Category Archives: innovation in testing

Demonstrating fully automated testing!

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In September I blogged about that I saw the real end of manual testing. And I still believe that. Even more now then I did then. Within the company where I work we evolved it even further. But how does it work?

Well first a model needs to be created from the requirements, by using Model Based Review. Next is adding the needed detail, like test data to the model. This enables the generation of the real physical test cases. And several test techniques can be used to generate the test cases: pair wise, multiple decision condition coverage, multiple condition coverage, and semantic rules. This is all done in a simple MS Excel sheet.

This sheet is loaded into the Sogeti’s Model Based Testing tool COVER and that produces the physical test cases. Nothing new, maybe at least it generates not only the logical, but also the physical test cases. This product can then be loaded into Tricentis TOSCA™ Testsuite, which makes the modules and integrates the test cases with those modules and can execute them automatically.

The real magic happens in both tools. When looking at TOSCA it’s a super easy tool for people like me, not too much technical knowledge of coding, but just enough to understand what happens.

To explain this further, please watch this demo video.

Note: Thanks to @Magdelijn for being the voiceover.

The real end of manual testing!

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Last week we had a breakthrough. A breakthrough that will change the way we use tools in software testing. In 2008 I had a dream on how models could change the world of software testing. Not a dream like Martin Luther King had, but I experienced the use of models for the first time and saw potential in connecting Model Based Testing tools with Test Execution tools.

 

As I started to learn more about this I also saw that this wasn’t yet possible without a lot of human interaction. And the while purpose of tools is to be more effective and efficient, so the amount of human interaction had to be brought down.

Now in 2012 it’s been made possible. We’ve created a model with the needed information. That model was then loaded into a model based testing tool; COVER. COVER then automatically generated physical test cases. Yes real physical test cases!

These physical test cases are then fed into another tool; Tricentis TOSCA Test Suite. And the great benefit of this tool is that it can ‘read’ the System under Test (SuT) very well. When the physical test cases are there it’s really very easy to create the automation for it with the use of some easy mouse clicks.

And then you automatically execute the test cases. And there you have it. From model to executed test cases by the use of tools. As I would like to say: The real end of manual, functional testing!

It fits directly into the latest book I co-authored: “the PointZERO vision” (publication date October 18, 2012). Focusing quality effort throughout the whole application lifecycle instead of only in the Testing and Acceptance activities. By creating these GUI models most effort is done there. The reason is not only to feed ten into a tool. But also to have an easy understanding of the application that is created. It helps with the review process, it creates an easy to understand model for developers to follow, and allows the creation of physical test cases to automate! Testing starts early in the application lifecycle.

Does this really mean the end of testing? Yes and no. In my vision it will change the world of software testing. Now still 80-90% of all testing is functional testing. A percentage I think is way to high. This should be less then 50%. But with this breakthrough we can make 80% of functional testing done by tools and focus on the early part of the lifecycle. 20% will always be very complex specific testing that is not easily automated.

So as a tester am I out of a job soon? No you are not. You only have to focus on other parts of software quality instead of the functioning. Non functional requirements are on the rise and need to be tested too. And someone has to be the ‘backbone’ of quality in the application lifecycle…