Search-based Hyperparameter Tuning for Python Unit Test Generation

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Lukasczyk, Stephan, Fraser, Gordon
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Lukasczyk, Stephan
Fraser, Gordon
author_facet Lukasczyk, Stephan
Fraser, Gordon
contents Search-based test-generation algorithms have countless configuration options. Users rarely adjust these options and usually stick to the default values, which may not lead to the best possible results. Tuning an algorithm's hyperparameters is a method to find better hyperparameter values, but it typically comes with a high demand of resources. Meta-heuristic search algorithms -- that effectively solve the test-generation problem -- have been proposed as a solution to also efficiently tune parameters. In this work we explore the use of differential evolution as a means for tuning the hyperparameters of the DynaMOSA and MIO many-objective search algorithms as implemented in the Pynguin framework. Our results show that significant improvement of the resulting test suite's coverage is possible with the tuned DynaMOSA algorithm and that differential evolution is more efficient than basic grid search.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2510_08716
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Search-based Hyperparameter Tuning for Python Unit Test Generation
Lukasczyk, Stephan
Fraser, Gordon
Software Engineering
Search-based test-generation algorithms have countless configuration options. Users rarely adjust these options and usually stick to the default values, which may not lead to the best possible results. Tuning an algorithm's hyperparameters is a method to find better hyperparameter values, but it typically comes with a high demand of resources. Meta-heuristic search algorithms -- that effectively solve the test-generation problem -- have been proposed as a solution to also efficiently tune parameters. In this work we explore the use of differential evolution as a means for tuning the hyperparameters of the DynaMOSA and MIO many-objective search algorithms as implemented in the Pynguin framework. Our results show that significant improvement of the resulting test suite's coverage is possible with the tuned DynaMOSA algorithm and that differential evolution is more efficient than basic grid search.
title Search-based Hyperparameter Tuning for Python Unit Test Generation
topic Software Engineering
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.08716