using a custom validation message.

class Person
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :number_of_dependents

  validates_numericality_of :number_of_dependents,
    message: 'Number of dependents must be a number'
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Person, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_numericality_of(:number_of_dependents).
      with_message('Number of dependents must be a number')
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PersonTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:number_of_dependents).
    with_message('Number of dependents must be a number')
end

allow_nil

Use allow_nil to assert that the attribute allows nil.

class Post
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :age

  validates_numericality_of :age, allow_nil: true
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Post, type: :model do
  it { should validate_numericality_of(:age).allow_nil }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class PostTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_numericality_of(:age).allow_nil
end



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# File 'lib/shoulda/matchers/active_model/validate_numericality_of_matcher.rb', line 301

def validate_numericality_of(attr)
  ValidateNumericalityOfMatcher.new(attr)
end

#validate_presence_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidatePresenceOfMatcher`

The validate_presence_of matcher tests usage of the validates_presence_of validation.

class Robot
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :arms

  validates_presence_of :arms
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Robot, type: :model do
  it { should validate_presence_of(:arms) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class RobotTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_presence_of(:arms)
end

Caveats

Under Rails 4 and greater, if your model has_secure_password and you are validating presence of the password using a record whose password has already been set prior to calling the matcher, you will be instructed to use a record whose password is empty instead.

For example, given this scenario:

class User < ActiveRecord::Base
  has_secure_password validations: false

  validates_presence_of :password
end

RSpec.describe User, type: :model do
  subject { User.new(password: '123456') }

  it { should validate_presence_of(:password) }
end

the above test will raise an error like this:

The validation failed because your User model declares
`has_secure_password`, and `validate_presence_of` was called on a
user which has `password` already set to a value. Please use a user
with an empty `password` instead.

This happens because has_secure_password itself overrides your model so that it is impossible to set password to nil. This means that it is impossible to test that setting password to nil places your model in an invalid state (which in turn means that the validation itself is unnecessary).

Qualifiers

allow_nil

Use allow_nil if your model has an optional attribute.

class Robot include ActiveModel::Model attr_accessor :nickname

validates_presence_of :nickname, allow_nil: true

end

# RSpec RSpec.describe Robot, type: :model do it { should validate_presence_of(:nickname).allow_nil } end

# Minitest (Shoulda) class RobotTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase should validate_presence_of(:nickname).allow_nil end

on

Use on if your validation applies only under a certain context.

class Robot
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :arms

  validates_presence_of :arms, on: :create
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Robot, type: :model do
  it { should validate_presence_of(:arms).on(:create) }
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class RobotTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_presence_of(:arms).on(:create)
end

with_message

Use with_message if you are using a custom validation message.

class Robot
  include ActiveModel::Model
  attr_accessor :legs

  validates_presence_of :legs, message: 'Robot has no legs'
end

# RSpec
RSpec.describe Robot, type: :model do
  it do
    should validate_presence_of(:legs).
      with_message('Robot has no legs')
  end
end

# Minitest (Shoulda)
class RobotTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
  should validate_presence_of(:legs).
    with_message('Robot has no legs')
end



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# File 'lib/shoulda/matchers/active_model/validate_presence_of_matcher.rb', line 129

def validate_presence_of(attr)
  ValidatePresenceOfMatcher.new(attr)
end

Module: Shoulda::Matchers::ActiveModel

Overview

Testing conditional validations

Instance Method Summary collapse

Instance Method Details

#allow_mass_assignment_of(value) ⇒ AllowMassAssignmentOfMatcher

Optional qualifiers

as

#allow_value(*values) ⇒ AllowValueMatcher Also known as: allow_values

Caveats

Qualifiers

on

with_message

ignoring_interference_by_writer

#have_secure_password ⇒ HaveSecurePasswordMatcher

Example

#validate_absence_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateAbsenceOfMatcher

Qualifiers

on

with_message

#validate_acceptance_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateAcceptanceOfMatcher

Qualifiers

on

with_message

#validate_confirmation_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateConfirmationOfMatcher

Qualifiers

on

with_message

#validate_exclusion_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateExclusionOfMatcher

Qualifiers

on

with_message

#validate_inclusion_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateInclusionOfMatcher

Caveats

Qualifiers

with_message

with_low_message

with_high_message

allow_nil

allow_blank

#validate_length_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateLengthOfMatcher

Qualifiers

is_at_least

is_at_most

is_equal_to

is_at_least + is_at_most

with_message

with_short_message

with_long_message

allow_nil

#validate_numericality_of(attr) ⇒ ValidateNumericalityOfMatcher

Qualifiers

on

only_integer

is_less_than

is_less_than_or_equal_to

is_equal_to

is_greater_than_or_equal_to

is_greater_than

even

odd

with_message

allow_nil

#validate_presence_of(attr) ⇒ ValidatePresenceOfMatcher

Caveats

Qualifiers

allow_nil

on

with_message

#allow_mass_assignment_of(value) ⇒ `AllowMassAssignmentOfMatcher`

#allow_value(*values) ⇒ `AllowValueMatcher` Also known as: allow_values

#have_secure_password ⇒ `HaveSecurePasswordMatcher`

#validate_absence_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateAbsenceOfMatcher`

#validate_acceptance_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateAcceptanceOfMatcher`

#validate_confirmation_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateConfirmationOfMatcher`

#validate_exclusion_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateExclusionOfMatcher`

#validate_inclusion_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateInclusionOfMatcher`

#validate_length_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateLengthOfMatcher`

#validate_numericality_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidateNumericalityOfMatcher`

#validate_presence_of(attr) ⇒ `ValidatePresenceOfMatcher`