Run Apex Tests Locally

glade test discovers Apex test classes from an SFDX project, compiles supported code, runs tests in the local VM, and reports stable outcomes. It uses the same project loader, parser, semantic analyzer, storage, DML, SOQL, trigger, and limit stack as the rest of the CLI.

Run all tests

glade test --project .

Glade test

1 selected, 1 passed, 0 failed

Selected: 1
Passed:   1
Failed:   0
Runtime:  420ms

  ✓  RefinementServiceTest.testRefinesFileRow  42ms

Next:
  glade test --watch
  glade test failed

Machine-readable output:

glade test --project . --json

--json writes the versioned envelope described in Automation and JSON.

JUnit output for CI:

mkdir -p reports
glade test --project . --junit reports/glade-junit.xml

Filter tests

Run a test class:

glade test --project . --class RefinementServiceTest

Run a single method:

glade test --project . --class RefinementServiceTest --method testRefinesFileRow

Use exact class and method selectors for the short inner loop. Then run the wider suite before shipping.

Limit modes

Glade supports limit modes for local execution. strict enforces supported governor limits closer to Salesforce behavior. permissive keeps the local loop moving when a project depends on unfinished areas.

glade test --project . --limit-mode strict
glade test --project . --limit-mode permissive --json

Use strict for gates. Use permissive when you are carving into unsupported terrain and want the next useful diagnostic.

Watch mode

Run tests on file changes:

glade test --project . --watch

Run one affected-test pass and exit:

glade test --project . --watch-once

Run the daemon-backed watch loop:

glade test --project . --daemon --watch

Run tests affected by a git ref without remembering the lower-level flag:

glade test changed --project . --since HEAD

Rerun failures from the last completed run:

glade test failed --project .
glade test --project . --last-failed

Print the next likely loop commands without running tests:

glade test --project . --wizard

Local preview surfaces

LWC and Visualforce preview have their own workflow and product pages.

• Preview LWC locally
• LWC preview
• Preview Visualforce locally
• Visualforce preview

Warm startup across CLI runs

Large projects rebuild local org state and helper compilation on cold start. glade test writes that harness to .glade/test/startup.meta.json plus a hashed payload after the first cold build and reloads it when fingerprint checks pass.

Test Startup Cache explains when the cache is created, how it stays up to date, when it can be wrong, and how to recover.

glade test serve --project .
glade test daemon status --project .
glade test --project . --class RefinementServiceTest
glade test daemon stop --project .
glade test clear-cache --project .
glade test --project . --no-cache --class RefinementServiceTest

Clear the cache after git pull or Glade upgrades. Use --no-cache when debugging harness issues.

CI pattern

A small CI gate can check the project, run affected tests, then write JUnit output for test reporting:

glade check --project . --json
glade test changed --project . --since origin/main --json --no-progress
mkdir -p reports
glade test --project . --junit reports/glade-junit.xml

Saved run artifacts and CI annotations are covered in Add Glade to CI.

Outcomes

Local test runs separate assertion failures from load errors, compile errors, unsupported features, and internal errors. That split matters. A failing assertion means the test ran and failed. An unsupported feature means the runtime stopped at a known unsupported Salesforce API.

  ✓  RefinementServiceTest.testRefinesFileRow  42ms
  ✗  RefinementServiceTest.testRejectsBlankFileRow  12ms

  RefinementServiceTest.testRejectsBlankFileRow
  System.AssertException: expected 1, got 0

  force-app/main/default/classes/RefinementServiceTest.cls:42

Check what Glade runs locally before relying on platform service APIs, exact hosted Visualforce behavior, live side effects, or REST behavior outside the checked local baseline.

Try it

Exercise the runtime your tests rely on - DML, triggers, and governor limits - in the local playground:

glade playground --examples --addr 127.0.0.1:1789 --open