TestDataFactory Patterns

Overview

TestDataFactory is a centralized utility class for creating test records with sensible defaults. It ensures consistent test data across all test classes and reduces duplication.

See assets/test-data-factory.cls for the full template.

API Convention

Every object has two methods:

Method	Returns	DML
`createObjects(count)`	`List<SObject>` (not inserted)	None
`createAndInsertObjects(count)`	`List<SObject>` (inserted)	Yes

This gives callers flexibility to modify records before insert when needed.

// Create without insert (modify fields first)
List<Account> accounts = TestDataFactory.createAccounts(251);
accounts[0].Industry = 'Healthcare';
insert accounts;

// Create and insert in one call
List<Account> accounts = TestDataFactory.createAndInsertAccounts(251);

Field Override Pattern

Allow callers to override default values:

public static Account createAccount(Map<String, Object> fieldOverrides) {
    Account acc = new Account(
        Name = 'Test Account',
        Industry = 'Technology'
    );

    for (String fieldName : fieldOverrides.keySet()) {
        acc.put(fieldName, fieldOverrides.get(fieldName));
    }

    return acc;
}

// Usage:
Account acc = TestDataFactory.createAccount(new Map<String, Object>{
    'Name' => 'Custom Name',
    'Industry' => 'Healthcare'
});
insert acc;

Handling Required Fields and Validation Rules

public static Account createAccountWithRequiredFields() {
    return new Account(
        Name = 'Test Account',
        External_Id__c = 'EXT-' + String.valueOf(DateTime.now().getTime()),
        Phone = '555-123-4567',
        Website = 'https://example.com'
    );
}

Record Type Support

public static Account createAccountByRecordType(String recordTypeName) {
    Id recordTypeId = Schema.SObjectType.Account
        .getRecordTypeInfosByDeveloperName()
        .get(recordTypeName)
        .getRecordTypeId();

    return new Account(
        Name = 'Test Account',
        RecordTypeId = recordTypeId
    );
}

Best Practices

Separate create from insert -- use create + createAndInsert method pairs for flexibility
Use unique identifiers -- include index or timestamp in Name/Email fields to avoid duplicates
Set all required fields -- include all fields required by validation rules
Return the created records -- enables chaining and further manipulation
Create bulk methods first -- single record methods should call bulk methods with count=1

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