diff --git a/tests/unit/dummy-client-face.hpp b/tests/unit/dummy-client-face.hpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..649e714
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/unit/dummy-client-face.hpp
@@ -0,0 +1,236 @@
+/* -*- Mode:C++; c-file-style:"gnu"; indent-tabs-mode:nil; -*- */
+/**
+ * Copyright (c) 2014, Regents of the University of California.
+ *
+ * This file is part of NDNS (Named Data Networking Domain Name Service).
+ * See AUTHORS.md for complete list of NDNS authors and contributors.
+ *
+ * NDNS is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms
+ * of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation,
+ * either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * NDNS is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY;
+ * without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
+ * PURPOSE.  See the GNU General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with
+ * NDNS, e.g., in COPYING.md file.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+/**
+ * Copyright (c) 2013-2014 Regents of the University of California.
+ *
+ * This file is part of ndn-cxx library (NDN C++ library with eXperimental eXtensions).
+ *
+ * ndn-cxx library is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the
+ * terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License as published by the Free Software
+ * Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * ndn-cxx library is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY
+ * WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A
+ * PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the GNU Lesser General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received copies of the GNU General Public License and GNU Lesser
+ * General Public License along with ndn-cxx, e.g., in COPYING.md file.  If not, see
+ * <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ *
+ * See AUTHORS.md for complete list of ndn-cxx authors and contributors.
+ */
+
+#ifndef NDNS_TESTS_UNIT_DUMMY_CLIENT_FACE_HPP
+#define NDNS_TESTS_UNIT_DUMMY_CLIENT_FACE_HPP
+
+#include <ndn-cxx/face.hpp>
+#include <ndn-cxx/transport/transport.hpp>
+#include <ndn-cxx/management/nfd-controller.hpp>
+#include <ndn-cxx/management/nfd-control-response.hpp>
+#include <ndn-cxx/util/event-emitter.hpp>
+
+
+namespace ndn {
+namespace tests {
+
+class DummyClientTransport : public ndn::Transport
+{
+public:
+  void
+  receive(const Block& block)
+  {
+    if (static_cast<bool>(m_receiveCallback))
+      m_receiveCallback(block);
+  }
+
+  virtual void
+  close()
+  {
+  }
+
+  virtual void
+  pause()
+  {
+  }
+
+  virtual void
+  resume()
+  {
+  }
+
+  virtual void
+  send(const Block& wire)
+  {
+    if (wire.type() == tlv::Interest) {
+      shared_ptr<Interest> interest = make_shared<Interest>(wire);
+      (*m_onInterest)(*interest, this);
+    }
+    else if (wire.type() == tlv::Data) {
+      shared_ptr<Data> data = make_shared<Data>(wire);
+      (*m_onData)(*data, this);
+    }
+  }
+
+  virtual void
+  send(const Block& header, const Block& payload)
+  {
+    this->send(payload);
+  }
+
+  boost::asio::io_service&
+  getIoService()
+  {
+    return *m_ioService;
+  }
+
+private:
+  friend class DummyClientFace;
+  util::EventEmitter<Interest, DummyClientTransport*>* m_onInterest;
+  util::EventEmitter<Data, DummyClientTransport*>* m_onData;
+};
+
+
+/** \brief Callback to connect
+ */
+inline void
+replyNfdRibCommands(const Interest& interest, DummyClientTransport* transport)
+{
+  static const Name localhostRegistration("/localhost/nfd/rib");
+  if (localhostRegistration.isPrefixOf(interest.getName())) {
+    shared_ptr<Data> okResponse = make_shared<Data>(interest.getName());
+    nfd::ControlParameters params(interest.getName().get(-5).blockFromValue());
+    params.setFaceId(1);
+    params.setOrigin(0);
+    if (interest.getName().get(3) == name::Component("register")) {
+      params.setCost(0);
+    }
+    nfd::ControlResponse resp;
+    resp.setCode(200);
+    resp.setBody(params.wireEncode());
+    okResponse->setContent(resp.wireEncode());
+    KeyChain keyChain;
+    keyChain.signWithSha256(*okResponse);
+
+    transport->getIoService().post(bind(&DummyClientTransport::receive, transport,
+                                        okResponse->wireEncode()));
+  }
+}
+
+/** \brief a client-side face for unit testing
+ */
+class DummyClientFace : public ndn::Face
+{
+public:
+  explicit
+  DummyClientFace(shared_ptr<DummyClientTransport> transport)
+    : Face(transport)
+    , m_transport(transport)
+  {
+    m_transport->m_onInterest = &onInterest;
+    m_transport->m_onData     = &onData;
+
+    enablePacketLogging();
+  }
+
+  DummyClientFace(shared_ptr<DummyClientTransport> transport, boost::asio::io_service& ioService)
+    : Face(transport, ioService)
+    , m_transport(transport)
+  {
+    m_transport->m_onInterest = &onInterest;
+    m_transport->m_onData     = &onData;
+
+    enablePacketLogging();
+  }
+
+  /** \brief cause the Face to receive a packet
+   */
+  template<typename Packet>
+  void
+  receive(const Packet& packet)
+  {
+    m_transport->receive(packet.wireEncode());
+  }
+
+  void
+  enablePacketLogging()
+  {
+    // @todo Replace with C++11 lambdas
+
+    onInterest += bind(static_cast<void(std::vector<Interest>::*)(const Interest&)>(
+                         &std::vector<Interest>::push_back),
+                       &m_sentInterests, _1);
+
+    onData += bind(static_cast<void(std::vector<Data>::*)(const Data&)>(
+                     &std::vector<Data>::push_back),
+                   &m_sentDatas, _1);
+  }
+
+  void
+  enableRegistrationReply()
+  {
+    onInterest += &replyNfdRibCommands;
+  }
+
+public:
+  /** \brief sent Interests
+   *  \note After .expressInterest, .processEvents must be called before
+   *        the Interest would show up here.
+   */
+  std::vector<Interest> m_sentInterests;
+  /** \brief sent Datas
+   *  \note After .put, .processEvents must be called before
+   *        the Interest would show up here.
+   */
+  std::vector<Data>     m_sentDatas;
+
+public:
+  /** \brief Event to be called whenever an Interest is received
+   *  \note After .expressInterest, .processEvents must be called before
+   *        the Interest would show up here.
+   */
+  util::EventEmitter<Interest, DummyClientTransport*> onInterest;
+
+  /** \brief Event to be called whenever a Data packet is received
+   *  \note After .put, .processEvents must be called before
+   *        the Interest would show up here.
+   */
+  util::EventEmitter<Data, DummyClientTransport*> onData;
+
+private:
+  shared_ptr<DummyClientTransport> m_transport;
+};
+
+inline shared_ptr<DummyClientFace>
+makeDummyClientFace()
+{
+  return make_shared<DummyClientFace>(make_shared<DummyClientTransport>());
+}
+
+inline shared_ptr<DummyClientFace>
+makeDummyClientFace(boost::asio::io_service& ioService)
+{
+  return make_shared<DummyClientFace>(make_shared<DummyClientTransport>(), ref(ioService));
+}
+
+
+} // namespace tests
+} // namespace ndn
+
+#endif // NDNS_TESTS_UNIT_DUMMY_CLIENT_FACE_HPP
diff --git a/tests/unit/validator.cpp b/tests/unit/validator.cpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..26c25ac
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/unit/validator.cpp
@@ -0,0 +1,264 @@
+/* -*- Mode:C++; c-file-style:"gnu"; indent-tabs-mode:nil; -*- */
+/**
+ * Copyright (c) 2014, Regents of the University of California.
+ *
+ * This file is part of NDNS (Named Data Networking Domain Name Service).
+ * See AUTHORS.md for complete list of NDNS authors and contributors.
+ *
+ * NDNS is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms
+ * of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation,
+ * either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * NDNS is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY;
+ * without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
+ * PURPOSE.  See the GNU General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with
+ * NDNS, e.g., in COPYING.md file.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+#include "validator.hpp"
+#include "dummy-client-face.hpp"
+#include <ndn-cxx/security/key-chain.hpp>
+#include "../boost-test.hpp"
+
+namespace ndn {
+namespace ndns {
+namespace tests {
+NDNS_LOG_INIT("ValidatorTest");
+
+BOOST_AUTO_TEST_SUITE(Validator)
+
+class Fixture
+{
+public:
+  Fixture()
+    : m_testId1("/test02")
+    , m_testId2("/test02/ndn")
+    , m_testId3("/test02/ndn/edu")
+    , m_randomId("/test03")
+    , m_version(name::Component::fromVersion(0))
+    , m_face(::ndn::tests::makeDummyClientFace())
+  {
+    m_keyChain.deleteIdentity(m_testId1);
+    m_keyChain.deleteIdentity(m_testId2);
+    m_keyChain.deleteIdentity(m_testId3);
+    m_keyChain.deleteIdentity(m_randomId);
+
+    m_randomDsk = createRoot(m_randomId); // generate a root cert
+
+    m_dsk1 = createRoot(m_testId1); // replace to root cert
+    m_dsk2 = createIdentity(m_testId2, m_dsk1);
+    m_dsk3 = createIdentity(m_testId3, m_dsk2);
+
+    m_selfSignCert = m_keyChain.generateRsaKeyPair(m_testId3, false);
+    shared_ptr<IdentityCertificate> cert = m_keyChain.selfSign(m_selfSignCert);
+    m_selfSignCert = cert->getName();
+    m_keyChain.addCertificate(*cert);
+    NDNS_LOG_TRACE("add cert: " << cert->getName() << " to KeyChain");
+
+    m_face->onInterest += bind(&Fixture::respondInterest, this, _1, _2);
+  }
+
+  ~Fixture()
+  {
+    m_face->getIoService().stop();
+    m_face->shutdown();
+    m_keyChain.deleteIdentity(m_testId1);
+    m_keyChain.deleteIdentity(m_testId2);
+    m_keyChain.deleteIdentity(m_testId3);
+    m_keyChain.deleteIdentity(m_randomId);
+  }
+
+  const Name
+  createIdentity(const Name& id, const Name& parentCertName)
+  {
+    Name kskCertName = m_keyChain.createIdentity(id);
+    Name kskName = m_keyChain.getDefaultKeyNameForIdentity(id);
+    m_keyChain.deleteCertificate(kskCertName);
+    auto kskCert = createCertificate(kskName, parentCertName);
+
+    Name dskName = m_keyChain.generateRsaKeyPair(id, false);
+    auto dskCert = createCertificate(dskName, kskCert);
+    return dskCert;
+  }
+
+  const Name
+  createRoot(const Name& root)
+  {
+    m_rootCert = m_keyChain.createIdentity(root);
+    ndn::io::save(*(m_keyChain.getCertificate(m_rootCert)), TEST_CONFIG_PATH "/anchors/root.cert");
+    NDNS_LOG_TRACE("save root cert "<< m_rootCert <<
+                  " to: " << TEST_CONFIG_PATH "/anchors/root.cert");
+    Name dsk = m_keyChain.generateRsaKeyPair(root, false);
+    auto cert = createCertificate(dsk, m_rootCert);
+    return cert;
+  }
+
+
+  const Name
+  createCertificate(const Name& keyName, const Name& parentCertName)
+  {
+    std::vector<CertificateSubjectDescription> desc;
+    time::system_clock::TimePoint notBefore = time::system_clock::now();
+    time::system_clock::TimePoint notAfter = notBefore + time::days(365);
+    desc.push_back(CertificateSubjectDescription(oid::ATTRIBUTE_NAME,
+                                                 "Signer: " + parentCertName.toUri()));
+    shared_ptr<IdentityCertificate> cert =
+      m_keyChain.prepareUnsignedIdentityCertificate(keyName, parentCertName,
+                                                    notBefore, notAfter, desc);
+
+    Name tmp = cert->getName().getPrefix(-1).append(m_version);
+    cert->setName(tmp);
+    m_keyChain.sign(*cert, parentCertName);
+    m_keyChain.addCertificateAsKeyDefault(*cert);
+    NDNS_LOG_TRACE("add cert: " << cert->getName() << " to KeyChain");
+    return cert->getName();
+  }
+
+
+  void
+  respondInterest(const Interest& interest, ndn::tests::DummyClientTransport* transport)
+  {
+    Name certName = interest.getName();
+    if (certName.isPrefixOf(m_selfSignCert)) {
+      // self-sign cert's version number is not m_version
+      certName = m_selfSignCert;
+    } else {
+      certName.append(m_version);
+    }
+    NDNS_LOG_TRACE("validator needs: " << certName);
+    BOOST_CHECK_EQUAL(m_keyChain.doesCertificateExist(certName), true);
+    auto cert = m_keyChain.getCertificate(certName);
+    transport->receive(cert->wireEncode());
+  }
+
+public:
+  Name m_testId1;
+  Name m_testId2;
+  Name m_testId3;
+  Name m_randomId;
+
+  Name m_rootCert;
+
+  KeyChain m_keyChain;
+
+  Name m_dsk1;
+  Name m_dsk2;
+  Name m_dsk3;
+
+  Name m_selfSignCert;
+
+  Name m_randomDsk;
+
+  name::Component m_version;
+
+  shared_ptr<ndn::tests::DummyClientFace> m_face;
+};
+
+
+BOOST_FIXTURE_TEST_CASE(Basic, Fixture)
+{
+  // validator must be created after root key is saved to the target
+  ndns::Validator validator(*m_face, TEST_CONFIG_PATH "/" "validator.conf");
+
+  Name dataName(m_testId3);
+  dataName.append("NDNS")
+    .append("rrLabel")
+    .append("rrType")
+    .appendVersion();
+  shared_ptr<Data> data = make_shared<Data>(dataName);
+  m_keyChain.sign(*data, m_dsk3);
+
+  bool hasValidated = false;
+  validator.validate(*data,
+                     [&] (const shared_ptr<const Data>& data) {
+                       hasValidated = true;
+                       BOOST_CHECK(true);
+                     },
+                     [&] (const shared_ptr<const Data>& data, const std::string& str) {
+                       hasValidated = true;
+                       BOOST_CHECK(false);
+                     });
+
+  m_face->processEvents(time::milliseconds(-1));
+
+  BOOST_CHECK_EQUAL(hasValidated, true);
+
+
+  dataName = m_testId2;
+  dataName.append("KEY")
+    .append("rrLabel")
+    .append("ID-CERT")
+    .appendVersion();
+  data = make_shared<Data>(dataName);
+  m_keyChain.sign(*data, m_dsk3); // key's owner's name is longer than data owner's
+
+  hasValidated = false;
+  validator.validate(*data,
+                     [&] (const shared_ptr<const Data>& data) {
+                       hasValidated = true;
+                       BOOST_CHECK(false);
+                     },
+                     [&] (const shared_ptr<const Data>& data, const std::string& str) {
+                       hasValidated = true;
+                       BOOST_CHECK(true);
+                     });
+
+  m_face->processEvents(time::milliseconds(-1));
+  // cannot pass verification due to key's owner's name is longer than data owner's
+  BOOST_CHECK_EQUAL(hasValidated, true);
+
+
+  dataName = m_testId3;
+  dataName.append("KEY")
+    .append("rrLabel")
+    .append("ID-CERT")
+    .appendVersion();
+  data = make_shared<Data>(dataName);
+  m_keyChain.sign(*data, m_selfSignCert);
+
+  hasValidated = false;
+  validator.validate(*data,
+                     [&] (const shared_ptr<const Data>& data) {
+                       hasValidated = true;
+                       BOOST_CHECK(false);
+                     },
+                     [&] (const shared_ptr<const Data>& data, const std::string& str) {
+                       hasValidated = true;
+                       BOOST_CHECK(true);
+                     });
+
+  m_face->processEvents(time::milliseconds(-1));
+  // cannot pass due to self-sign cert is used
+  BOOST_CHECK_EQUAL(hasValidated, true);
+
+  dataName = m_testId2;
+  dataName.append("KEY")
+    .append("rrLabel")
+    .append("ID-CERT")
+    .appendVersion();
+  data = make_shared<Data>(dataName);
+  m_keyChain.sign(*data, m_randomDsk);
+
+  hasValidated = false;
+  validator.validate(*data,
+                     [&] (const shared_ptr<const Data>& data) {
+                       hasValidated = true;
+                       BOOST_CHECK(false);
+                     },
+                     [&] (const shared_ptr<const Data>& data, const std::string& str) {
+                       hasValidated = true;
+                       BOOST_CHECK(true);
+                     });
+
+  m_face->processEvents(time::milliseconds(-1));
+  // cannot pass due to a totally mismatched key
+  BOOST_CHECK_EQUAL(hasValidated, true);
+}
+
+BOOST_AUTO_TEST_SUITE_END()
+
+} // namespace tests
+} // namespace ndns
+} // namespace ndn
diff --git a/tests/wscript b/tests/wscript
index 0407962..fa36e78 100644
--- a/tests/wscript
+++ b/tests/wscript
@@ -5,12 +5,33 @@
 top = '..'
 
 def build(bld):
-    if bld.env['WITH_TESTS']:
-        unit_tests = bld.program(
-            target='../unit-tests',
-            features='cxx cxxprogram',
-            source=bld.path.ant_glob(['**/*.cpp']),
-            use='ndns-objects',
-            install_path=None,
-            defines="BUILDDIR=\"%s\"" % Context.out_dir,
-          )
+    if not bld.env['WITH_TESTS']:
+        return
+    dst = bld.bldnode.make_node("conf-test/anchors")
+    dst.mkdir()
+
+    bld(features = "subst",
+        name = 'test-validator-conf',
+        source = '../validator.conf.sample.in',
+        target = '../conf-test/validator.conf',
+        use = 'validator-sample',
+        ANCHORPATH='\"anchors/root.cert\"',
+        RELATION='is-prefix-of',
+    )
+
+    bld(features = "subst",
+        name = 'test-logger-conf',
+        source = '../log4cxx.properties.sample.in',
+        target = '../conf-test/log4cxx.properties.sample',
+        is_copy = True,
+        use = 'log4cxx-sample',
+    )
+
+    unit_tests = bld.program(
+        target='../unit-tests',
+        features='cxx cxxprogram',
+        source=bld.path.ant_glob(['**/*.cpp']),
+        use='ndns-objects',
+        install_path=None,
+        defines='TEST_CONFIG_PATH=\"%s/conf-test\"' %(bld.bldnode)
+    )