Getting Started

Learn how to write and run your first Hone test in just a few minutes.

Your First Test

Create a new file called my-test.hone with the following content:

#! shell: /bin/bash

TEST "my first test"

RUN echo "Hello, World!"
ASSERT exit_code == 0
ASSERT stdout contains "Hello"

Let's break down what each line does:

• #! shell: /bin/bash — Sets the shell to use for running commands
• TEST "my first test" — Declares a test with a descriptive name
• RUN echo "Hello, World!" — Executes a shell command
• ASSERT exit_code == 0 — Verifies the command succeeded
• ASSERT stdout contains "Hello" — Checks the output contains expected text

Running Tests

Run your test using the Hone CLI:

hone run my-test.hone

You should see output like:

Running my-test.hone...
✓ my first test

1 test passed

Multiple Tests

A test file can contain multiple tests. Each test runs in the same shell session, so state like working directory and variables persist:

#! shell: /bin/bash

TEST "check version"

RUN mycli --version
ASSERT exit_code == 0
ASSERT stdout matches /v\d+\.\d+\.\d+/

TEST "help command"

RUN mycli --help
ASSERT exit_code == 0
ASSERT stdout contains "Usage:"

TEST "create file"

RUN mycli create output.txt
ASSERT exit_code == 0
ASSERT file "output.txt" exists

Running Multiple Files

Hone can run multiple test files at once:

# Run a single file
hone run tests/basic.hone

# Run multiple files
hone run tests/*.hone

# Run all .hone files in a directory
hone run tests/

Environment Variables

Use the ENV statement to set environment variables for your tests:

TEST "with environment variables"

ENV API_KEY=test123
ENV DEBUG=true
RUN mycli connect
ASSERT exit_code == 0