The software testing life cycle describes the actions that take place during software testing. An organization's quality plan is more likely to achieve better results if it follows a logical software testing life cycle.
But why is this so important? Customer satisfaction is at the heart of everything.
Over the last few decades, testing competency has improved. Currently, testing does not only entail notifying the developer of any flaws, it has a broad scope and is a required phase to complete the project.
Table of Contents:
What is Software Testing Life Cycle?
The Software Testing Life Cycle (STLC) is a method for testing software and ensuring that quality standards are met. The tests are carried out in sequential order throughout numerous phases. Phases of the STLC may be repeated numerous times during product development until a product is declared appropriate for release.
The software testing life cycle is the procedure for carrying out various activities and tests which we shall discuss later in this article during the testing process.
Why should you use STLC?
Now that we know what the software testing life cycle is all about, let's look at why it's so important. Even if a company employs the best programmers and developers, mistakes are sure to occur. STLC's primary function is to identify and correct these errors before they are released to the public.
The main purpose of the STLC is to keep product quality high. In the long run, a high-quality product results in fewer maintenance expenses. To encourage users to stick by, an application or software must meet their needs.
Aside from that, consistently reliable items aid in the retention of existing customers. It's critical to concentrate on STLC if a product is to stay in the corporate world.
The phases of the STLC
1. Requirement analysis phase
The entry criteria for this phase is the BRS (Business Requirement Specification) document. During this first stage, the test team studies and analyzes the requirements from a testing perspective.
This stage aids in determining the scope of the testing, therefore making it crucial. If a feature cannot be tested, inform the testing team during this phase so that a mitigation method can be devised.
2. Test planning phase
An important phase in the testing process is test planning. We identify the actions and resources that will aid in meeting the testing objectives during this phase.
We also aim to identify the measurements, as well as the technique of obtaining and tracking those indicators, during the planning process. Activities like resource planning, determining roles and responsibilities, tool selection (if you are planning to do test automation, for example), training requirements, etc. are carried out in this phase. Here, UIlicious being an easy-to-use solution reduces the time needed to train testing teams.
The deliverables of this phase are the test plan & effort estimation documents.
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3. Test case design and development phase
Testers can begin writing and creating comprehensive test cases after the test plan is in place. The QA team provides the details of the structured tests they'll run during the STLC phase. This includes any test data they'll need to make those tests executable.
The deliverables of this phase are test cases, test scripts, test data, and the requirements traceability matrix.
4. Setup of the test environment
Testing environments are configured and deployed during this step. Various testing technologies, such as Selenium, may be used at this phase. This step may also entail the setup of test servers.
Smoke tests are performed after environments have been deployed to verify they are running as expected with all intended functionality.
In some cases, the test team may not be involved in this phase. The development team or the customer provides the test environment.
5. Execution of the test
Features are tested in the deployed environment using the established test cases at this step. Expected and actual test results are evaluated, and they are compiled for reporting to development teams. Regression testing is a type of black box testing. It is used to verify that a software code modification does not affect the product's existing functionality. Regression testing ensures that a product's new functionality, issue patches, or other changes to an existing feature work properly.
When software maintenance includes upgrades, error fixes, optimization, and deletion of existing functionalities, regression testing is required. These changes may have an impact on the system's functionality. In this instance, regression testing is required.
6. Test cycle closure
The Test Cycle Closure phase encompasses numerous operations such as test completion reporting, the collecting of test completion matrices, and the analysis of test findings.
The Test Cycle Closure phase encompasses numerous operations such as test completion reporting, the collecting of test completion matrices, and the analysis of test findings.
Entry and exit criteria
Phase | Entry | Exit |
|---|---|---|
Requirement Analysis | Requirements specification document, Acceptance criteria document, Application architecture document. | Signed off RTM, Signed off automation feasibility report. |
Test Planning | Requirements documents, Automation feasibility report. | Approved test plan document, Approved test strategy document, Signed off effort estimation document. |
Test Design | Requirements documents (Updated version of unclear or missing requirement), RTM, Test plan, Test estimation document, Automation analysis report. | Reviewed and approved test cases, test scripts, test data. |
Test Environment Setup | Test plan, Test environment setup plan, Smoke test cases, Test data. | Working test environment setup, Valid test data setup, Successful smoke test. |
Test Execution | Test plan document, Test cases, Test scripts, Test data, Test Environment. | Execute all planned test cases, Log all defects found. |
Test Closure | Testing has been completed, Test Case Execution report (make sure there are no high severity defects opened). | Signed off test closure report. |
Conclusion
Software Testing Life Cycle is a systematic way of performing testing. It gives better product quality, quicker bug fixes, and effective and efficient test results.
Simplify your testing lifecycle with UIlicious
When it comes to testing, there is no time to waste. The pressure to reach tight release deadlines is more intense than it has ever been. QA teams must look for every advantage that will assist them in releasing a high-quality product rapidly throughout the software testing life cycle.
Testing with UIlicious means more testing options, such as testing on a wider range of devices and in different locations, allowing you to focus on what you want to test rather than how you want to test it.
Users with coding knowledge can add variables, functions, loops, and conditionals to fine-tune their test scenarios and make our testing tool even more clever. And for people with no coding knowledge, fret not. If you know how to use SUM in a spreadsheet application, then you already are good to go. Don't worry about the wizardry that goes on underneath your web pages. Just write your tests as if you are telling your dad how to log into Facebook over the phone.
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