Testing - The New World!

Alpha testing is one of the most common  software testing   strategy  used in software development. Its specially used by product development organizations. This  test takes place at the developer’s site . Developers observe the users and note problems. Alpha testing is testing of an application when development is about to complete. Minor design changes can still be made as a result of alpha testing. Alpha testing is typically performed by a group that is independent of the design team, but still within the company, e.g. in-house software test engineers, or software QA engineers. Alpha testing is final testing before the software is released to the general public. It has two phases: In the  first phase  of alpha testing, the software is tested by in-house developers. They use either debugger software, or hardware-assisted debuggers. The goal is to catch bugs quickly. In the  second phase  of alpha testing, the software is handed over to t...

In  system testing  the behavior of whole system/product is tested as defined by the scope of the development project or product. It may include tests based on risks and/or requirement specifications, business process, use cases, or other high level descriptions of system behavior, interactions with the operating systems, and system resources. System testing is most often the final test to verify that the system to be delivered meets the specification and its purpose. System testing is carried out by specialists testers or independent testers. System testing should investigate both  functional  and  non-functional requirements  of the testing.

Integration testing  tests integration or interfaces between components, interactions to different parts of the system such as an operating system, file system and hardware or interfaces between systems. Also after integrating two different components together we do the integration testing. As displayed in the image below when two different modules ‘Module A’ and ‘Module B’ are integrated then the integration testing is done. Integration testing is done by a specific integration tester or test team. Integration testing follows two approach known as ‘Top Down’ approach and ‘Bottom Up’ approach as shown in the image below: Below are the integration testing techniques: 1. Big Bang integration testing: In Big Bang integration testing all components or modules are integrated simultaneously, after which everything is tested as a whole. As per the below image all the modules from ‘Module 1’ to ‘Module 6’ are integrated simultaneously then the test...

What is Non-functional Testing (Testing of software product characteristics)? In  non-functional testing  the quality characteristics of the component or system is tested. Non-functional refers to aspects of the software that may not be related to a specific function or user action such as scalability or security. Eg. How many people can log in at once? Non-functional testing is also performed at all levels like  functional testing . Non-functional testing includes: Reliability testing Usability testing Efficiency testing Maintainability testing Portability testing Baseline testing Compliance testing Documentation testing Endurance testing Load testing Performance testing Compatibility testing Security testing Scalability testing Volume testing Stress testing Recovery testing Internationalization testing and Localization testing Reliability testing:  Reliability Testing is about exercising an application so that failures are discovered an...

A  unit test  is the smallest testable part of an application like functions, classes, procedures, interfaces. Unit testing is a method by which individual units of source code are tested to determine if they are fit for use. Unit tests are basically written and executed by software developers  to make sure that code meets its design and requirements and behaves as expected. The goal of unit testing is to segregate each part of the program and test that the individual parts are working correctly. This means that for any function or procedure when a set of inputs are given then it should return the proper values. It should handle the failures gracefully during the course of execution when any invalid input is given. A unit test provides a written contract that the piece of code must assure. Hence it has several benefits. Unit testing is basically done before integration as shown in the image below. Method Used for unit testing:  White Box Tes...

What is Acceptance testing or User Acceptance Testing (UAT)? After the system test has corrected all or most defects, the system will be delivered to the user or customer for  Acceptance Testing  or  User Acceptance Testing (UAT) . Acceptance testing is basically done by the user or customer although other stakeholders may be involved as well. The goal of acceptance testing is to establish confidence in the system. Acceptance testing is most often focused on a validation type testing. Acceptance testing may occur at more than just a single level, for example: A  Commercial Off the shelf (COTS)  software product may be acceptance tested when it is installed or integrated. Acceptance testing of the usability of the component  may be done during component testing. Acceptance testing of a new functional enhancement  may come before system testing. The  types of acceptance testing  are: The  User Acceptanc...

Functionality testing  is performed to verify that a software application performs and functions correctly according to design specifications. During functionality testing we check the core application functions, text input, menu functions and installation and setup on localized machines, etc. The following is needed to be checked during the functionality testing: Installation and setup on localized machines running localized operating systems and local code pages. Text input, including the use of extended characters or non-Latin scripts. Core application functions. String handling, text, and data, especially when interfacing with non-Unicode applications or modules. Regional settings defaults. Text handling (such as copying, pasting, and editing) of extended characters, special fonts, and non-Latin scripts. Accurate hot-key shortcuts without any duplication. Functionality testing verifies that an application is still fully functional after localization. Even...