7 Best Practices For Successful Software Testing
Just like application development, testing plays an important role in a software project lifecycle. Proper execution of software testing can help you determine the success or failure of your project accurately while saving you a huge amount of time and money.
But to ensure a realistic estimation and success of test automation project, it is essential to implement certain best practices. Here are seven software testing best practices every Microsoft development company must follow in order to ensure the accuracy and success of the software project.
But to ensure a realistic estimation and success of test automation project, it is essential to implement certain best practices. Here are seven software testing best practices every Microsoft development company must follow in order to ensure the accuracy and success of the software project.
Software Testing Best Practices:
Test Case Creation: The process of test case creation starts when the requirements of the software are approved. You must finalize the test case preparation while the coding is still in process so that you do not hustle during QA (Quality Assessment) execution. Use test case type field to understand the test case types while writing the test cases. The test case types can include positive test cases, negative test cases, smoke test cases and regression test cases.
Prepare Regression Test Case List: A new build of software will always have some impact on the existing functionality of the software. As a result, it is important to prepare a regression test case list which ensures that the existing functions of the software are not hampered. Enable the QA team to update the existing test cases and ensure high-quality before you hand over a new release to them. Also, following the below-mentioned practices during a new release is a must.
Prepare Regression Test Case List: A new build of software will always have some impact on the existing functionality of the software. As a result, it is important to prepare a regression test case list which ensures that the existing functions of the software are not hampered. Enable the QA team to update the existing test cases and ensure high-quality before you hand over a new release to them. Also, following the below-mentioned practices during a new release is a must.
a) Clear the smoke tests for existing functionality and prepare new smoke tests for the current release.
b) The regression test cases must be updated. So, if the old test cases have become obsolete, mark them as obsolete and add new test cases.
Smoke Testing: Smoke tests are test cases that cover the important areas of software testing. There are about 20- 30 smoke test cases which are basic and should work whenever a new release is prepared. Moreover, a successful smoke test helps you proceed with deep testing. But in case a smoke test fails, the QA must return the build to development team. Some smoke testing best practices you must follow include:
a) Preparing a smoke test set
b) Handing over the smoke test set to the team responsible for merging the code
Further, the smoke test needs to be reviewed to ensure its meets the following:
1. A smoke test should cover all the requirements of the software
2. It should not be ambiguous
3. It should not leave any missing function uncovered during the test
4. It should be an overview of all the major functions and cover each functionality in depth
5. Smoke tests should not be large in numbers
Positive & Negative Testing: Positive testing is where a test is performed to check whether the software meets all the requirements through positive scenarios. Positive test cases are created on the basis of the requirements of the software. On the other hand, negative testing is done to check the software for any negative scenarios. The tester adds error value in the software to be tested. The negative inputs can include wrong date formats, decimals, or colons in number formats.
Performance Testing: Performance test cases are generally prepared to check the performance of the system and how it responds to different types of volume. It is divided into three main parts:
a) Performance test before and after the release of the software to determine whether the release is fast or slow
b) The tester should reboot machine and clear the cache before starting the performance testing
c) Performance testing should be done with different types of accounts for each part of the software where some parts will include large data and some will include small data
Test Case Preparation: The test case must list all the steps of test execution and each step should be easy to understand. Some of the best practices of creating test cases are:
a) Map the test cases with the requirements for better understanding of each test case
b) Each test case should consist a test case name, number, requirement and description
c) Written details of the login information
d) Mention the type of test case, for example, positive test case or negative test case
Test Case Review: While reviewing the test cases, the tester should discuss the test cases and the requirements with the team. Check the test cases for the adequacy of the information. Make sure all the team members understand the test cases and that no test case is missing. If there's any addition or deletion of any test case, mark it as modification. After reviewing all the test cases, mark the document as 'Test Cases Reviewed'.
Every enterprise must evaluate and follow the above-mentioned software testing best practices in order to set long-term goals and successfully achieve them. Does your enterprise follow any best practices for successful software testing, let us know in the comments below.
b) The regression test cases must be updated. So, if the old test cases have become obsolete, mark them as obsolete and add new test cases.
Smoke Testing: Smoke tests are test cases that cover the important areas of software testing. There are about 20- 30 smoke test cases which are basic and should work whenever a new release is prepared. Moreover, a successful smoke test helps you proceed with deep testing. But in case a smoke test fails, the QA must return the build to development team. Some smoke testing best practices you must follow include:
a) Preparing a smoke test set
b) Handing over the smoke test set to the team responsible for merging the code
Further, the smoke test needs to be reviewed to ensure its meets the following:
1. A smoke test should cover all the requirements of the software
2. It should not be ambiguous
3. It should not leave any missing function uncovered during the test
4. It should be an overview of all the major functions and cover each functionality in depth
5. Smoke tests should not be large in numbers
Positive & Negative Testing: Positive testing is where a test is performed to check whether the software meets all the requirements through positive scenarios. Positive test cases are created on the basis of the requirements of the software. On the other hand, negative testing is done to check the software for any negative scenarios. The tester adds error value in the software to be tested. The negative inputs can include wrong date formats, decimals, or colons in number formats.
Performance Testing: Performance test cases are generally prepared to check the performance of the system and how it responds to different types of volume. It is divided into three main parts:
a) Performance test before and after the release of the software to determine whether the release is fast or slow
b) The tester should reboot machine and clear the cache before starting the performance testing
c) Performance testing should be done with different types of accounts for each part of the software where some parts will include large data and some will include small data
Test Case Preparation: The test case must list all the steps of test execution and each step should be easy to understand. Some of the best practices of creating test cases are:
a) Map the test cases with the requirements for better understanding of each test case
b) Each test case should consist a test case name, number, requirement and description
c) Written details of the login information
d) Mention the type of test case, for example, positive test case or negative test case
Test Case Review: While reviewing the test cases, the tester should discuss the test cases and the requirements with the team. Check the test cases for the adequacy of the information. Make sure all the team members understand the test cases and that no test case is missing. If there's any addition or deletion of any test case, mark it as modification. After reviewing all the test cases, mark the document as 'Test Cases Reviewed'.
Every enterprise must evaluate and follow the above-mentioned software testing best practices in order to set long-term goals and successfully achieve them. Does your enterprise follow any best practices for successful software testing, let us know in the comments below.
