Xray v3.0 introduces the Test Repository concept which allows enables the hierarchical organization of Tests organization at the project level , by allowing users you to organize Tests in folders.

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Users coming from legacy Test Management tools may find this approach more natural and intuitive. Other organizations may prefer to not enable this feature at all and choose the Test Set approach instead.

Thus, a general setting enables users , available in Global Preferences, allows you to globally opt-in or opt-out of this hierarchical way of organizing Tests.

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Within the Test Repository screen you can see some are meta-folders that provide you quick ways to see or filter some relevant Tests. These folders are read-only and will be used mainly as basis to select the proper Tests before adding them to folders within the Test Repository itself.

• All: all Test issues within the current project (independently if regardless of whether they're organized or not)
• Orphans: all non-organized Test issues (i.e., Tests that are not part of the Test Repository), in the context of the current project
  

Besides Aside from these folders, you can also see the actual Test Repository itself that , which contains the hierarchically organized tests.

• Test Repository: the actual Test Repository, composed of multiple folders and sub-folders along with Tests, in the context of the current project. It corresponds to the root folder.

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Within the Test Repository root folder, multiple folders can be created and Tests can be added to them.  The root folder may only contain folders. Similar to traditional operating systems (e.g., Windows, OSX, Linux), Tests may only be part of one folder.

Tests can be "added" (i.e. ", moved") from the All or from the Orphans meta-folders to the destination Test Repository folder , by selecting and moving them using drag-and-drop. Besides this, Tests can also be moved between folders. The user You can also choose the Tests to add to a given folder , by selecting the folder and choose clicking the "Add Tests" context action for adding Tests using filters or JQL.

Folders can be created at the root of the Test Repository or in any ( sub)-folder within it.

In a given parent folder, it is folders must not allowed to have folders with similar names. For this, Xray does a case-insensitive check of the trimmed folder name whenever you create or rename folder in order to evaluate if a similar folder already exists within its parent. This means that these folder names would all be considered to be the same: "  phanTom", "phantom", "PHANTOM". Please note that it is not allowed to Moreover, folder names must not use the "/" character in the folder name.

Recommendations

• Think well how to Carefully structure the hierarchy of your folders, having keeping in mind that a Test may only be in a single folder; how . How would you organize them in your laptop if you were dealing with documents? Start by identifying the folders that you want to place at the root, and then try to drill -down on them, by creating down and create sub-folders that are relevant to you.
• If you're already using Test Sets, don't try to replicate the Test Sets model in the Test Repository because, most probablylikely, it won't work. Have in mind that Again, a Test can only be part of a one folder in the Test Repository's folder, while ; with Test Sets, a Test may can belong to several Test Sets  Sets.  
• Avoid putting semantic related with semantics when it comes to the execution phase in the Test Repository or else, your Test Repository will end get messed up; . Use the proper entities, such as Test Plans (and respective corresponding Boards) to make planning/execution-related organization organization. 

Test Repository

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versus Test Sets

Test Sets are simple, flat lists of Tests that you can use as basis for creating Test Executions or Test Plans. Tests can be part of different lists (i.e. Test Sets), each one grouping Tests Since the Tests are grouped in some logical way (e.g., such as grouping all Tests related with regression testing or with security or all Tests for a specific component or with security or with performance or with some high-level feature/business case), a Test can be part of different Test Sets. Test Sets can also be used as a dynamic way to cover requirements.

The Test Repository concept is a bit different; you have to think a bit similarly to the , on the other hand, is similar to the same way you would organize your documents and files in your computer.

Thus, the two approaches offer Each approach offers advantages and have some possible drawbacks.They , but they can also work in a complementary way, if . If used properly, you can use both in more advanced usage scenarios . Such a scenario could be such as using Test Sets as a way to cover complex requirements and use using the Test Repository as the place to organize the Tests.

Pros and Cons