Software Testing Strategies: Which One You Should Choose?

There are numerous ways to test software during and after development. But when you think of choosing one strategy, the question poses itself like a problem, “Which among the software testing strategies is the best?” Those who are planning on testing the software themselves ask the question more often.

Hiring a quality assurance team can answer your question, but you can also do it independently. There is an option to see a list of different strategies on the internet. But you must select one that matches your requirements well. To understand what’s best, learn about the importance of software testing and software testing strategies to make an informed decision.

Let’s begin!

What is Software Testing?

Software Testing is the way to find the gaps between the current and standard product. It includes applying manual and automated tools and practices to make the software defect-free.

In addition, software testing not only detects faults in the software but rather provides accuracy, efficiency, and usability. It works on the verification and validation of software. Verification refers to tasks that ensure the accurate implementation of a function. Whereas validation signifies that the software fulfills the customer’s requirements.

There are 3 popular software testing techniques:

1. Black Box Testing

Black box testing tests the external functionality of the system. This method does not consider the code, design, or internal structure. Moreover, it checks how the system reacts to the user’s actions, response time, and other factors, such as the reliability and usability issues of the system.

2. White Box Testing

White box testing tests the system's internal structure, coding, and design. It is also called clear testing/open testing/glass box testing because the code is visible to the testers.

3. Gray Box Testing

This testing is a strategy for software debugging. It's a combination of both black-box and white-box testing. The tester here does not have complete details of the internal structure of a system.

Software Testing Strategies

A software testing strategy includes tools that ensure that your product matches the quality standards you had planned to achieve. Generally, a quality assurance team works out the strategy, performs the essential procedures, and saves time.

Further, it should align with your software testing needs. For instance, a pizza shop’s and a railway company’s software have different needs. You can’t choose the same strategies for both. Therefore, choosing the right strategy is essential!

Here are some strategies you can implement while testing your software:

1. Unit Testing

This approach is taken by the developers/programmers to test several code units. It confirms whether any piece of code has bugs or errors. Further, this testing is done during the development process.

2. Integration Testing

It tests the software's design and structure. This testing calculates the compliance of a system with functional requirements. Integration testing is the next step after unit testing.

All the integrated components of a system must run properly.

3. System Testing

This testing checks the overall functionality of a system. It includes scanning the portability, security, performance, etc.

Furthermore, a software testing strategy is different from a test plan. It includes the time of testing, method of testing, and the person who will test.

4. Acceptance Testing

Acceptance testing is the last step of software testing. The primary objective of this test is to evaluate the compliance of the software and understand if it can be delivered or not. It further identifies any defects that might have been missed in the previous testing phases.

After this testing, a system is ready to use.

There are different types of acceptance testing:

User Acceptance Testing: it checks whether the product works for the user as per requirements.
Business Acceptance Testing: it checks if the product fulfills the business goals.
Contract Acceptance Testing: A contract that asks to conduct an acceptance test after the product goes live in a certain period. The acceptance test must pass all the use cases.
Regulations Acceptance Testing: it scans whether the product follows all the rules and regulations defined by the government of a country.
Alpha Testing: A professional test team checks the product in a development testing ecosystem.
Beta Testing: The product is live for real-world users in this step. Furthermore, the reviews are used to fix the defects, if any.
Operational Acceptance Testing: it tests whether the product is ready for operation or not. OAT includes testing various factors like compatibility, recovery, reliability, etc.

If you are working solo on a project, you must create a detailed strategy for yourself for a smooth testing process.

Types of Software Testing Strategies

A software testing strategy involves a combination of different testing procedures. Some of those strategies are:

1. Static Testing

It is a testing procedure where software defects are found without code execution. It starts at an early development stage of the software. It involves both manual and automated processes.

Furthermore, static testing involves

Testing the software's initial design, checking the codes, reworking, and finding gaps between actual and standard design.
It keeps all the team members on the same page, and defects are reported to avoid any major discrepancies later.
There are several sub-procedures of static testing, such as walkthroughs, informal reviews, inspections, and technical reviews.

2. Structural Testing

Structural testing, glass box testing, or white box testing refers to finding the errors or bugs within the code’s structure.

Structural testing includes:

Professionals well-versed in programming languages.
How software is implemented and how it is performing.
There are different structural testing methods, such as mutation, Data flow, Control flow, and Slice-based testing.

3. Behavioral Testing

It is opposite to structural testing and is known as black-box testing.

Black box testers cannot see past the website, application, or software presented to them. This technique involves using techniques to find discrepancies from the user's perspective.

With the help of this technique, the developers try to find interface issues, required functions that are presently missing, performance errors, issues in accessing data, etc.

The strategy is used at all levels of software testing, i.e., integration testing, system testing, and acceptance testing.

Behavioral testing is performed using the following procedures:

Equivalence partitioning involves dividing data into valid and invalid inputs and making different test cases. Then each partition is tested, values are noted, and required changes are made.
Boundary value analysis involves setting boundaries for the data value to be inserted in the fields and testing by entering values inside and outside the boundary to see how the program reacts.
Cause-effect graphing is the third technique that involves dividing input causes and monitoring output effects.

Important Points to Remember while Software Testing

When you are testing software, keep these points in mind.

1. Continuous Testing

The best way to ward off any problems in software is to start testing early. It should be a continuous process that keeps testing the software quite often, leading to early detection of problems and saving time later.

2. Look from the User’s Perspective

Users should always be in the back of your mind, and after all, they are the ones who will be using the product. So, look at a problem from a developer’s perspective, and after solving it, look at it from the user’s perspective.

3. Collaboration

The key to success is teamwork. Every member, including the QA team, contributes to the project when you are working on a bigger project. Listen to their findings, and make changes. What may seem correct from an individual’s perspective may not be good for the overall project.

Be extra careful if you are working solo and testing the software yourself. Every software is a masterpiece from the developer’s angle, but users should also share the sentiment.

These essential points will help you make an informed decision.

Can You Test the Software Yourself?

For people who have worked on multiple projects and know how to test software, the answer is yes! You can test the software yourself.

But the risk is high if you start your career and build a commercial project all by yourself. Review the factors below and decide if you want to carry on the testing.

1. The Risk is Bigger

Once your software is out in the market, you cannot make major changes. A few glitches and your software will earn a bad reputation. When the software is in the development stage, you can take the risk, but if you are confused about which strategy to choose once the software is ready, the risk is big.

2. User Experience

A developer aims to present a defect-free product to the user.

They need a seamless experience without any errors and annoying glitches. Your product’s success depends on the user's satisfaction. To accomplish this, you need to present a tested product that is perfect or evolving to be perfect.

3. Lack of Knowledge

When you are working solo on a project, it is possible to forget things. You may apply the wrong test at the wrong time or fail to detect an error that can cause a major problem.

Plus, your lack of knowledge of the testing techniques may cause you to choose the wrong strategy. It is a great risk that will impact your software after its launch.

To avoid problems in the future, hire a professional QA team to conduct the testing. They have a thorough knowledge of the strategies, their usefulness for a project, timing, etc. It will also ensure that your project is in safe hands and will give you time to focus on other important aspects of development.

Conclusion - What is the Best Software Testing Strategy?

The answer is any strategy you pick must align with your project's requirements.

Every project requires a different approach; thus, no readymade strategy works for every software. You need to do your homework and develop a combination of testing procedures for your software. Your choice of strategy will impact your software’s future, so be careful!

This post familiarizes you with software testing in detail. We hope the information provided above helps you in the best possible way!

Happy Testing!

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Frequently Asked Questions

1. What are the challenges faced by software testers?

A software tester 10 face the following challenges:

Deadlines
Unstable environment
Fixing errors and bugs during testing
Last minute changes
Testing documents built by other team members

2. What is the main purpose of software testing?

Software testing aims to find defects in the software during the development stage. Any errors or bugs must be fixed to provide a smooth functioning product to the customer.

3. Which test cases are written first, black box or white box?

Black box test cases are written first, then white box test cases.

4. What is the software testing life-cycle?

STLC or software testing life-cycle is a sequence of steps performed in testing to ensure that the objectives of software testing are met.

5. What are the different methods of testing?

There are three different methods of testing: black box testing, white box testing, and gray box testing.