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# 11.7. sdftest - Execute SDF Regression Tests

## Purpose

sdftest executes the regression tests provided with SDF.

## Usage

      sdftest

## Description

This program is typically run just after SDF has been installed to check that the installation succeeded. However, users should be able to run it at any time to confirm that everything is still ok.

This program works by iterating over the sdf files in the `test` directory where SDF is installed. For each file called xx.sdf, it generates xx.out and xx.log files containing the output and error logs, respectively. These files are then validated against the expected files in the `checked` directory.

Note: Generated files which are ok are deleted. However, if a test fails, the file which failed is not deleted, so a user can then use <CMD>diff</CMD>, say, to analyse what the problem is.

## Limitations and future directions

This program only provides regression testing on the core SDF engine. In particular, it doesn't provide regression testing on the drivers used to generate each of the different output formats (e.g. HTML, PostScript).