SQA - IT414

Software Testing

a method to check whether the actual software product matches expected requirements and to ensure that software product is defect free

1. functional testing

2. non-functional / performance testing

3. maintenance

types of software testing

Functional Testing

This type of testing verifies that each function of the software application works in conformance with the specified requirements and specifications. It focuses on what the system does, testing software by providing appropriate inputs and comparing the actual output with the expected output.

Non-Functional Testing

This type of testing assesses non-functional aspects of the software, such as performance, usability, reliability, and scalability. It verifies how well the system behaves under certain conditions rather than what the system does, focusing on parameters like speed, responsiveness, and stability rather than specific behaviors or functions

Maintenance

ensure that changes or updates made to the software—such as bug fixes, enhancements, or adaptations—do not introduce new defects and that the software continues to perform as expected after modifications.

unit testing

This software testing

basic approach is

followed by the

programmer to test the

unit of the program. It

helps developers to

know whether the

individual unit of the

code is working properly

or not.

Integration testing

It focuses on the

construction and design

of the software. You

need to see that the

integrated units are

working without errors or

not.

System testing

In this method, your

software is compiled as

a whole and then tested

as a whole. This testing

strategy checks the

functionality, security,

portability, amongst

others.

Automation test engineer

a job where you will be

responsible for

automating manual test

case execution which

otherwise could be time-

consuming.

Performance test engineer

a job where you will be

responsible for checking

application responsiveness (time is

taken to load, maximum

load application can

handle), etc.

ISTQB

basic level certification in the testing field

1. Exhaustive testing is not possible

2. Defect Clustering

3. Pesticide Paradox 

4. Testing shows a presence of defects

5. Absence of Error 

6. Early Testing

7. Testing is context dependent

7 principles of software testing

SDLC

it is a sequence of activities carried out by developers to design and develop high-quality software

STLC

consists of a series of activities carried out by testers methodologically to test software product

Entry Criteria

criteria that gives the prerequisite items

that must be completed

before testing can begin.

Exit criteria

criteria that definesthe items that must

be completed before testing

can be concluded

Requirements phase testing

also known as the requirements analysis in which test team studies the requirements from a testing point of view to identify testable requirements 

Test case development phase

includes the creation, verification, and rework of test cases and test scripts after the test plan is ready

Test Environment Setup

decides the software and hardware conditions under which a work product is tested.

Test Execution Phase

is carried out by the testers in which testing of the software build is done based on test plans and test cases prepared.

Test Cycle Closure

completion of the test execution which involves several activities like test completion reporting, collection of test completion matrices and test results.

Manual testing

type of software testing where test cases are executed manually by a tester without automated tools

Test Case

is a set of actions executed to verify particular features or functionality

Test Scenario

is any functionality that can be tested

Positive test cases

ensure that users can perform

appropriate actions when using valid data.

Negative test cases

are performed to try to “break” the

software by performing invalid (or unacceptable)

actions, or by using invalid data.

Automated testing

is a software testing technique that performs using special

automated testing software tools to execute a test case suite.

Test Execution

Automation Scripts are executed during this phase. The scripts need input test data before there are set to run. Once executed they provide detailed test reports.

Test Automation Maintenance Approach

is an automation testing phase

carried out to test whether the new functionalities added to the software are

working fine or not.

1. Data driven automation

2. Keyword driven automation

3. Modular automation

4. Hybrid automation

4 types of framework used in automation

Data Driven Automation Framework

input values are read from data files

and stored into variables in test scripts.

Keyword Driven Automation Framework

uses data files to contain the

keywords related to the application being tested.

Modular Automation Framework 

the approach where all the test cases are first analyzed to find out the reusable flows. Then while scripting, all these reusable flows are created as functions and stored in external files and called in the test scripts wherever required.

Hybrid automation

combination of data driven and keyword driven

measure metrics

type of software testing where individual units or components of a software are tested

white box testing

what type of testing technique is unit testing usually performed by the developer

1. black box

2. white box

3. gray box

unit testing techniques

black box testing

involves testing of user interface along with input and output

white box testing

involves testing the functional behavior of the software application

gray box testing

used to execute test suites, test methods, test cases, and performing risk analysis

code coverage

is a measure which describes the degree of which the

source code of the program has been tested.

integration testing

type of testing where software modules are integrated logically and tested as a group, it focuses on checking data communications amongst modules in a program

Big bang testng

is an Integration

testing approach in which all the

components or modules are

integrated together at once and

then tested as a unit.

Incremental Testing

testing is done by integrating two or more modules that are logically related to each other and then tested for proper functioning of the application. Then the other related modules are integrated incrementally and the process continues until all the logically related modules are integrated and tested successfully.

has 2 methods:

• bottom up

• top down

stubs and drivers

are the dummy programs in Integration testing used to

facilitate the software testing activity. These programs act as a substitutes for

the missing models in the testing. They do not implement the entire

programming logic of the software module but they simulate data

communication with the calling module while testing.

Bottom-up Integration Testing

is a strategy in which the lower level

modules are tested first. These

tested modules are then further

used to facilitate the testing of

higher level modules. The process

continues until all modules at top

level are tested.

Top-down Integration Testing

is a method in which integration

testing takes place from top to

bottom following the control flow of

software system. The higher level

modules are tested first and then

lower level modules are tested and

integrated in order to check the

software functionality. Stubs are

used for testing if some modules

are not ready.

Sandwich testing / Hybrid Integration testing

is a strategy in

which top level modules are tested

with lower level modules at the

same time lower modules are

integrated with top modules and

tested as a system.

System testing

a level of testing that validates the complete and fully integrated software product, the purpose of this test is to evaluate the end to end system specification, falls upon the black box testing category

acceptance testing

beta testing of the product done by the actual end users

usability testing

mainly focuses on the user’s ease to use the

application, flexibility in handling controls and ability of the system

to meet its objectives

Load Testing

is necessary to know that a software solution will

perform under real-life loads.

Regression Testing

involves testing done to make sure none of the

changes made over the course of the development process have

caused new bugs. It also makes sure no old bugs appear from the

addition of new software modules over time.

Recovery testing

is done to demonstrate a software solution is

reliable, trustworthy and can successfully recoup from possible

crashes.

Migration testing

is done to ensure that the software can be

moved from older system infrastructures to current system

infrastructures without any issues.

Functional Testing

involves trying to think of any possible

missing functions. Testers might make a list of additional

functionalities that a product could have to improve it during

functional testing.

Hardware/Software Testing

This is when the tester focuses his/her

attention on the interactions between the hardware and software

during system testing.

smoke testing

is a software testing technique performed post software build to verify that the critical functionalities of software are working fine. It is executed before any detailed functional or regression tests are executed. its purpose is to reject a software application with defects so that QA team doesn’t waste their time on a broken system

Sanity testing

is a kind of Software Testing performed after receiving a software build, with minor changes in code, or functionality, to ascertain that the bugs have been fixed and no further issues are introduced due to these changes. The goal is to determine that the proposed functionality works roughly as expected

regression testing

type of software testing to confirm that a recent program or code change has not adversely affected existing features

Retesting

means testing the functionality or bug again to ensure the

code is fixed. If it is not fixed, Defect needs to be re-opened. If fixed,

Defect is closed.

Non-functional testing

a type of software testing to check non-functional aspects of a software application, designed to test readiness of systems as per nun functional parameters

test documentation

documentation of artifacts created before or during the testing of software

Test policy

It is a high-level

document which

describes principles,

methods and all the

important testing

goals of the

organization

Test strategy

A high-level document which identifies the Test Levels

(types) to be executed for the project.

Test plan

A test plan is a complete planning document which contains the scope, approach, resources, schedule, etc. of testing activities.

Requirements Traceability Matrix

This is a document which connects the requirements to the test

cases. is a document that maps and traces user requirements with test cases

Test Scenario

Test scenario is an item or event of a software system

which could be verified by one or more Test cases.

Test case

It is a group of input values, execution preconditions, expected

execution postconditions and results. It is developed for a Test

Scenario.

Test Data

data which

exists before a test is executed.

It used to execute the test

case.

Defect Report

is a

documented report of any

flaw in a Software System

which fails to perform its

expected function.

Test summary report

is a high-level document which

summarizes testing activities conducted as well as the

test result

scenario testing

is a method in which actual scenarios

test case

set of actions executed to verify a particular feature developed for specific test scenario to verify any requirement

test analysis

is a process of checking and analysing the test artifacts in order to base the test conditions or test cases

Requirements analysis / requirements gathering

This phase contains

detailed communication

with the customer to

understand their

requirements and

expectations.

functional specification

Based on the output from the

Requirements Analysis, the

system is designed at the

functional level.

high level documents

architectural specifications are understood and designed in this phase

detail design documents

the detailed internal design for all the system modules is specified

Traceability Matrix

is a document that corelates any two baseline documents that require a many-to-many relationship to check the completeness of the relationship.

1. forward traceability

2. backward traceability

3. bi-directional traceability

types of traceability matrix

forward traceability

This matrix is used to check whether the project progresses in the desired direction and for the right product. It makes sure that each requirement is applied to the product and that each requirement is tested thoroughly.

backward traceability

It is used to ensure whether the current product remains on the right track. The purpose behind this type of traceability is to verify that we are not expanding the scope of the project by adding code, design elements, test or other work that is not specified in the requirements.

Bi-directional traceability

this traceability matrix ensures that all requirements are

covered by test cases. It analyzes the impact of a

change in requirements affected by the Defect in a

work product and vice versa.

performance testing

is the type of testing which is performed in order to determine how fast system responds under a particular work load

security testing

is the process that determines if an information system protects data from malicious intent

DTM Test Data generator

is a fully customizable utility tool that generates data, tables

(views, procedures etc) for database testing purposes

Datatect

is a SQL data generator by Banner Software, generates a variety of realistic test data in ASCII flat files or directly generates test data for RDBMS including Oracle, Sybase, SQL Server, and Informix..