Mobile applications and websites play a crucial role in helping organizations connect with their customers; this makes it essential to build an application or website that functions well. A critical aspect that makes this possible is testing.
Remotely test and debug mobile, web, audio and video applications on thousands of devices around the world. Learn more
Testing helps ensure the application is stable, its code works well and meets all the users' requirements. However, there are different types of testing with their unique purpose. These software testing types affect various aspects of the development process, from inception to production.
With so many different types of testing, it's essential to get a clear understanding of each one. This blog will explore two fundamental types of software testing: Functional and Non-Functional, and all the tests under them.
Check out: Benefits of Using Automated Functional Testing
Functional Testing
Unit Testing
Developers run unit tests during the application's development phase to ensure individual components or sections of code function well. It helps developers catch bugs and uncover specific issues before the app can go to the QA teams.
The simplest example of a unit test is when a developer runs a unit test on a calculator app. The purpose of this test will show the developer if entering two numbers produces the correct response. Two types of tests that come under Unit testing are:
a) White Box Testing
White box tests help developers check the output of an action on an app and the code that is responsible for the output. Developers run this test to check for faults in the business logic and verify the code's integration with the app's infrastructure.
b) Gorilla Testing
Developers run Gorilla tests to ensure the practical functionality of specific modules within an application. The main objective is to check for faults in module installation and address them. Developers run this test manually.
Also check: A Complete Guide to Functional Testing
Integration Testing
Integration testing usually involves testing a group of modules of an application. The goal is to check for any defects or bugs in the interfaces between these modules. This type of testing adds value to the Unit tests.
A test that comes under Integration testing is:
a) Gray box testing
Gray box testing is a testing technique developers use to test an application. It involves having partial knowledge of the structure of the application. It helps developers identify problems with code or the use of the application.
System Testing
System testing involves running tests on the entire system to check if it meets specific requirements. System tests evaluate all the modules that have passed the integration tests. System testing includes these types of testing:
a) End to End Testing
Testers run end-to-end tests to check the app's capabilities in real-world settings, like using network communications, interacting with a database, applications, or other hardware. These test results help the tester validate an app and its internal systems before launch.
b) Black Box Testing
Black box testing involves testing the functionalities of an app without knowing the internal design, code, system, or structure. Its primary focus is on the input and output of the app based on software specifications and requirements.
c) Smoke Testing
Smoke testing ensures the stability of the deployed software build. It is a confirmation to the QA teams that the build is ready for further testing. The main goal is to check if the app's essential features work perfectly well and that there aren't any bugs in the software.
d) Sanity Testing
Sanity testing, a subset of regression tests, is a software test that ensures that bug fixes or newly added functionalities work fine. Testers run sanity tests to confirm the stability of the build.
Read: Mobile App Security Testing - A Comprehensive Guide
e) Happy path Testing
Happy path testing involves testing an application through a positive flow. The tester runs scripted test scenarios that a user would perform to check if the application generates expected outputs without breaking functionality.
f) Monkey Testing
Monkey tests run with the assumption that a monkey is using the app. If this were the case, a monkey would use the app, entering random values and inputs without understanding the application.
This test aims to check if the application crashes when testers provide it with random values/inputs. Testers perform this test at random; they do not have scripted test cases and do not have to be fully aware of the system functionality.
Acceptance Testing
Acceptance testing helps check the app's functionality concerning business requirements and assess if it's ready for delivery. The client can accept that app if it meets specific acceptance criteria. User Acceptance Testing (UAT) is the last software testing phase before production.
a) Alpha Testing
Alpha testing helps validate the functionality of a new app. The internal staff carries out alpha tests early on in the development process. The goal is to identify and eliminate defects before releasing the software.
b) Beta Testing
The clients/customers/users run beta tests. They perform these tests in real environments before the organization officially releases the product into the market. This test aims to ensure that no errors remain in the product and that it meets all business requirements from the user's perspective.
An example of a beta test is when games are pre-released on the Play or App Store. The developers release these games to get user feedback, identify glitches, fix the errors, and release the app with all issues resolved.
Read: Beta Testing - All You Need to Know
c) Operational acceptance testing (OAT)
Operational acceptance testing, or OAT, helps system administrators ensure their systems continue to work well. They test the backup and restore features, user management, maintain the software, update recovery processes, keep tabs on the installing and uninstalling aspects, and ensure software upgrades.
Non-Functional Testing
Security Testing
Security testing involves identifying flaws in the security systems of an app or website. This test helps prevent security breaches and keeps the software secure from viruses and malicious programs. It also helps check the security and strength of the authentication and authorization processes.
a) Penetration Testing
Penetration testing, also called Pen testing, is the intentional authorization of a cyberattack on the system. The idea behind this is to find out the system's vulnerabilities regarding security.
Ethical hackers usually perform Pen testing, which is also called ethical hacking. They perform URL manipulation, session expiry, SQL injection, Privilege Elevation, and more.
Performance Testing
Performance testing tests an application's response time and stability under load. Testers run performance tests to check app speed, reliability, and overall health. This test aims to eliminate performance bottlenecks and ensure the app meets the required service levels and a positive user experience.
a) Load testing
As the name suggests, load testing involves putting an application through a specific load to check its stability and response time. This load helps identify the app's behavior when multiple users simultaneously access it.
For example, if your application can handle 1000 users with a response time of 3 seconds, you would run load testing to check if your app meets this expectation or falls short.
Also read: Performance and Load Testing for Mobile Applications
b) Stress Testing
Stress testing tests an application's ability to maintain its level of effectiveness under stress or load. With stress testing, testers run an application through extreme conditions to check its functionality.
Continuing the earlier example of your application handling 1000 users at a response time of 3 seconds, you would test your application's performance with 10,000 users and track its stability and response time with stress testing.
c) Scalability Testing
As the name suggests, scalability testing tests the application's ability to scale up or down in response to more users. To put it simply, it checks the application's performance when the number of users drastically increases or decreases.
If your application can handle 1000 users at a response time of 3 seconds, what happens when you introduce 1500 or 5000 users? Would this affect the response time? Scalability testing helps note under what load the application crashed so that the team can work to fix it.
d) Volume testing
Volume testing subjects software to massive volumes of data to analyze the system's performance. The goal is to check the impact on response time and system stability.
e) Endurance Testing
Endurance testing tests an application's ability to endure heavy loads for long periods. The goal is to check if the application's performance drops or if it loses its stability.
Automobile companies run endurance tests to check if their users can use the particular automobile without experiencing difficulties, continuously for hours.
Check out: HeadSpin’s Automobile Testing Solution
Usability Testing
Usability testing helps testers check if their application is user-friendly and easy to use. The test focuses on the users and if they can use the application with ease.
a) Exploratory testing
Exploratory testing relies on an individual tester and his ability to explore the application to identify otherwise not easily found defects. Testers will need to use their business domain knowledge to explore the application.
This testing allows users to explore the user story by themselves. They can add assertions, annotate defects, and create voice memos and documentation to help QA teams better understand the faults in the application.
b) Cross-browser testing
Testers running cross-browser tests use it to test their application on different operating systems, browsers, and mobile devices. This test aims to check how the application performs on various platforms. Cross-browser testing is essential because users access apps and websites on different devices. If your application has bugs on one platform, you can lose many users.
The HeadSpin Platform gives you access to real devices so you can connect to different browsers and operating systems. It integrates into your CI/CD workflows, enabling functional and performance testing pre and post-release. It also fully supports all testing frameworks, including native Appium.
c) Accessibility Testing
Making applications accessible for ones with disabilities is very important. Accessibility testing ensures that your application meets all the requirements for accessibility.
It is essential to check if your application meets the disability requirements for mental disability, visual impairment, deafness, and others.
Compatibility testing
As the name suggests, compatibility testing helps check if your application runs well on different browsers, databases, configurations, network environments, web servers, hardware, and more.
Conclusion
Testing to check if your users can use your application smoothly is essential. However, it is equally important to test your application's functionality in unexpected scenarios. Anticipating human errors is fundamental to creating a good user experience.
Remember, tests are code. So, it's essential to review them. Testing your application's security is vital to building trust with the user. And finally, testing your application beyond its limit will help you understand its actual capability.
The HeadSpin Platform provides you with a global device infrastructure that can help you test your website & apps on real devices across the world.
And finally, tests are code too! So don't forget them during code review, as they might be the final gate to production.
FAQs
Q1. Is UI testing backed by AI more beneficial than manual testing?
Development teams notice improved workflows and shorter release cycles through automation for UI testing. Further, automation helps reduce costs, streamlines review processes, and delivers actionable insights. While manual testing impacts the development process, automation ensures higher quality with a minimum baseline.
Q2. What are the steps of functional testing?
Functional testing generally follows the following steps:
- Determining the product's functionality that the testers need to test.
- Creating input data, according to requirements, for functionalities that require testing.
- Determining output parameters according to outlined conditions.
- Executing the test cases.
- Comparing the actual output with what the conditions outlined.
Q3. Is integration testing the same as functional testing?
Testers perform functional testing to validate all functionalities of an application, while integration testing helps validate the interaction across modules and verify that they work well when compiled.
Q4. What challenges does mobile testing help counter?
Mobile testing tests the performance of an app against issues like network problems (3G, 4G, Wi-Fi, and even 2G sometimes), simultaneous use of apps, memory leakage issues, memory leakage problems, and battery consumption issues. It also checks the compatibility with different operating systems and platforms.
-1280X720-Final-2.jpg)
