Should Dispose methods be unit tested?

Question

I am using C#. Is it advised to unit test dispose methods? If so why, and how should one test these methods?

Answer 1

If your class creates and works with unmanaged resources, then you should definitely ensure that Dispose works as you expect it to - although it could be argued it is more of an integration test due to the type of hoops you're going to have to jump through.

If your class only creates / uses managed resources ( i.e. they implement IDisposable ) then all you really need to ensure is that the Dispose method on these resources is invoked at the correct time - if you are using some form of DI then you can inject a mock and assert that Dispose was called.

Look at the complexity of your dispose methods - if they are only a couple of lines long with maybe 1 condition, ask yourself if there really is a benefit in unit testing them.