Advanced Topics

Advanced concepts, best practices, testing, and troubleshooting for Wolf DSL development.

Best Practices

Essential guidelines and patterns for maintainable, efficient Wolf DSL development:

• Schema Design: Type safety and reusability patterns
• Node Organization: Structuring flows for clarity and performance
• Expression Patterns: Writing maintainable and efficient expressions
• Error Handling: Robust error management strategies
• Performance Optimization: Best practices for scalable flows

Key Topics:

• Schema composition and reuse
• Service configuration patterns
• Mapping optimization techniques
• Flow control best practices
• Code organization strategies

Testing & Validation

Testing strategies covered in the Best Practices guide:

• Unit Testing: Testing individual nodes and mappings
• Integration Testing: End-to-end flow validation
• Test Data Management: Creating and managing test fixtures
• Validation Strategies: Data validation and error testing

Performance & Optimization

Performance optimization techniques covered in the Best Practices guide:

• Flow Optimization: Designing efficient execution paths
• Service Integration: Optimizing external service calls
• Data Processing: Efficient collection and array operations
• Expression optimization: Writing performant expressions

Quick Reference

Common Advanced Patterns

Complex Data Transformations:

Mapping advancedTransform input ComplexData output ProcessedData {
    // Multi-step transformation with error handling
    step1 = if inputData != null 
            then processData(inputData) 
            else getDefaultData()
    
    step2 = filter(step1.items, item -> item.isValid && item.score > threshold)
    
    ProcessedData.result = map(step2, item -> {
        id = item.id,
        enrichedData = enrichItem(item),
        metadata = createMetadata(item)
    })
}

Service Orchestration:

Flow orchestrationFlow {
    Start validateInput {
        transition {
            input.isValid ? callPrimaryService : handleValidationError
        }
    }
    
    callPrimaryService as primaryService {
        transition {
            primaryService.success ? 
                (primaryService.requiresSecondary ? callSecondaryService : finalize) :
                handlePrimaryError
        }
    }
    
    callSecondaryService as secondaryService {
        transition {
            secondaryService.success ? finalize : handleSecondaryError
        }
    }
    
    finalize {}
    handleValidationError {}
    handlePrimaryError {}
    handleSecondaryError {}
}

Configuration Management:

Schema EnvironmentConfig {
    string environment
    string apiBaseUrl
    number timeout
    boolean debugEnabled
    retryPolicy {
        number maxRetries
        number backoffMs
    }
}

value prodConfig -> EnvironmentConfig {
    environment: "production"
    apiBaseUrl: "https://api.production.com"
    timeout: 5000
    debugEnabled: false
    retryPolicy: {
        maxRetries: 3
        backoffMs: 1000
    }
}

value devConfig -> EnvironmentConfig {
    environment: "development"
    apiBaseUrl: "https://api.dev.com"
    timeout: 10000
    debugEnabled: true
    retryPolicy: {
        maxRetries: 1
        backoffMs: 500
    }
}

Performance Optimization Checklist

** Schema Design**

• Use appropriate data types
• Minimize nested structures where possible
• Leverage schema reuse and composition
• Document schema relationships

** Mapping Efficiency**

• Break complex mappings into logical steps
• Use intermediate variables for reused calculations
• Minimize redundant function calls
• Leverage collection functions efficiently

** Service Integration**

• Use asynchronous services when possible
• Implement proper error handling and retries
• Cache static data appropriately
• Monitor service performance metrics

** Flow Control**

• Design efficient decision trees
• Minimize unnecessary node transitions
• Use early exits for error conditions
• Implement proper timeout handling

Testing Strategy Framework

Unit Testing Approach:

@CSMTest(flow = "userProcessingFlow")
public class UserProcessingFlowTest {
    
    @Test
    @CSMTest(type = "mapping", id = "userDataMapping")
    public void testUserDataMapping() {
        // Test individual mapping logic
        Map<String, Object> input = createTestInput();
        CSMTestExecutor executor = CSMTestExecutor.builder()
            .inputMap(input)
            .build();
        
        CSMTestResult result = executor.execute();
        assertThat(result.getOutput()).isEqualTo(expectedOutput);
    }
    
    @Test  
    @CSMTest(type = "flow")
    public void testCompleteFlow() {
        // Test entire flow execution
        CSMTestResult result = executeFlowTest();
        validateFlowExecution(result);
    }
}

Integration Testing Pattern:

@SpringBootTest
@CSMTest(flow = "integrationFlow")
public class IntegrationFlowTest {
    
    @MockBean
    private ExternalService externalService;
    
    @Test
    public void testServiceIntegration() {
        // Mock external dependencies
        when(externalService.process(any())).thenReturn(mockResponse);
        
        // Execute flow with mocked services
        CSMTestResult result = executeFlow();
        
        // Verify interactions and results
        verify(externalService).process(expectedRequest);
        assertThat(result.isSuccess()).isTrue();
    }
}

Next Steps

Explore each advanced topic to master Wolf DSL development:

1. Start with Best Practices - Establish good development habits
2. Review Testing Strategies - Covered in the best practices guide
3. Apply Performance Guidelines - Optimization techniques in best practices
4. Master Debugging Techniques - Troubleshooting patterns in best practices