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Boundary Value Analysis

Equivalence partitioning and boundary value analysis are techniques to intelligently select test cases from a large input pool. Equivalence partitioning divides inputs into partitions where behavior is expected to be the same. Boundary value analysis then tests values at the boundaries between partitions. Together these techniques help reduce the number of test cases needed while still covering all scenarios.

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346 views5 pages

Boundary Value Analysis

Equivalence partitioning and boundary value analysis are techniques to intelligently select test cases from a large input pool. Equivalence partitioning divides inputs into partitions where behavior is expected to be the same. Boundary value analysis then tests values at the boundaries between partitions. Together these techniques help reduce the number of test cases needed while still covering all scenarios.

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pbpsc
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Boundary Value Analysis & Equivalence Partitioning with Examples

Practically, due to time and budget considerations, it is not possible to perform


exhausting testing for each set of test data, especially when there is a large pool
of input combinations.
 We need an easy way or special techniques that can select test cases
intelligently from the pool of test-case, such that all test scenarios are
covered.
 We use two techniques - Equivalence Partitioning & Boundary Value
Analysis testing techniques to achieve this.
What is Boundary Testing?
Boundary testing is the process of testing between extreme ends or
boundaries between partitions of the input values.
 So these extreme ends like Start- End, Lower- Upper, Maximum-Minimum,
Just Inside-Just Outside values are called boundary values and the testing is
called "boundary testing".
 The basic idea in boundary value testing is to select input variable values at
their:
1. Minimum
2. Just above the minimum
3. A nominal value
4. Just below the maximum
5. Maximum

In Boundary Testing, Equivalence Class Partitioning plays a good role


Boundary Testing comes after the Equivalence Class Partitioning.
What is Equivalent Class Partitioning?
Equivalent Class Partitioning is a black box technique (code is not visible to
tester) which can be applied to all levels of testing like unit, integration,
system, etc. In this technique, you divide the set of test condition into a
partition that can be considered the same.
 It divides the input data of software into different equivalence data classes.
 You can apply this technique, where there is a range in input field.
Example 1: Equivalence and Boundary Value
 Let's consider the behavior of tickets in the Flight reservation application,
while booking a new flight.
 Ticket values 1 to 10 are considered valid & ticket is booked. While value 11
to 99 are considered invalid for reservation and error message will
appear, "Only ten tickets may be ordered at one time."
Here is the test condition
1. Any Number greater than 10 entered in the reservation column (let say 11)
is considered invalid.
2. Any Number less than 1 that is 0 or below, then it is considered invalid.
3. Numbers 1 to 10 are considered valid
4. Any 3 Digit Number say -100 is invalid.
We cannot test all the possible values because if done, the number of test
cases will be more than 100. To address this problem, we use equivalence
partitioning hypothesis where we divide the possible values of tickets into
groups or sets as shown below where the system behavior can be
considered the same.

The divided sets are called Equivalence Partitions or Equivalence Classes.


Then we pick only one value from each partition for testing. The hypothesis
behind this technique is that if one condition/value in a partition passes all
others will also pass. Likewise, if one condition in a partition fails, all other
conditions in that partition will fail.
Boundary Value Analysis- in Boundary Value Analysis, you test boundaries
between equivalence partitions

In our earlier example instead of checking, one value for each partition you
will check the values at the partitions like 0, 1, 10, 11 and so on. As you may
observe, you test values at both valid and invalid boundaries. Boundary
Value Analysis is also called range checking.
Equivalence partitioning and boundary value analysis are closely related
and can be used together at all levels of testing.

Example 2: Equivalence and Boundary Value


Suppose a password field accepts minimum 6 characters and maximum 10
characters
That means results for values in partitions 0-5, 6-10, 11-14 should be
equivalent

Test Scenario Test Scenario Description Expected Outcom


#
1 Enter 0 to 5 characters in password System should no
field accept

2 Enter 6 to 10 characters in password System should ac


field

3 Enter 11 to 14 character in password System should no


field accept

Examples 3: Input Box should accept the Number 1 to 10


Here we will see the Boundary Value Test Cases

Test Scenario Description Expected Outcome

Boundary Value = 0 System should NOT accept

Boundary Value = 1 System should accept

Boundary Value = 2 System should accept

Boundary Value = 9 System should accept

Boundary Value = 10 System should accept

Boundary Value = 11 System should NOT accept

Why Equivalence & Boundary Analysis Testing


1. This testing is used to reduce very large number of test cases to
manageable chunks.
2. Very clear guidelines on determining test cases without compromising on
the effectiveness of testing.
3. Appropriate for calculation-intensive applications with large number of
variables/inputs
Summary:
 Boundary Analysis testing is used when practically it is impossible to test
large pool of test cases individually
 Two techniques - Equivalence Partitioning & Boundary Value Analysis
testing techniques is used
 In Equivalence Partitioning, first you divide a set of test condition into a
partition that can be considered.
 In Boundary Value Analysis you then test boundaries between equivalence
partitions
 Appropriate for calculation-intensive applications with variables that
represent physical quantities

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