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This article will help you decide when to employ automated test frameworks instead of manual testing. Given today's rapidly developing software landscape, businesses reliant on software must invest in automated testing as part of their investment in quality.
Software testing automation eases testing efforts with minimum effort while improving the overall quality, costs, and speed to market software products.
Why is Test Automation Important to You?
Automated software testing offers numerous advantages for businesses. Storing all test data in one convenient file could save a tremendous amount of time, as would automating its use and running multiple tests without the manual effort required each time.
Cost-Effective Testing Solutions: Manual testing can become increasingly expensive over time, but by repeating similar test cases or automating processes, you will save money in testing software apps.
Automation can save time and resources; regression and repeated tests, for instance, can run even during night hours.
Automated testing frees developers and testers to focus on other essential tasks, like designing new features or conducting important duties.
Automated Testing - Automation testing provides the ideal way to expand coverage of tests that ensure performance and quality for any app.
Rapid Feedback: Automation testing gives developers instant, actionable information regarding any defects found during testing, allowing them to address them immediately and take immediate steps toward correcting any flaws.
Automatic vs. Manual testing
Below are the main differences between manual and automated testing:
- Manual testing involves humans, while automated testing utilizes an automation tool for test execution automatically.
- Automation testing entails using software to automate test script creation and execution; manual testing involves being present during every aspect of test production from conception to execution.
- Automated testing can be more efficient than manual testing as it allows more test cases to be run simultaneously.
- Automation testing is more cost-effective and time efficient. Automation saves both time and resources when compared with manual testing methods.
What are the Common Challenges in Test Automation?
Automated testing may be more efficient, but it still has some drawbacks. Learning automation tools is generally difficult due to being code-based, thus requiring programming from test creation through maintenance of tests.
Quality Issues in Software - Software quality can be enhanced by combining automated testing with other analysis and evaluation techniques.
Tests that Are Glitchy: Selenium can present challenges similar to others when testing applications that change frequently; test scripts often become damaged if changes occur within them, thus rendering test cases useless and invalidated.
Cognitive Ability Shortcomings: Automated testing may only test components programmed explicitly into it and will miss failures in other parts of your system that were outside its scope.
Automation testing tool that does not require writing any code. Designed to meet industry requirements, this allows test creation by simply writing one in plain English and automatically using artificial intelligence for healing tests.
Test Automation vs. Automated Testing
While both Test Automation and Automated Testing appear similar, they differ considerably in meaning. Automation can help speed up and streamline specific tests, such as regression testing.
Test automation automates the management and tracking of various tests conducted. If an organization wants to maximize the advantages of test automation practices, both aspects should receive equal consideration.
Test Automation Checklist
Only automate some of your tests - This would be counter-productive to success. Instead, automate repetitive ones and those which lead to human mistakes, multiple data sets, etc.
Clarification of End Goal: Not understanding your desired end goal can create issues in your application's operation, so analyzing its current state is critical in automating any task deemed significant by management.
Map Your Testing Process: Mapping out your testing process can help identify areas where automation could add value.
Existing development languages offer the optimal choice, as they will aid in increasing automation levels.
Here is a compilation of Agile and Continuous Delivery best practices.
Why Automated Testing is Essential for CI/Cd
Automation testing is critical for successfully implementing Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery. When performed efficiently at scale, results of automated tests can be received within minutes, giving developers time to address defects or issues immediately.
Automation of tests is crucial to organizations looking to maximize CI/CD.
Is Low Code Replacing Test Automation
Agile and DevOps projects today can accelerate software releases with codeless tests faster than ever, thanks to Agile/DevOps teams leveraging low code/codeless testing tools like these, enabling high-quality releases more rapidly than ever.
Such low code/codeless tools allow team members without programming expertise to perform automation testing confidently.
Low code automation does not replace automated testing but augments it. Low code automation provides invaluable assistance in aiding testing processes by freeing up human time and effort for specific tasks such as improving testing procedures, solving complex issues more efficiently, broadening test coverage or developing innovative new solutions, etc.
Low code/codeless automation test tools combine traditional automation tests with standard code/codeless testing techniques to produce quality results with minimum human effort.
Automation makes managing changes simpler - As software evolves, multiple minor adjustments may arise to keep pace. Automation makes this easier by streamlining its management.
There are Many Types of Automated Testing
- Tests of Regression.
- The large test suites and repetitive nature of these tests make them ideal for automated testing.
- Tests on Units.
- Automated testing is used to test the minor code units during the early stages of development.
- Tests of Integration.
- These tests are crucial for software because they help to ensure that modules work seamlessly together.
- Smoke tests.
- When deploying the initial build, ensure all significant features of the software work.
- Tests based on data.
- Automation testing allows for managing large data sets, their outputs and results, saving time, effort and money.
- Tests based on keywords.
- Keyword-driven tests are viral because they offer flexibility, reusability and clarity.
- Tests of performance.
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What are Some Typical Test Automation Tools?
Popular automated testing tools include: Selenium is the leading tool for web application testing.
Selenium comes preinstalled on most browsers. An AI-powered test automation platform that lets you automate web apps, mobile apps, APIs and all in one go - from one convenient place! Write test cases quickly using English for writing test cases in plaintext form.
TestComplete is an enterprise functional testing automation platform that enables companies to design automated tests across mobile, desktop and web platforms.
Robotium is an automation testing framework that supports hybrid and native Android apps for testing purposes.
SoapUI is an open-source app designed to automate web application testing, supporting SOA, REST and other technologies.
Perfect for automated functional testing as well as load testing and compliance testing!
Test Automation Frameworks Types
The five most common types of automation frameworks are:
- Linear Automation Framework (LAF)- This framework systematically lists each step in the testing process.
- Modular-Based Testing Framework- This framework divides an application into sections and functions, then tests each individually.
- Library Architecture- Testing Framework has a modular design for improved reuse. This framework facilitates data storage outside the network.
- Keyword-Driven Framework (KDF) separates test data and script logic while storing keywords as an external table.
- Hybrid Testing Framework- As its name implies, this testing framework offers an innovative combination of data- and keyword-driven frameworks.
What Tests Should You Automate?
Automating complex manual scenarios that entail extensive data is ideal when an abundance of manual data input exists and requires a great deal of information for testing purposes.
An example would include test cases such as:
- You will be able to save a significant amount of your time.
- Tests will be repeated.
- Tests are safe, stable and likely to remain the same.
- Manually performing the tests can lead to errors.
- There are several breaks between the steps of this test.
Which Types of Software Tests Should be Automated First?
Here are three test cases that should be automated accordingly. Unit Testing - As this is the fastest form of testing, it should be the initial automated approach taken.
Fixes for units are straightforward and reusable solutions are cost-efficient solutions for cost savings.
Integration testing should precede automated systems to ensure all their components are operating as planned. Automation Functional Tests - Automating functional tests allows you to identify flawed ones more quickly by automating them.
Cross-Browser Testing: Automating these tests across browsers will save time.
How to Handpick Manual Tests?
App Smoke Test: This examination checks on the correct functioning of key features within an application.
Testers may use exploratory testing techniques to explore an app without adhering to predefined rules and structures.
Testers observe how the app responds when invalid inputs are submitted. Usability testing seeks to assess an application's user-friendliness by studying user reactions.
Acceptance testing seeks to ascertain that a software app meets users' expectations by meeting their needs and expectations.
Read More: Utilizing Automated Testing Solutions
Build a Test Automation Framework for Your DevOps Team
Frameworks form the core of automation testing as they offer reusable components that can be combined to build custom automated tests.
Tech experts must work extensively towards building such frameworks for test automation and environment.
Here are a few important considerations when creating an automated framework for your DevOps group:
- Automating workflows will reduce costs and testing time. Bugs should also be tracked.
- Concentrating on the complete test coverage.
- Find automation specialists with the right skills.
- Communication and teamwork are essential for a successful collaboration.
Implemented correctly, test automation frameworks can reduce costs associated with DevOps by automating test suite maintenance costs significantly.
5 Rules For Successful Test Automation
These are five tips for successful testing automation:
- Automation Empowers Processes: Automation should only serve to enhance existing processes, not replace them entirely. Automating can increase their efficacy.
- Building Your Team of Professionals: Working with trained specialists will enable you to reach the desired high quality while alleviating developers' workloads.
- Automation may not always be Optimal: Testing automation might work best in specific instances but may only sometimes be ideal for some circumstances.
- Automating as a Separate Project: Assess its capabilities and limitations before planning, monitoring and overseeing as you would any project.
- Automation Metrics: Metrics are key in justifying automation investments by showing how much time and money are saved by automating processes rather than manually. Compare how automating saves both time and cost savings when compared with manual operations.
What is the Best Test Automation Software?
Before automating, selecting the ideal test automation tool for your company is critical. Before selecting an automation tool, keep these factors in mind.
Understanding your Project Requirements is of utmost importance; this should include what type of app you're creating, the automations necessary, and how many test cases need to be automated.
Make Use of Existing Automation Software as a Benchmark. Automation software such as Selenium may be the perfect benchmark when selecting an automation tool suitable for your project.
Save Time With Easy Maintenance of Scripts: Choosing an intuitive test tool will save time while developing and managing scripts more quickly and efficiently.
Determine whether testing can be executed efficiently by non-technical staff without technical knowledge - Evaluate how straightforward and accessible manual testers with little technical background can execute tests manually.
No technical issues need to be tackled with this solution; its codeless architecture uses plain English test cases, while an intuitive user interface makes it accessible to non-technical users as well.
Reducing Testing Needs: Assess your needs before selecting an appropriate testing tool that best matches your environment, technology and entire code base.
Once you understand your project and its goals, the next step should be assessing if your tool budget matches. The learning curve is also of great significance.
Consider your learning goals and the time necessary for mastering any tool you select. Code Languages - To support most coding languages used on your project, invest in an application that accommodates most of these.
Checking Version Stability of Tools - To check that a tool version is stable, determine customer service, online help and reviews that have positive ratings from previous users and customer support for that software application or platform are satisfactory and whether customer reviews reflect positively upon those involved in its creation and usage.
Set Up Your Test Automation Environment
Selenium WebDriver allows for straightforward test automation setup, automated tests and integration with commercial tools like LambdaTest SauceLabs and BrowserStack.
WebDriver calls upon browser functionality for automated and runs tests.
WebDriver requires individual drivers for each browser to interact with; many frameworks installed within an environment usually install WebDriver as part of its package.
Cloud Automation Testing
Cloud automation testing refers to automated tests which utilize cloud resources.
According to this page's statistics, 90% of businesses utilize cloud resources to test applications. Thus, organizations should use this option when testing software products using virtualized cloud environments.
Cloud-based test automation offers numerous advantages, from no upfront costs or time required, 24/7 resources access and improved team collaboration through support for multiple testing environments - to quicker app releases to market.
Cloud automation testing will remain relevant.
Cloud-based automated test tool. Setup time is minimal due to being in the cloud; most third-party integrations and configurations can be easily performed simply by plugging and playing.
Test automation supports five cloud devices so that tests for web, mobile apps, and APIs can be automated centrally.
Read More: Automated Testing Strategies for Software Development Services
Steps to Building an Automated Test Suite
1. Organize and Structure Source Control
Create and organize a folder system to hold all your assets. Keep assets such as tests, mapping criteria and scripts separate by creating files specifically for each asset type's folder (for instance, "Scripts" has files for event scripts, utility scripts, verification scripts and actions).
At the same time, separate data storage files should also exist in every other category (for instance "Data" folder for records of past activities etc.).
By structuring assets, your team can quickly refer back to assets and make updates stable. In addition, structuring assets this way allows you to revisit projects anytime without going through all the information.
Similarly, using this method, you can easily clone test folders across projects.
As you work through the initial steps, ensure your source code is stored in an SCM such as Git or Mercurial to protect you and the time and energy invested.
An error might happen, and tools like this can help if needed if going back is required.
What are Automated Testing Frameworks (ATS)?
Testing Frameworks are collections of rules or guidelines for creating and designing test cases. Testing frameworks offer a standardized language to ease testing while cutting maintenance costs; additionally, they link tests directly with requirements or defects within Software Development Lifecycles, helping teams address bugs faster.
Remember, not all automation frameworks qualify as testing frameworks. A testing framework incorporates practices and tools for developing applications and activities for testing your apps - this may include manual and automated testing and environments explicitly designed to run these tests.
Automated testing frameworks focus on automating processes. By isolating logic from test data, they speed up the creation of tests while improving maintenance costs.
Finding an automated testing framework tailored to your needs will boost team productivity by increasing test accuracy, maximizing test coverage, and decreasing maintenance expenses.
This whitepaper provides seven simple steps that will assist your team in creating an automated testing framework and set them up for long-term success.
2. Get to Know the Application
The second step to mastering an app is understanding its ins and outs. Reading specs alone won't get you too far; now is where absolute experience counts!
Explore the workflow of your system to gain a clearer picture of its internal workings, learn to navigate its app by engaging with this activity, then update or create a system of finding UI objects (this may require script writing or name mapping properties depending on which tool is in use).
Recording your actions is critical. Write down all future requirements and how your automated assets will test these.
3. Gather Data & Determine your Testing Environments
Establish testing environments and collect relevant data. Your configurations should run across platforms - event handlers will soon become your best ally!
An event handler is a function of code acting as a listener, waiting for an event that can trigger a series of scripts.
An example would be your typical banking app: after some set amount of minutes, if more time is required, you receive an alert asking you if more is required, or else automatically logout occurs after 15 minutes without a response from you.
Event handlers are functions that trigger scripts that display idle messages and log out users automatically. Regardless of whether you use Windows 7 or 10, this workflow should be expected of you.
Event handlers allow you to respond instantly and automatically to events, eliminating the need to run separate tests for every environment.
They provide instructions on how to run a system without specifics - making your tests more sophisticated without needing to manually manage all details manually; you can easily change URLs, filenames or any dynamic object identification property with them.
Your framework can assist in cases when, say, the name of an application changes and needs pointing in a different direction or modified for installation purposes.
Frameworks provide tools for testing that all components function as intended in any given app.
Next, let's focus on data storage. Your data should be housed separately from tests in repositories with generic references and properties so it will remain available across utilities and scripts - saving both time and resources later on.
4. Smoke Test Project
Before creating utilities or validating verifications, a smoke-test project must be established and implemented.
These tests will serve as your primary way of validating them.
Smoke tests (also called build verification tests) validate an application's most essential functions and assess if additional testing will be needed.
They offer an indicator as to which parts are working well so you can go on with additional testing; should one fail, this indicates the fundamental functionality is broken; in such an instance, it would be wiser for it to be addressed immediately as further tests may prove futile at that stage.
Your smoke testing suite must evolve as your software evolves; one bug can ruin an application and threaten to discredit an entire organization's brand and credibility.
5. Create Utilities for On Screen Actions
As soon as your test logic has been designed, the next step should be developing shared utilities for standard functions like menu navigation and text input fields.
You can use basic blocks like these to create test logic.
Your keyword test tool could involve you dragging and dumping pieces directly into it; your framework will drive its flow while verifying results, leaving just individual tests for you to manage.
JavaScript classes provide an effective means of improving navigation within your framework. They make updating how tests or actions are logged more accessible from a single location - helping ensure consistent logging over time.
Training team members who aren't developers or automation engineers to understand logs allows non-technical team members to identify whether failures represent an asset, problem, or defect in your application.
6. Create and Manage Verifications
Create verifications utilizing the same logic used when structuring data. They should be easily shared; for example, if testing your application's functionality and requirements for an individual text field changes.
You'd need to update tests accordingly if verifying only numeric characters instead of all types of text characters are accepted into it.
As soon as your test passes, there's no need for manual updates of every test individually; instead, update your verify section so multiple scenarios can be tested simultaneously.
Make any UI checks optional so there will be no verification needed when accepting input correctly and testing passes successfully; in that instance, there would no longer be a need for verification checks on actions such as fields that accept them correctly but fail their respective tests.
Your verification data must be easily shareable across the steps of verification. Different input utilities should accept all items from previous steps for easier linking; this allows for rapid updates across framework components when necessary and propagation.
7. Set Up Your Logging & Reporting Mechanism
Logging and reporting represent the final component of a UI Automation Framework. It would be best to record any exploratory activities, data preparation activities and environment/verification building during your development process.
Before conducting any verifications, create log messages describing their purpose and expected result that non-technical people can read easily - these should include error messages that are clear and easy for non-expert readers to comprehend.
Automating reporting can save both time and energy when it comes to analyzing data. With the right tool, you can automate emailing test logs across networks or servers and even notify you immediately of failed tests without manually compiling reports later! Testing is used to validate application logic.
Frameworks make creating and running tests easy; you can construct a practical UI automation framework by following these seven steps.
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Wrapping Up
Building an automated user interface (UI) test framework is often complex and requires extensive work. Your framework should serve as the general blueprint of testing, including everything from what language should be used when writing code or scripts down to tools or software you intend to integrate; additionally, you should select flexible tools that support multiple languages for best results.
Test Complete is an automated testing solution for desktop, web and mobile apps designed for teams.
With support for numerous scripting languages such as Python and JavaScript, along with over 50 000 object properties in its extensive object library. Furthermore, its robust recording and playback features enable any team to build powerful UI frameworks with this powerful testing tool quickly.
