django unit tests without a db

Question

Is there a possibility to write django unittests without setting up a db? I want to test business logic which doesn\'t require the db to set up. And while it is fast to setu

Answer 1

Updated: also see this answer for using a third-party tool pytest.

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@Cesar is right. After accidentally running ./manage.py test --settings=no_db_settings, without specifying an app name, my development database was wiped out.

For a safer manner, use the same NoDbTestRunner, but in conjunction with the following mysite/no_db_settings.py:

from mysite.settings import *

# Test runner with no database creation
TEST_RUNNER = 'mysite.scripts.testrunner.NoDbTestRunner'

# Use an alternative database as a safeguard against accidents
DATABASES['default']['NAME'] = '_test_mysite_db'

You need to create a database called _test_mysite_db using an external database tool. Then run the following command to create the corresponding tables:

./manage.py syncdb --settings=mysite.no_db_settings

If you're using South, also run the following command:

./manage.py migrate --settings=mysite.no_db_settings

OK!

You can now run unit tests blazingly fast (and safe) by:

./manage.py test myapp --settings=mysite.no_db_settings