In today’s age of technology, software and applications are an important part of our lives, which was not so even a few years ago. The truth about software and apps is that they must go through a gamut of software testing before being released to the market. We at Codoid, as a Regression Testing Services company, run a range of tests for our clients to validate and verify the functionality and technical aspects of the software and applications they seek to release. It is our responsibility to ensure that the final product works the way it was intended by identifying bugs and any gaps existing between current and actual requirements. Software testing is a wide and complex gamut of tests, which can be run individually or in conjunction with each other depending on the project requirements.
These tests include Unit Testing, Integration Testing, Functional Testing, System Testing, Stress Testing, Performance Testing, Usability Testing, Acceptance Testing, Regression Testing & Beta Testing. It is our intention today in this exposition to focus on Regression Testing with tips and basics of this type of testing to help beginners/novices in the realm of software testing. We are a leading software testing company with comprehensive excellence in all realms and it is our endeavor to help young minds interested in this field to move to a level of expertise.
Defining Regression Testing
Regression Testing is the method of investigating software for problems that may arise post action in the software. These actions could include patching or any type of updates or modifications to code. This form of testing is run to confirm that these actions/changes do not affect other parts of the software, and also to verify that the additional code does not have any bugs or defects. The basis of Regression Testing is not tested actions but is important to ensure that updates run as intended and do not have any unforeseen and unwanted effects. It is therefore obvious that this form of testing must be conducted before the final rollout.
Salient Features of Regression Testing
- Usually automated since this is a method for verification, and hence test cases are run repeatedly. It is not feasible to run these test cases manually given that manual testing is cumbersome and time-consuming
- This testing is performed to check newly created code and to fix any bugs. It does depend on any programming language, but rather ensures that all bugs have been remedied and changes have not caused any functionality defects in the product
- Since it is a part of the release cycle, it becomes a mandatory step in test estimation.
When to Conduct Regression Testing and Can it be Performed Manually?
It takes many weeks and even months for the next release cycle to take place, and hence regression testing should be part of the release cycles daily. It is good to perform regression testing weekly, post-completion of product functional testing. As specified, the main aim of regression testing is to ensure that the new version of a product is bug-free. It is a common misconception that regression testing should always be automated – manual testing in some cases is possible too.
Selecting the Best Test Suite
Bugs occur when there are changes made to the code of a software build, and these bugs must be removed to ensure the top functionality of a product. When selecting a test suite for regression testing, therefore, the following must be remembered:
- Pay attention to rapidly changing functionalities
- Focus on the test cases covering changed modules
- Attention to the complex test cases
- Focus on integration of test cases that include major components and those that cover product core functionalities
- Special attention to frequently failing or prone to defects test cases
- Focus on test case priorities prior to the final execution
Various Types of Regression Testing
Following are the regularly used types of testing:
Corrective This is best to use when no changes have taken place in the specification of the product and this type of testing is speedy and efficient since it uses pre-existing test cases.
Retest-All As the name suggests, every aspect of a product is retested, while reusing test cases. Since this is a laborious and time-consuming method, it must not be used for minor changes to existing products.
Unit Regression Each code is viewed as a single unit and testers conduct this test prior to integration.
Partial Regression Testers use this form of testing to ensure that any code changes still allow the software to function as required. The single unit of code tested is integrated with pre-existing code.
Complete Regression This is necessary if the added/modified code would have had a major effect on the essence of the previous code. Additionally, if several parts of the code are being changed, this type of testing will be required.
Proven Methodologies for Regression Testing
These tried and tested methodologies have become best practices for regression testing. We as a leading software testing company fully endorse these practices and recommend that novices understand them as well.
- Continuous updating of the regression pack/suite is essential once all updates for a software build are over
- Keep focus on the paths most often used for building software
- Reuse tests instead of duplicating it.
- Re-use test cases that were successful in speedily identifying and fixing bugs
- To ensure that testers remain enthused and time is not wasted, repeatedly used regression test cases should be automated.
In Conclusion
We hope that we have been able to provide some basic understanding of Regression Testing for Beginners. Regression Testing is crucial and must be practiced sincerely. The good news is that there are several tools and experts to guide you along the way. We at Codoid can match your business requirements both in terms of budget and timelines – connect with us to work with the most experienced folks in this realm.
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