Testing views with Client in Django - Practice Problems & Coding Challenges

Challenge - 5 Problems

❓ component_behavior

intermediate

What is the output of this Django test client code?

Consider this Django test code snippet using Client to test a view that returns JSON data:

from django.test import Client
client = Client()
response = client.get('/api/data/')
print(response.status_code)
print(response.json())

The view at /api/data/ returns {"name": "Alice", "age": 30} with status 200.

What will be printed?

Django

from django.test import Client
client = Client()
response = client.get('/api/data/')
print(response.status_code)
print(response.json())

A

404
{'error': 'Not found'}

B

200
{'name': 'Alice', 'age': 30}

C

200
"{'name': 'Alice', 'age': 30}"

D

500
{'error': 'Server error'}

💡 Hint

Check the status code and the JSON content returned by the view.

The view returns status 200 and a JSON object. The response.json() method parses the JSON string into a Python dictionary.

📝 Syntax

intermediate

Which option correctly uses Django test Client to POST JSON data?

You want to send JSON data {"username": "bob", "password": "123"} to the /login/ endpoint using Django's test Client. Which code snippet is correct?

A client.post('/login/', data='{"username": "bob", "password": "123"}', content_type='application/json')

B client.post('/login/', data={'username': 'bob', 'password': '123'})

C client.post('/login/', json={'username': 'bob', 'password': '123'})

D client.post('/login/', data='username=bob&password=123', content_type='application/json')

💡 Hint

Remember to set the content type to application/json and send data as a JSON string.

Option A sends a JSON string with the correct content type. Option A sends form data, C uses an invalid argument, and A sends form-encoded data but claims JSON content type.

🔧 Debug

advanced

Why does this Django test client GET request raise an error?

Given this test code:

response = client.get('/profile/', data={'user': 'alice'})
print(response.status_code)

The view expects the username as a URL parameter, not a query string. The test fails with a 404 error. Why?

Django

response = client.get('/profile/', data={'user': 'alice'})
print(response.status_code)

A The data dictionary keys must be strings, not variables.

B The client.get method does not accept a data argument.

C The server requires POST requests for this endpoint, not GET.

D The view expects the username in the URL path, but the test sends it as a query parameter.

💡 Hint

Think about how URL parameters and query strings differ.

The view expects the username as part of the URL path (e.g., /profile/alice/), but the test sends it as a query string (?user=alice), so the URL does not match any route, causing 404.

❓ state_output

advanced

What is the value of response.context['user'].username after this test client request?

Assume the view at /dashboard/ requires login and sets user in context. The test logs in a user 'jane' and requests the dashboard:

client.login(username='jane', password='pass123')
response = client.get('/dashboard/')
print(response.context['user'].username)

What will be printed?

Django

client.login(username='jane', password='pass123')
response = client.get('/dashboard/')
print(response.context['user'].username)

A jane

B None

C AnonymousUser

D pass123

💡 Hint

Think about what client.login does and how context is set in views.

After successful login, the user in context is the logged-in user object with username 'jane'.

🧠 Conceptual

expert

Which option best explains why Django test Client resets session between requests?

When using Django's test Client, each test method starts with a fresh session. Why is this behavior important?

A To speed up tests by avoiding session data loading.

B Because Django does not support sessions in tests.

C To ensure tests are independent and do not share state, preventing flaky tests.

D Because the client automatically logs out users after each request.

💡 Hint

Think about test reliability and isolation.

Resetting sessions ensures each test runs independently without leftover data from previous tests, making tests reliable and repeatable.