Pest Methods

TestLink provides method chains for Pest tests to declare coverage links.

Available Methods

Method	Description
linksAndCovers()	Links to production code (with coverage)
links()	Links to production code (without coverage)

linksAndCovers()

Declares that a test covers and links to production methods.

Signature

->linksAndCovers(string $methodIdentifier): self

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description
$methodIdentifier	string	Class::method format or placeholder

Usage

test('creates user', function () {
    $service = new UserService();
    $user = $service->create(['name' => 'John']);

    expect($user)->toBeInstanceOf(User::class);
})->linksAndCovers(UserService::class.'::create');

Multiple methods

test('creates validated user', function () {
    // ...
})
->linksAndCovers(UserService::class.'::create')
->linksAndCovers(UserValidator::class.'::validate');

With describe blocks

describe('UserService', function () {
    describe('create', function () {
        test('creates user with valid data', function () {
            // ...
        })->linksAndCovers(UserService::class.'::create');

        test('validates email format', function () {
            // ...
        })->linksAndCovers(UserService::class.'::create');
    });
});

With placeholder

test('creates user', function () {
    // ...
})->linksAndCovers('@user-create');

links()

Declares that a test links to production methods without affecting coverage.

Signature

->links(string $methodIdentifier): self

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description
$methodIdentifier	string	Class::method format or placeholder

Usage

test('complete registration flow', function () {
    // Integration test
})
->links(UserService::class.'::create')
->links(EmailService::class.'::sendWelcome');

When to use

Use links() for:

• Integration tests
• E2E tests
• Tests where unit tests provide coverage

// Unit test - provides coverage
test('creates user', function () {
    // ...
})->linksAndCovers(UserService::class.'::create');

// Integration test - just links
test('user registration flow', function () {
    // ...
})->links(UserService::class.'::create');

Method Identifier Format

Using ::class constant

// Recommended format
->linksAndCovers(UserService::class.'::create')

This becomes "App\Services\UserService::create".

String format

// Also valid
->linksAndCovers('App\Services\UserService::create')

Placeholder format

// Resolved with `testlink pair`
->linksAndCovers('@user-create')

Chaining

Methods can be chained in any order:

test('creates and validates user', function () {
    // ...
})
->linksAndCovers(UserService::class.'::create')
->linksAndCovers(UserValidator::class.'::validate')
->links(AuditService::class.'::log');

Comparison with PHPUnit Attributes

Pest	PHPUnit
->linksAndCovers(Class::class.'::method')	#[LinksAndCovers(Class::class, 'method')]
->links(Class::class.'::method')	#[Links(Class::class, 'method')]

Converting between formats

// Pest
test('creates user', function () {
    // ...
})->linksAndCovers(UserService::class.'::create');

// PHPUnit equivalent
#[LinksAndCovers(UserService::class, 'create')]
public function test_creates_user(): void
{
    // ...
}

Common Patterns

One test, one method

test('adds two numbers', function () {
    expect((new Calculator())->add(2, 3))->toBe(5);
})->linksAndCovers(Calculator::class.'::add');

One test, multiple methods

test('processes order', function () {
    // Tests complete order processing
})
->linksAndCovers(OrderService::class.'::validate')
->linksAndCovers(OrderService::class.'::save')
->linksAndCovers(OrderService::class.'::notify');

Multiple tests, one method

test('adds positive numbers', function () {
    expect((new Calculator())->add(2, 3))->toBe(5);
})->linksAndCovers(Calculator::class.'::add');

test('adds negative numbers', function () {
    expect((new Calculator())->add(-2, -3))->toBe(-5);
})->linksAndCovers(Calculator::class.'::add');

test('adds zeros', function () {
    expect((new Calculator())->add(0, 0))->toBe(0);
})->linksAndCovers(Calculator::class.'::add');

Mixed links and linksAndCovers

test('refund after payment', function () {
    // Focus is on refund, payment is just setup
})
->linksAndCovers(PaymentService::class.'::refund')  // Coverage for refund
->links(PaymentService::class.'::charge');          // No coverage for charge

Validation

TestLink validates Pest method chains:

./vendor/bin/testlink validate

Errors

✗ Invalid linksAndCovers:
  tests/UserServiceTest.php:15
    → App\UserService::nonexistent (method not found)