where should Test Case metadata go?

Metadata describing the test case [1] should accompany the test case
(duh).  But where should it go - inside the test case or outside the
test case?  There is a long history arguing that documentation (metadata
can be compared  to code documentation) arguing that it is best kept in
sync when it is tied closely to the code [2].

 

Some thoughts and questions:

 

Should the metadata be stored in a database rather than embedded in the
Test Case? This makes it easier to parse and search for different types
of metadata information.  If the test set is large, this may help
performance

 

What do you do if the test case are not XML  - e.g., binary code - thus
embedding the metadata isn't possible. 

 

[1] http://www.w3.org/QA/2005/08/test-case-metadata.html

[2] http://www.literateprogramming.com/

 

--regards

Lynne