FactoryGirl, why I get already registered or uninitialized constant?

Question

I am trying to do a simple test for my model Course, I have wrote this factory:

FactoryGirl.define do
  factory :course do
    name 'How to be happy ?'
    end
end

the course_spec.rb:

require "rspec"
require 'factory_girl_rails'
describe "When a course is created" do

  it "can't be deleted if any student is enrolled to it" do
    FactoryGirl.find_definitions
    course = FactoryGirl.build(:course)

    student= Student.create!
    course.students << student
    course.destroy
    course.name.should !=nil
  end
end

but, I reach this line

course = FactoryGirl.build(:course)

I get the error:

FactoryGirl::DuplicateDefinitionError: Factory already registered: course

if I comment the :course definition in the factory, I get:

NameError: uninitialized constant Course

Any idea please ?

here is my Gem Envioronment:

RubyGems Environment:
RUBYGEMS VERSION: 1.8.10
RUBY VERSION: 1.9.3 (2011-10-30 patchlevel 0) [i686-linux]
INSTALLATION DIRECTORY: /home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0
RUBY EXECUTABLE: /home/sam/.rvm/rubies/ruby-1.9.3-p0/bin/ruby
EXECUTABLE DIRECTORY: /home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/bin
RUBYGEMS PLATFORMS:
  ruby
  x86-linux
GEM PATHS:
   /home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0
   /home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0@global
GEM CONFIGURATION:
   :update_sources => true
   :verbose => true
   :benchmark => false
   :backtrace => false
   :bulk_threshold => 1000
REMOTE SOURCES:
   http://rubygems.org/
----------------------
IDE: JetBrains RubyMine (EAP) RM-112.291, build #RM-112.291
OS: Linux 3.0.0-12-generic[i386]
Java: 1.6.0_23-b23
RubyMine SDK Environment:
Sdk: RVM: ruby-1.9.3-p0
Sdk Version: ver.1.9.3p0 ( revision 33570) p0
Ruby Interpreter: /home/sam/.rvm/rubies/ruby-1.9.3-p0/bin/ruby
RVM Sdk: yes, gemset:[default]
RVM Home: /home/sam/.rvm
Sdk Language Level: 1.9
Sdk Load Path:
     /home/sam/.rvm/rubies/ruby-1.9.3-p0/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.9.1
     /home/sam/.rvm/rubies/ruby-1.9.3-p0/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.9.1/i686-linux
     /home/sam/.rvm/rubies/ruby-1.9.3-p0/lib/ruby/site_ruby
     /home/sam/.rvm/rubies/ruby-1.9.3-p0/lib/ruby/vendor_ruby/1.9.1
     /home/sam/.rvm/rubies/ruby-1.9.3-p0/lib/ruby/vendor_ruby/1.9.1/i686-linux
     /home/sam/.rvm/rubies/ruby-1.9.3-p0/lib/ruby/vendor_ruby
     /home/sam/.rvm/rubies/ruby-1.9.3-p0/lib/ruby/1.9.1
     /home/sam/.rvm/rubies/ruby-1.9.3-p0/lib/ruby/1.9.1/i686-linux
     /home/sam/rubyMine4beta/rubystubs19
Sdk Gem paths: 
     file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/bundler/gems
     file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems
     file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0@global/gems
Gems used for 'hope':
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     coffee-script-source (1.2.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/coffee-script-source-1.2.0)
     mail (2.3.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/mail-2.3.0)
     activesupport (3.1.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/activesupport-3.1.0)
     i18n (0.6.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/i18n-0.6.0)
     uglifier (1.2.1, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/uglifier-1.2.1)
     sprockets (2.0.3, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/sprockets-2.0.3)
     foreigner (1.1.1, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/foreigner-1.1.1)
     treetop (1.4.10, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/treetop-1.4.10)
     haml (3.1.4, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/haml-3.1.4)
     ansi (1.4.1, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/ansi-1.4.1)
     mime-types (1.17.2, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/mime-types-1.17.2)
     rack (1.3.6, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rack-1.3.6)
     devise (1.5.2, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/devise-1.5.2)
     warden (1.1.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/warden-1.1.0)
     diff-lcs (1.1.3, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/diff-lcs-1.1.3)
     activeresource (3.1.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/activeresource-3.1.0)
     sass-rails (3.1.5, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/sass-rails-3.1.5)
     therubyracer (0.9.9, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/therubyracer-0.9.9)
     rspec-expectations (2.7.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rspec-expectations-2.7.0)
     coffee-rails (3.1.1, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/coffee-rails-3.1.1)
     activemodel (3.1.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/activemodel-3.1.0)
     simple_form (1.5.2, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/simple_form-1.5.2)
     bundler (1.0.21, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/bundler-1.0.21)
     thor (0.14.6, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/thor-0.14.6)
     activerecord (3.1.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/activerecord-3.1.0)
     json (1.6.4, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/json-1.6.4)
     coffee-script (2.2.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/coffee-script-2.2.0)
     execjs (1.2.13, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/execjs-1.2.13)
     turn (0.8.3, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/turn-0.8.3)
     rake (0.9.2.2, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rake-0.9.2.2)
     kaminari (0.13.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/kaminari-0.13.0)
     rdoc (3.12, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rdoc-3.12)
     rspec (2.7.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rspec-2.7.0)
     actionpack (3.1.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/actionpack-3.1.0)
     rspec-rails (2.7.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rspec-rails-2.7.0)
     guard (0.10.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/guard-0.10.0)
     cocoon (1.0.15, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/cocoon-1.0.15)
     libv8 (3.3.10.4, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/libv8-3.3.10.4-x86-linux)
     rspec-core (2.7.1, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rspec-core-2.7.1)
     jquery-rails (1.0.19, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/jquery-rails-1.0.19)
     rails (3.1.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rails-3.1.0)
     rack-ssl (1.3.2, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rack-ssl-1.3.2)
     arel (2.2.1, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/arel-2.2.1)
     erubis (2.7.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/erubis-2.7.0)
     rb-fsevent (0.4.3.1, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rb-fsevent-0.4.3.1)
     builder (3.0.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/builder-3.0.0)
     orm_adapter (0.0.5, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/orm_adapter-0.0.5)
     rack-cache (1.0.3, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rack-cache-1.0.3)
     multi_json (1.0.4, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/multi_json-1.0.4)
     spork (0.9.0.rc9, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/spork-0.9.0.rc9)
     tilt (1.3.3, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/tilt-1.3.3)
     rack-mount (0.8.3, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/rack-mount-0.8.3)
     tzinfo (0.3.31, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/tzinfo-0.3.31)
     validate_url (0.2.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/validate_url-0.2.0)
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     guard-spork (0.5.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/guard-spork-0.5.0)
     factory_girl_rails (1.4.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/factory_girl_rails-1.4.0)
     factory_girl (2.3.2, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/factory_girl-2.3.2)
     will_paginate (3.0.2, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/will_paginate-3.0.2)
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     actionmailer (3.1.0, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/actionmailer-3.1.0)
     bcrypt-ruby (3.0.1, file:///home/sam/.rvm/gems/ruby-1.9.3-p0/gems/bcrypt-ruby-3.0.1)

EDIT

The spec_helper.rb file:

require 'rubygems'
require 'spork'




    Spork.prefork do
      # Loading more in this block will cause your tests to run faster. However, 
      # if you change any configuration or code from libraries loaded here, you'll
      # need to restart spork for it take effect.
      ENV["RAILS_ENV"] ||= 'test'
      require File.expand_path("../../config/environment", __FILE__)
      require 'rspec/rails'
      require 'rspec/autorun'

      # Requires supporting ruby files with custom matchers and macros, etc,
      # in spec/support/ and its subdirectories.
      Dir[Rails.root.join("spec/support/**/*.rb")].each {|f| require f}

      RSpec.configure do |config|
        # == Mock Framework
        #
        # If you prefer to use mocha, flexmock or RR, uncomment the appropriate line:
        #
        # config.mock_with :mocha
        # config.mock_with :flexmock
        # config.mock_with :rr
        config.mock_with :rspec

        # Remove this line if you're not using ActiveRecord or ActiveRecord fixtures
        config.fixture_path = "#{::Rails.root}/spec/fixtures"

        # If you're not using ActiveRecord, or you'd prefer not to run each of your
        # examples within a transaction, remove the following line or assign false
        # instead of true.
        config.use_transactional_fixtures = true

        # If true, the base class of anonymous controllers will be inferred
        # automatically. This will be the default behavior in future versions of
        # rspec-rails.
        config.infer_base_class_for_anonymous_controllers = false
      end





    end

    Spork.each_run do
      # This code will be run each time you run your specs.
      FactoryGirl.factories.clear
      # either this if you have multiple files under 'spec/factories',
      # or just load the single file, such as 'spec/factories.rb'
      Dir.glob("#{::Rails.root}/spec/factories/*.rb").each do |file|
         load "#{file}"
      end

    end

Answer 1

Did you try to remove this line ?

FactoryGirl.find_definitions

I am using Factory Girl (with the factory_girl_rails gem) & Shoulda with a 3.1 project and didn't have to explicitly load definitions.

Answer 2

All you should need to do is require 'rspec_factory_girl' and then the definitions.

Generally if you put it into the spec_helper.rb, it will require all the files in the spec/ directory, which means if you have your factories defined for example in spec/factories.rb, they will get loaded automatically.

That however requires you to add require 'spec_helper' at the top of your spec file, which seems you're not doing.

If you don't want to use the spec_helper.rb file this way, then just manually require the definition, such as require 'factories'.

One little trick if you're using something like spork and need to reload your factories manually before each run

FactoryGirl.factories.clear
# either this if you have multiple files under 'spec/factories',
# or just load the single file, such as 'spec/factories.rb'
Dir.glob("#{::Rails.root}/spec/factories/*.rb").each do |file|
   load "#{file}"
end

edit: complete example of Spork

Spork.each_run do
  require 'factory_girl_rails'

  # reload all the models
  Dir["#{Rails.root}/app/models/**/*.rb"].each do |model|
    load model 
  end

  # reload all factories
  FactoryGirl.factories.clear
  Dir.glob("#{::Rails.root}/spec/factories/*.rb").each do |file|
    load "#{file}"
  end

  # reload routes
  YourAppName::Application.reload_routes!
end