<< Click to Display Table of Contents >> Navigation:  ASA-EMulatR Reference Guide > Introduction > Architecture Overview > Chapter 22 – Testing, Validation, and Architectural Compliance > 22.8 Regression Testing Policy

Every validated behavior becomes a regression test. The regression policy is strict and non-negotiable:

 

Tests are never removed. Once a test is added to the regression suite, it remains permanently. Tests may be updated to reflect intentional behavioral changes, but the behavioral expectation they encode is never silently discarded.

 

Failures block integration. A regression failure is a hard stop. No code change that introduces a regression may be integrated until the regression is resolved — either by fixing the regression or by explicitly documenting and justifying the behavioral change.

 

Deterministic replay is required. Regression tests must be reproducible. Tests that rely on non-deterministic scheduling or timing are useful for stress testing but do not qualify as regression tests. All regression tests run under deterministic scheduling mode.

 

Version-to-version comparison is supported. Deterministic replay enables running the same test sequence against different emulator versions and comparing architectural outcomes. Any divergence between versions is a regression signal.

 

This policy prevents architectural drift — the gradual, unintentional divergence of emulator behavior from the architectural specification that occurs when changes are made without comprehensive regression coverage.

 

See Also: 21.8 Deterministic Replay (replay mechanism supporting regression tests).