Test Automation
Simply acquiring a tool does not guarantee success. Each new tool introduced into an organization will require effort to achieve real and lasting benefits.
Test automation is expected to help run many test cases consistently and repeatedly on different versions of the SUT and/or environments. But automation is more than a mechanism for running a test suite without human interaction. It involves a process of designing the testware, including software, documentation, test cases, test environments, and test data.
Objectives of test automation
- Improving test efficiency
- Providing wider function coverage
- Reducing the total test cost
- Performing tests that manual testers cannot
- Shortening the test execution period
- Increasing the test frequency/reducing the time required for test cycles
BENEFITS OF USING AUTOMATION TESTING
- More tests can be run per build
- The possibility to create tests that cannot be done manually
- Tests can be more complex
- Tests run faster
- Quicker feedback regarding software quality
- Improved system reliability
- Improved consistency of tests
- Tests are less subject to operator error
- More effective and efficient use of testing resources
The test automation code can be complex to maintain. Having as much code for testing as for the SUT (system under test) is not unusual. This is why it is of the most significant importance that the test code is maintainable. This is due to the different test tools, the types of verification used, and the various testware artifacts that must be maintained.
Developing test automation solutions is not insignificant. They must be modular, scalable, understandable, reliable, and testable. Test automation solutions must evolve to add even more complexity. Whether due to internal changes or changes in the environment in which they operate, maintenance is essential to architecting a TAS. Maintaining the TAS by adapting it to new types of systems to be tested, accommodating support for new software environments, or by making it compliant with new laws and regulations helps to ensure the reliable and safe operation of the TAS. It also optimizes the lifespan and performance of the TAS.
The more success factors that are met, the more likely the test automation project will succeed. Not all factors are required, and in practice, rarely are all factors met. Before starting the test automation project, it is important to analyze the chance of success for the project by considering the factors in place and the factors missing keeping the risks of the chosen approach in mind as well as the project context.