What is automated software testing? Automated testing is a type of software testing that uses desktop, web & mobile software to test software. It is performed by an automated testing tool, not manual testers. While manual testing can be time-consuming and difficult to scale, automated tests are fast, easy to run, and can be executed repeatedly with little variance in output.
Automated testing comes in many forms and has many different applications. However, they all have one main goal: to remove human error from your software development process as much as possible. Let’s take a look at what this type of software testing entails and how it works. Read on to learn more.
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Types of Automated Software Testing
- White box testing is a type of automated testing that works at the code level and looks for bugs in the source code. It examines the code for bugs, the inputs and outputs and the overall functionality. Whitebox testing is done by hand by developers who have experience in testing.
- Black box testing is another common type of automated testing. It is used to test the functionality of an application while not knowing or caring about the internal code. Black box testing is done by an automated testing tool that executes the app as a real user would by navigating through the program and inputting data.
- Regression testing is a type of automated testing that ensures existing applications continue to work as expected after code changes or other modifications.
- Load testing is a type of software testing that exercises an application with a large number of concurrent users or simulated usage to determine how well an application performs under heavy loads. Load testing can be done manually or with automated software testing tools.
How does Automated Software Testing Work?
As with all types of software testing, the first step of automated testing is to create a test plan with goals and objectives. Next, the test plan will be converted into automated tests that can be executed by an automated testing tool.
- The automated testing tool will execute the automated tests against the code of the software application. If there are any bugs or issues with the code, the automated testing tool will likely produce a failed test result.
- The automated testing tool will likely have a number of exit criteria built into the test plan. These criteria are used to determine when the automated test should stop running.
- After the automated test is complete, the results are either reported in the interface of the automated testing tool or exported as a file.
- The software developer who is responsible for the code under test will use the results of the automated testing tool to fix bugs and make changes to the code as needed.
Benefits of Automated Testing
Faster Test execution: Because automated tests are executed by a computer, they are much faster than manual tests. The average time to execute automated tests is about 2 hours, whereas manual tests can take almost 100 hours to execute.
Higher Test coverage: Because automated tests can be easily repeated, you can run them again and again to achieve 100% coverage of your code. Manual testers often do not attempt to run every test since it is time-consuming and can be tedious. In addition, some manual testers are unable or unwilling to test every part of the application.
Fewer errors: Because automated testing tools do not make human errors while testing, they reduce the chances of a false positive during manual testing.
Easy Test reporting: Automated testing tools are designed to produce detailed test reporting that is easily interpreted by developers. They include information such as the code where the bugs were found and the data that was used to find them.
Limitations of Automated Testing
False negatives: Because automated testing tools are programmed to look for specific conditions, they can sometimes miss bugs that are not programmed into them.
Limited Test coverage: Even if you can achieve 100% test coverage, it doesn’t mean that you have tested everything that needs to be tested. You must make sure that the tests you have selected have been designed in a way that will identify defects in your software.
Inability to detect new bugs: New bugs are often found when an application is used by real users. Because automated testing tools are not real users, they are not able to detect new defects.
Inability to detect functional issues: Automated testing tools are designed to find bugs and defects in software code. While they can definitely find issues, they are unable to determine if the application is functional.
Key takeaway
Automated software testing is a type of software testing that uses computer software to test software. It is performed by an automated testing tool, not manual testers. While manual testing can be time-consuming and difficult to scale, automated tests are fast, easy to run and can be executed repeatedly with little variance in output.
The first step in automated testing is to create a test plan with goals and objectives. The test plan will be converted into automated tests that can be executed by an automated testing tool. The automated testing tool will execute the automated tests against the code of the software application. If there are any bugs or issues with the code, the automated testing tool will likely produce a failed test result.
