My First Backtest, what to expect
You have made your configuration and clicked the Start button on the Strategy Tester, now what? Well, if you have Optimization disabled and Visual mode enabled, you will see the execution of orders in real time on a chart, and you will also be able follow the execution process in the Journal tab.
Notes: (1) In Visual mode, you can also easily control the backtest, place entries manually and change the configuration during the execution using the Backtester Panel (see picture below). (2) If you have disabled Visual mode, you can still see the orders executed on the chart after the test by clicking the “Open chart“ button.
Backtest FAQ
- Why doesn't my backtest start?
In some cases a backtest will not start because of a critical error. This is nothing to worry about and is usually easily fixed by changing your configuration. To find out exactly what the error is, check your MT4 Journal tab. Then you can troubleshoot the error see how to fix it.
- Why doesn't my backtest complete? It looks frozen.
If you are using Visual mode, make sure that the speed-control slide next to it in the Strategy Tester is all the way to the right. Also make sure that you are using the Open Prices Only model and not the Every Tick model (the Visual mode only works with the Open Prices Only model).
- Why does my backtest stop before the end date?
This is usually because an error has arisen during the backtest, which can happen for several reasons. To find out what the error is, check the Journal tab. Then you can search for the solution in the Help Center's Problems and Troubleshooting category. You can prevent the NNFX Algo Tester from stopping by setting the STOP TESTER ON ERROR configuration option to "false" (not recommended), though it is far better to identify the error and correct it. - Why can't I see my indicators during the backtest?
In Visual mode, the indicators appear automatically on the chart only at the end of the backtest. If you want to see them during the backtest you can configure and place them manually, dragging them to the chart. Another alternative is to prepare a template before the test starts, containing all your configured indicators, and save it with the name "NNFX ALGO TESTER.tpl". - Why did my backtest end with a smiling face?
A smiling face means that your backtest ended with no errors. If you are in Visual mode, you can now browse the chart and check that each entry has been made in the correct place. After the backtest is finished, the indicators are automatically added to the chart with the correct settings for easy analysis.
If you unchecked the Visual mode option you can click on the "Open chart" button to confirm the results. In this case, if indicators included in the software were used they will only show up automatically on the chart if you have also downloaded and installed them on your MT4.
You can now consult the reports, which are explained in the next article.
Next Article: Understanding my backtest results