diff --git a/utils/utils.go b/utils/utils.go
index eaa6c09a9..381ebc53e 100644
--- a/utils/utils.go
+++ b/utils/utils.go
@@ -22,36 +22,39 @@ func CheckErr(err error, s ...string) {
 
 func StopOnErr(err error, s ...string) {
 	if err != nil {
-		if len(s) == 0 {
-			newMessage := cutUsageMessage(err.Error())
+		doStopOnErr(err, s...)
+		os.Exit(-1)
+	}
+}
 
-			// Printing an empty string results in a error with
-			// no message, no bueno.
-			if newMessage != "" {
-				jww.CRITICAL.Println(newMessage)
-			}
-		} else {
-			for _, message := range s {
-				message := cutUsageMessage(message)
+func doStopOnErr(err error, s ...string) {
+	if len(s) == 0 {
+		newMessage := cutUsageMessage(err.Error())
+		// Printing an empty string results in a error with
+		// no message, no bueno.
+		if newMessage != "" {
+			jww.CRITICAL.Println(newMessage)
+		}
+	} else {
+		for _, message := range s {
+			message := cutUsageMessage(message)
 
-				if message != "" {
-					jww.CRITICAL.Println(message)
-				}
+			if message != "" {
+				jww.CRITICAL.Println(message)
 			}
 		}
-		os.Exit(-1)
 	}
 }
 
 // cutUsageMessage splits the incoming string on the beginning of the usage
 // message text. Anything in the first element of the returned slice, trimmed
-// of its Unicode defined spaces, should be returned. The 2nd element of the 
+// of its Unicode defined spaces, should be returned. The 2nd element of the
 // slice will have the usage message  that we wish to elide.
 //
 // This is done because Cobra already prints Hugo's usage message; not eliding
-// would result in the usage output being printed twice, which leads to bug 
+// would result in the usage output being printed twice, which leads to bug
 // reports, more specifically: https://github.com/spf13/hugo/issues/374
 func cutUsageMessage(s string) string {
-	pieces :=  strings.Split(s, "Usage of") 
+	pieces := strings.Split(s, "Usage of")
 	return strings.TrimSpace(pieces[0])
 }
diff --git a/utils/utils_test.go b/utils/utils_test.go
index 0bb92dea8..69acf7248 100644
--- a/utils/utils_test.go
+++ b/utils/utils_test.go
@@ -1,22 +1,35 @@
 package utils
 
 import (
+	"bufio"
+	"bytes"
+	"errors"
+	"io/ioutil"
+	"os"
+	"regexp"
 	"testing"
-	)
 
+	jww "github.com/spf13/jwalterweatherman"
+)
 
+type testData struct {
+	logLevel        string
+	logError        string
+	logStr          []string
+	logFileExpected bool
+}
 
 func TestCutUsageMessage(t *testing.T) {
-	tests := []struct{
-		message string
+	tests := []struct {
+		message    string
 		cutMessage string
 	}{
 		{"", ""},
-                {" Usage of hugo: \n  -b, --baseUrl=...", ""},
-                {"Some error Usage of hugo: \n", "Some error"},
-                {"Usage of hugo: \n -b --baseU", ""},
-                {"CRITICAL error for usage of hugo ", "CRITICAL error for usage of hugo"},
-                {"Invalid short flag a in -abcde", "Invalid short flag a in -abcde"},
+		{" Usage of hugo: \n  -b, --baseUrl=...", ""},
+		{"Some error Usage of hugo: \n", "Some error"},
+		{"Usage of hugo: \n -b --baseU", ""},
+		{"CRITICAL error for usage of hugo ", "CRITICAL error for usage of hugo"},
+		{"Invalid short flag a in -abcde", "Invalid short flag a in -abcde"},
 	}
 
 	for _, test := range tests {
@@ -26,3 +39,141 @@ func TestCutUsageMessage(t *testing.T) {
 		}
 	}
 }
+
+func TestCheckErr(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []testData{
+		{"ERROR", "first test case", []string{""}, true},
+		{"ERROR", "second test case", []string{"banana", "man"}, true},
+		{"ERROR", "third test case", []string{"multi-word string"}, true},
+		{"ERROR", "fourth test case", []string{"multiple", "multi-word strings"}, true},
+		{"CRITICAL", "Oops no array of strings", []string{}, true},
+	}
+	for _, test := range tests {
+		filename := setup(t)
+		defer teardown(t, filename)
+		CheckErr(errors.New(test.logError), test.logStr...) // converts the array of strings in test.logStr to a varadic - cool!
+		checkLogFile(t, filename, &test)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestDoStopOnErr(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		message    string
+		cutMessage string
+		t          testData
+	}{
+		{"", "", testData{"", "", []string{}, false}},
+		{" Usage of hugo: \n  -b, --baseUrl=...", "", testData{"", "", []string{}, false}},
+		{"Some error Usage of hugo: \n", "Some error", testData{"CRITICAL", "Some error", []string{}, true}},
+		// sould get the same output if we pass any array of strings and not via the error
+		{"Some error Usage of hugo: \n", "Some error", testData{"CRITICAL", "", []string{"Some error"}, true}},
+		{"Usage of hugo: \n -b --baseU", "", testData{"", "", []string{""}, false}},
+		{"CRITICAL error for usage of hugo ", "CRITICAL error for usage of hugo", testData{"CRITICAL", "CRITICAL error for usage of hugo", []string{""}, false}},
+		{"CRITICAL error for usage of hugo ", "CRITICAL error for usage of hugo", testData{"CRITICAL", "", []string{"CRITICAL error for usage of hugo"}, true}},
+		{"Invalid short flag a in -abcde", "Invalid short flag a in -abcde", testData{"CRITICAL", "Invalid short flag a in -abcde", []string{""}, false}},
+		{"Invalid short flag a in -abcde", "Invalid short flag a in -abcde", testData{"CRITICAL", "", []string{"Invalid short flag a in -abcde"}, true}},
+	}
+
+	for _, test := range tests {
+		filename := setup(t)
+		defer teardown(t, filename)
+		doStopOnErr(errors.New(test.t.logError), test.t.logStr...) // converts the array of strings in test.logStr to a varadic - cool!
+		checkLogFile(t, filename, &test.t)
+	}
+
+}
+
+func checkLogFile(t *testing.T, filename string, test *testData) {
+	contents, err := ioutil.ReadFile(filename)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Could not open the log file \"%s\". Failed with %v\n", filename, err)
+	}
+	// does the test expect to have a log file. If so, it must also have contents.
+	if !logFileIsExpectedAndValid(t, filename, test, &contents) {
+		return
+	}
+	r := bytes.NewReader(contents)
+	scanner := bufio.NewScanner(r)
+	errorMessageMatches := false
+	for scanner.Scan() {
+		line := scanner.Text()
+		// lines in the log file are of the form:
+		// <log level>: yyyy/mm/dd <string|error message>
+		// we pase this format left to right in three sections
+		checkForExpectedLogLevelOrFail(t, line, test)
+		errorMessageMatches = checkForExpectedErrorMsg(t, line, test)
+		// There was no match against the error message. So see if it matchs one of the error strings
+		if !errorMessageMatches {
+			checkForExpectedStingOrFail(t, line, test)
+		}
+	}
+	if err = scanner.Err(); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Could not scan the next token in the log file. Failed with: %v\n", err)
+	}
+}
+
+func logFileIsExpectedAndValid(t *testing.T, filename string, test *testData, contents *[]byte) bool {
+	if test.logFileExpected {
+		// yup, so then the file cannot be empty.
+		if len(*contents) == 0 {
+			t.Fatalf("Unexpected empty log file! Filename:\"%s\"\n", filename)
+		}
+		return true
+	}
+	// we don't expect a log file for this test so bail here.
+	return false
+}
+
+func checkForExpectedLogLevelOrFail(t *testing.T, line string, test *testData) {
+	regexpErrorLabel := "^" + test.logLevel
+	validErrorLevel := regexp.MustCompile(regexpErrorLabel)
+	if !validErrorLevel.MatchString(line) {
+		// can't find the expected start of line string. So fail
+		t.Fatalf("Did not find the expected log level \"%s\" at the start of the line \"%s\"\n", test.logLevel, line)
+	}
+}
+
+func checkForExpectedErrorMsg(t *testing.T, line string, test *testData) bool {
+	regexpValidErrorMsg := test.logError + "$"
+	validErrorMsg := regexp.MustCompile(regexpValidErrorMsg)
+	return validErrorMsg.MatchString(line)
+}
+
+func checkForExpectedStingOrFail(t *testing.T, line string, test *testData) {
+	for _, s := range test.logStr {
+		regexpstr := s + "$"
+		validLineEnd := regexp.MustCompile(regexpstr)
+		if validLineEnd.MatchString(line) {
+			return
+		}
+	}
+	// if we reach here there was no match.
+	// Note: It's not possibe for this to be called with test.logStr as an empty array.
+	// The proceeding call to checkForExpectedErrorMsg
+	// in checkLogFile guarentees this. i.e. checkForExpecedErrorMsg will return true in this case.
+	t.Fatalf("Did not find any of the strings \"%v\" in \"%s\"\n", test.logStr, line)
+}
+
+func setup(t *testing.T) string {
+	// first set the logger
+	// we can't use jww.UseLogTempFile for this, becase we need the file name
+	// so we can delete the file in teardown function.
+	// We should really fix jww.UseLogTempFile so we can access the temp file, or
+	// better yet provide a "DeleteTempLogFile" function
+	const logfilename = "utils_test_"
+	f, err := ioutil.TempFile(os.TempDir(), logfilename)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Errorf("Error: Could not create temporary file for the logger. Error: %#v\n", err)
+	}
+	jww.SetStdoutThreshold(jww.LevelFatal)
+	// jww.SetLogFile generates the "Logging to .... " line on stdout.
+	// Maybe we should update jww to remove the fmt.PrintF calls?
+	jww.SetLogFile(f.Name())
+	return f.Name()
+}
+
+func teardown(t *testing.T, f string) {
+	if err := os.Remove(f); err != nil {
+		t.Errorf("Error: Could not remove file \"f\". Error: %v\n", err)
+	}
+}