In the investigation of the structural properties of thin films by x-ray diffraction the lack of material, interference from the substrate, and generally, high orientations of the grains makes analysis of the films very difficult. In order to fully characterize a thin film for stresses (macro- and micro-), grain size, orientation, faulting probability, and solid solution effects, it is necessary to employ a range of x-ray techniques with some special experimental conditions. It is shown that a full strnctural analysis of thin films (alloy films included) can be routinely carried out making comparison of different types of thin film possible. Two 12-kÅ-thick Al films are characterized and it is shown that large errors can occur in residual stress and solid solution effect if the data is not handled properly.