Anatomy of a JMeter test

With the samples we have explored so far, we have seen a similar pattern emerging. We have seen what mostly constitutes a JMeter test plan. We'll use the remainder of this chapter to explore the anatomy and composition of JMeter tests.

Test Plan

Test Plan is the root element of the JMeter scripts and houses the other components, such as Threads, Config Elements, Timers, Pre-Processors, Post-Processors, Assertions, and Listeners. It also offers a few configurations of its own.

Firstly, it allows you to define user variables (name-value pairs) that can be used later in your scripts. It also allows us to configure how the Thread Groups it contains should run; that is, should Thread Groups run one at a time? As test plans evolve over time, you'll often have several Thread Groups contained within a test plan. This option allows you to determine how they run. By default, all Thread Groups are set to run concurrently. A useful option when getting started is Functional Test...