Software Engineering

Software Testing
Strategies and
Methods
CONTENTS
I. Software Testing Fundamentals
1. Definition of Software Testing
II. Characteristics of Testing Strategies
III. Software Verification and Validation (V&V)
IV. Testing Strategies
1. Unit Testing
2. Integration Testing
V. Alpha and Beta Testing ( Concept and differences)
VI. System Testing
1. Concept of System Testing
VII. Concept of White-box and Black-Box Testing
VIII. Debugging
1. Concept and need of Debugging
2. Characteristics of bugs
IX. Debugging Strategies
1. Concept of Brute Force, Back Tracking, Induction, Deduction

Anuradha Bhatia
Software Engineering

I. Software Testing Fundamentals

1. Definition of Software Testing
i. Software testing is a method of assessing the functionality of a
software program.
ii. There are many different types of software testing but the two main
categories are dynamic testing and static testing.

II. Characteristics of Testing Strategies

Figure 1: Software Testing

Software Testing Myths and Facts: Just as every field has its myths, so does the
field of Software Testing. Software testing myths have arisen primarily due to the
following:
i. Lack of authoritative facts.
ii. Evolving nature of the industry.
iii. General flaws in human logic.
Some of the myths are explained below, along with their related facts:

1. MYTH: Quality Control = Testing.

 FACT: Testing is just one component of software quality control. Quality
Control includes other activities such as Reviews.

Anuradha Bhatia
Software Engineering

2. MYTH: The objective of Testing is to ensure a 100% defect- free product.

 FACT: The objective of testing is to uncover as many defects as possible.
Identifying all defects and getting rid of them is impossible.
3. MYTH: Testing is easy.
 FACT: Testing can be difficult and challenging (sometimes, even more so
than coding).
4. MYTH: Anyone can test.
 FACT: Testing is a rigorous discipline and requires many kinds of skills.
5. MYTH: There is no creativity in testing.
 FACT: Creativity can be applied when formulating test approaches, when
designing tests, and even when executing tests.
6. MYTH: Automated testing eliminates the need for manual testing.
 FACT: 100% test automation cannot be achieved. Manual Testing, to some
level, is always necessary.
7. MYTH: When a defect slips, it is the fault of the Testers.
 FACT: Quality is the responsibility of all members/stakeholders, including
developers, of a project.
8. MYTH: Software Testing does not offer opportunities for career growth.
 FACT: Gone are the days when users had to accept whatever product was
dished to them; no matter what the quality.
 With the abundance of competing software and increasingly demanding
users, the need for software testers to ensure high quality will continue to
grow.

III. Software Verification and Validation (V&V)

(Question: Differentiate between verification and validation- 6 Marks)

Criteria Verification Validation

The process of evaluating work-products

(not the actual final product) of a The process of evaluating software
development phase to determine during or at the end of the development
whether they meet the specified process to determine whether it satisfies
Definition requirements for that phase. specified business requirements.

To ensure that the product is being built To ensure that the product actually
according to the requirements and meets the user’s needs, and that the
design specifications. In other words, to specifications were correct in the first
ensure that work products meet their place. In other words, to demonstrate
Objective specified requirements. that the product fulfills its intended use

Anuradha Bhatia
Software Engineering

when placed in its intended

environment.

Question Are we building the product right? Are we building the right product?

Evaluation Plans, Requirement Specs, Design Specs,

Items Code, Test Cases The actual product/software.

 Reviews
 Walkthroughs
Activities  Inspections  Testing

IV. Testing Strategies

(Question: Explain the software testing strategies – 8 Marks)
1. Unit Testing
(Question: Explain unit testing with Diagram- 4 marks)
i. Unit Testing is a level of the software testing process where individual
units/components of a software/system are tested.
ii. The purpose is to validate that each unit of the software performs as
designed.

Figure 2: Unit Testing

iii. A unit is the smallest testable part of software.

iv. It usually has one or a few inputs and usually a single output.
v. In procedural programming a unit may be an individual program, function,
procedure, etc.

Anuradha Bhatia
Software Engineering

vi. In object-oriented programming, the smallest unit is a method, which may

belong to a base/super class, abstract class or derived/child class.

Advantages
i. Unit testing increases confidence in changing/maintaining code.
ii. If good unit tests are written and if they are run every time any code is
changed, the likelihood of any defects due to the change being promptly
caught is very high.
iii. If unit testing is not in place, the most one can do is hope for the best and
wait till the test results at higher levels of testing are out.
iv. If codes are already made less interdependent to make unit testing
possible, the unintended impact of changes to any code is less.
v. Codes are more reusable. In order to make unit testing possible, codes
need to be modular. This means that codes are easier to reuse.
vi. The cost of fixing a defect detected during unit testing is lesser in
comparison to that of defects detected at higher levels.
vii. Compare the cost (time, effort, destruction, humiliation) of a defect
detected during acceptance testing or say when the software is live.
viii. Debugging is easy. When a test fails, only the latest changes need to be
debugged. With testing at higher levels, changes made over the span of
several days/weeks/months need to be debugged.

2. Integration Testing
(Question: Explain integration testing with diagram and give its
advantages and disadvantages- 6 Marks)
i. Integration Testing is a level of the software testing process where
individual units are combined and tested as a group.

Anuradha Bhatia
Software Engineering

Figure 3: Integration Testing

ii. The purpose of this level of testing is to expose faults in the interaction
between integrated units.
iii. Test drivers and test stubs are used to assist in Integration Testing.

V. Alpha and Beta Testing

1. Alpha Testing
(Question: Explain alpha testing – 4 Marks)
i. Alpha testing is one of the most common software testing strategy used in
software development. It’s specially used by product development
organizations.
ii. This test takes place at the developer’s site. Developers observe the users
and note problems.
iii. Alpha testing is testing of an application when development is about to
complete. Minor design changes can still be made as a result of alpha
testing.
iv. Alpha testing is typically performed by a group that is independent of the
design team, but still within the company, e.g. in-house software test
engineers, or software QA engineers.
v. Alpha testing is final testing before the software is released to the general
public. It has two phases:
a. In the first phase of alpha testing, the software is tested by in-house
developers. They use either debugger software, or hardware-assisted
debuggers. The goal is to catch bugs quickly.
b. In the second phase of alpha testing, the software is handed over to the
software QA staff, for additional testing in an environment that is similar
to the intended use.
vi. Alpha testing is simulated or actual operational testing by potential
users/customers or an independent test team at the developers’ site.
vii. Alpha testing is often employed for off-the-shelf software as a form of
internal acceptance testing, before the software goes to beta testing.

2. Beta testing
(Question: Explain beta testing. – 4 Marks)
i. It is also known as field testing.
ii. It takes place at customer’s site.
iii. It sends the system to users who install it and use it under real-world
working conditions.

Anuradha Bhatia
 Software Engineering

iv. A beta test is the second phase of software testing in which a sampling of
the intended audience tries the product out.
v. Beta testing can be considered “pre-release testing.
vi. The goal of beta testing is to place your application in the hands of real
users outside of your own engineering team to discover any flaws or issues
from the user’s perspective that you would not want to have in your final,
released version of the application.
vii. Closed beta versions are released to a select group of individuals for a user
test and are invitation only, while
viii. Open betas are from a larger group to the general public and anyone
interested.
ix. The testers report any bugs that they find, and sometimes suggest
additional features they think should be available in the final version.

VI. System Testing

1. Concept of System Testing
i. In system testing the behavior of whole system/product is tested as
defined by the scope of the development project or product.
ii. It may include tests based on risks and/or requirement specifications,
business process, use cases, or other high level descriptions of system
behavior, interactions with the operating systems, and system resources.
iii. System testing is most often the final test to verify that the system to be
delivered meets the specification and its purpose.
iv. System testing is carried out by specialist’s testers or independent testers.
v. System testing should investigate both functional and non-functional
requirements of the testing.

VII. Concept of White-box and Black-Box Testing

(Question: Differentiate between black box testing and white box testing - 6
Marks)
1. Black Box Testing
i. Black Box Testing, also known as Behavioral Testing, is a software testing
method in which the internal structure/design/implementation of the item
being tested is not known to the tester.
ii. These tests can be functional or non-functional, though usually functional.

Anuradha Bhatia
Software Engineering

Figure 4: Black Box Testing

iii. This method is named so because the software program, in the eyes of the
tester, is like a black box; inside which one cannot see.
iv. Black Box Testing is contrasted with White Box Testing. View Differences
between Black Box Testing and White Box Testing.
v. This method of attempts to find errors in the following categories:
 Incorrect or missing functions
 Interface errors
 Errors in data structures or external database access
 Behavior or performance errors
 Initialization and termination errors

Black Box Testing Techniques

(Question: Explain the various black box testing techniques- 6 Marks)
i. Equivalence partitioning
a) Equivalence Partitioning is a software test design technique that involves
dividing input values into valid and invalid partitions and selecting
representative values from each partition as test data.

ii. Boundary Value Analysis

a) Boundary Value Analysis is a software test design technique that involves
determination of boundaries for input values and selecting values that are
at the boundaries and just inside/outside of the boundaries as test data.

iii. Cause Effect Graphing

a) Cause Effect Graphing is a software test design technique that involves
identifying the cases (input conditions) and effects (output conditions),
producing a Cause-Effect Graph, and generating test cases accordingly.

BLACK BOX TESTING ADVANTAGES

i. Tests are done from a user’s point of view and will help in exposing
discrepancies in the specifications

Anuradha Bhatia
Software Engineering

ii. Tester need not know programming languages or how the software has
been implemented
iii. Tests can be conducted by a body independent from the developers,
allowing for an objective perspective and the avoidance of developer-bias
iv. Test cases can be designed as soon as the specifications are complete

BLACK BOX TESTING DISADVANTAGES

i. Only a small number of possible inputs can be tested and many program
paths will be left untested
ii. Without clear specifications, which is the situation in many projects, test
cases will be difficult to design
iii. Tests can be redundant if the software designer/ developer has already
run a test case.
iv. Ever wondered why a soothsayer closes the eyes when foretelling events?
So is almost the case in Black Box Testing.

2. White Box Testing

i. White Box Testing (also known as Clear Box Testing, Open Box Testing,
Glass Box Testing, Transparent Box Testing, Code-Based Testing or
Structural Testing) is a software testing method in which the internal
structure/design/implementation of the item being tested is known to the
tester.
ii. The tester chooses inputs to exercise paths through the code and
determines the appropriate outputs.
iii. Programming know-how and the implementation knowledge is essential.
iv. White box testing is testing beyond the user interface and into the nitty-
gritty of a system.

Figure 5: White Box Testing

White Box Testing Advantages
i. Testing can be commenced at an earlier stage. One need not wait for the
GUI to be available.
ii. Testing is more thorough, with the possibility of covering most paths.

Anuradha Bhatia
 Software Engineering

White Box Testing Disadvantages

i. Since tests can be very complex, highly skilled resources are required, with
thorough knowledge of programming and implementation.
ii. Test script maintenance can be a burden if the implementation changes
too frequently.
iii. Since this method of testing it closely tied with the application being
testing, tools to cater to every kind of implementation/platform may not
be readily available.
iv. White Box Testing is like the work of a mechanic who examines the engine
to see why the car is not moving.

Criteria Black Box Testing White Box Testing

Black Box Testing is a software White Box Testing is a software

testing method in which the internal testing method in which the internal
structure/ design/ implementation structure/ design/ implementation
of the item being tested is NOT of the item being tested is known to
Definition known to the tester the tester.

Mainly applicable to higher levels of Mainly applicable to lower levels of

Levels Applicable testing: Acceptance Testing testing: Unit Testing
To System Testing Integration Testing

Generally, independent Software

Responsibility Testers Generally, Software Developers

Programming
Knowledge Not Required Required

Implementation
Knowledge Not Required Required

Basis for Test

Cases Requirement Specifications Detail Design

VIII. Debugging
1. Concept and need of Debugging
(Question: Describe the concept and need of debugging in software testing- 6 Marks)
i. Debugging is the process of locating and fixing or bypassing bugs (errors)
in computer program code or the engineering of a hardware device.

Anuradha Bhatia
Software Engineering

ii. To debug a program or hardware device is to start with a problem, isolate

the source of the problem, and then fix it.
iii. A user of a program that does not know how to fix the problem may learn
enough about the problem to be able to avoid it until it is permanently
fixed.
iv. When someone says they've debugged a program or "worked the bugs
out" of a program, they imply that they fixed it so that the bugs no longer
exist.
v. Debugging is a necessary process in almost any new software or hardware
development process, whether a commercial product or an enterprise or
personal application program.
vi. For complex products, debugging is done as the result of the unit test for
the smallest unit of a system, again at component test when parts are
brought together, again at system test when the product is used with other
existing products, and again during customer beta test, when users try the
product out in a real world situation.
vii. Because most computer programs and many programmed hardware
devices contain thousands of lines of code, almost any new product is likely
to contain a few bugs.
viii. Invariably, the bugs in the functions that get most use are found and fixed
first. An early version of a program that has lots of bugs is referred to as
"buggy."
ix. Debugging tools (called debuggers) help identify coding errors at various
development stages. Some programming language packages include a
facility for checking the code for errors as it is being written.

2. Characteristics of bugs
(Question: Explain the various characteristics of bugs – 4 Marks)
i. A defect is an error or a bug, in the application which is created.
ii. A programmer while designing and building the software can make
mistakes or error.
iii. These mistakes or errors mean that there are flaws in the software. These
are called defects.
iv. When actual result deviates from the expected result while testing a
software application or product then it results into a defect.

Anuradha Bhatia
Software Engineering

v. Hence, any deviation from the specification mentioned in the product

functional specification document is a defect. In different organizations it’s
called differently like bug, issue, incidents or problem.
vi. When the result of the software application or product does not meet with
the end user expectations or the software requirements then it results into
a Bug or Defect.
vii. These defects or bugs occur because of an error in logic or in coding which
results into the failure or unpredicted or unanticipated results.

IX. Debugging Strategies

(Question: Explain any two debugging strategies- 8 marks)
1. Brute Force
i. This method is most common and least efficient for isolating the cause of
a software error.
ii. We apply this method when all else fail. In this method, a printout of all
registers and relevant memory locations is obtained and studied.
iii. All dumps should be well documented and retained for possible use on
subsequent problems.

2. Back Tracking
i. It is a quite popular approach of debugging which is used effectively in case
of small applications.
ii. The process starts from the site where a particular symptom gets detected,
from there on backward tracing is done across the entire source code till
we are able to lay our hands on the site being the cause.
iii. As the number of source lines increases, the number of potential backward
paths may become unmanageably large.

3. Cause Elimination(Induction and Deduction)

i. The third approach to debugging, because elimination, is manifested by
induction or deduction and introduces the concept of binary partitioning.
This approach is also called induction and deduction.
ii. Data related to the error occurrence are organized to isolate potential
causes.
iii. A "cause hypothesis" is devised and the data are used to prove or disprove
the hypothesis.
iv. A list of all possible causes is developed and tests are conducted to
eliminate each.

Anuradha Bhatia
Software Engineering

v. If initial tests indicate that a particular cause hypothesis shows promise,

the data are refined in an attempt to isolate the bug.

Anuradha Bhatia