Time Limits Tab

The Time Limits tab maintains different time limits for normal execution and for executions that run while the engine is exiting.

The Time Limits tab contains the following options:

• Settings for —Switches between the different time limits available. The following options are available in the ring control:
  • Normal Execution —The time limit settings for when the TestStand Engine is executing normally and a shutdown operation is not in progress.
    Note Typically, you only define a time limit setting and action when aborting executions. Specifying a timeout setting for normal executing or terminating executions can cause the execution to stop running prematurely.
  • Exiting —Displays the time limit settings for when the TestStand Engine is shutting down. Define settings for each time limit to ensure that the shutdown operation completes successfully.
    Note Typically, you only define a time out setting when aborting executions.
• Time Limit Settings —Select one of the following time limits from the ring control:
  • When Executing —Applies to an execution from start to completion.
  • When Terminating —Applies to executions from a termination request to completion.
  • When Aborting —Applies to executions from an abort request to completion.
• Set a Time Limit for this Operation —Enables the time limit.

TestStand completes one of the following actions when the time limit expires:

• Prompt for Action —Launches a dialog box in which you can choose to terminate, abort, or kill the execution.
• Terminate Execution —Initiates a termination of a running execution. When you terminate a running execution, TestStand executes all the Cleanup step groups in sequences on the call stack before execution stops. A terminating sequence can time out when a step in one of the Cleanup step groups hangs or takes a long time to complete.
• Abort Execution —Aborts a running or terminating execution. When you abort a running or terminating execution, TestStand returns up the call stack without running any Cleanup step groups. An Abort operation can also time out when the last executed step hangs or takes a long time to complete.
• Kill the Execution Threads —Ends the thread for a running, terminating, or aborting execution. When you kill a running, terminating, or aborting execution, TestStand terminates the thread running the execution without any cleanup of system resources.
  Notice Killing threads can leave TestStand in an unreliable state.