Functional Testing Process
Functional testing involves the following steps:
Step 1. Identify test input: This step involves identifying the functionality that needs to be
tested. This can vary from testing the usability functions, and main functions to error
conditions.
Functional Testing process
Step 2. Compute expected outcomes: Create input data based on the specifications of the
function and determine the output based on these specifications.
Step 3. Execute test cases: This step involves executing the designed test cases and recording
the output.
Step 4. Compare the actual and expected output: In this step, the actual output obtained after
executing the test cases is compared with the expected output to determine the amount of
deviation in the results. This step reveals if the system is working as expected or not.
Type of Functional Testing Techniques
There are various types of functional Testing which are as follows:
Unit Testing: Unit testing is the type of functional testing technique where the individual
units or modules of the application are tested. It ensures that each module is working correctly.
Integration Testing: In Integration testing , combined individual units are tested as a group and
expose the faults in the interaction between the integrated units.
Smoke Testing: Smoke testing is a type of functional testing technique where the basic
functionality or feature of the application is tested as it ensures that the most important
function works properly.
User Acceptance Testing: User acceptance testing is done by the client to
certify that the system meets the requirements and works as intended. It is the final phase of
testing before the product release.
Interface Testing: Interface testing is a type of software testing technique that
checks the proper interaction between two different software systems.
System Testing: System testing is a type of software testing that is performed on the complete
integrated system to evaluate the compliance of the system with the corresponding
requirements.
Regression Testing: Regression testing is done to make sure that the code changes do not
affect the existing functionality and the features of the application. It concentrates on whether
all parts are working or not.
Sanity Testing: Sanity testing is a subset of regression testing and is done to make sure
that the code changes introduced are working as expected.
White box Testing: White box testing is a type of software testing that allows the tester to
verify the internal workings of the software system. This includes analyzing the code,
infrastructure, and integrations with the external system.
Black box Testing: Black box testing is a type of software testing where the functionality
of the software system is tested without looking at the internal workings or structures of the
software system.
Database Testing: Database testing is a type of software testing that checks the schema,
tables, etc of the database under test.
Adhoc Testing: Adhoc testing also known as monkey testing or random testing is a type
of software testing that does not follow any documentation or test plan to perform testing.
Recovery Testing: Recovery testing is a type of software testing that verifies the
software’s ability to recover from failures like hardware failures, software failures, crashes,
etc.
Static Testing: Static testing is a type of software testing that is performed to check the
defects in software without actually executing the code of the software application.
Grey-box Testing: Grey box testing is a type of software testing that includes black-box
and white-box testing.
Component Testing: Component testing also known as program testing or module
testing is a type of software testing that is done after the unit testing. In this, the test objects
can be tested independently as a component without integrating with other components.
Functional Testing vs Non-Functional Testing
Below are the differences between functional testing and non-functional testing:
Parameters Functional Testing Non-functional Testing
Functional testing verifies
Non-functional verifies the
Definition the operations and actions
behavior of an application.
of an application.
It is based on the It is based on the
Testing based on requirements of the expectations of the
customer. customer.
The objective is to
The objective is to validate
Objective performance of the software
software actions.
system
Functional testing is carried Non-functional testing is
Requirements out using the functional carried out using the
specification. performance specifications.
It describes what the It describes how the product
Functionality
product does. works.
Unit testing. Performance testing.
Integration testing. Load testing.
Example Sanity testing Stress testing.
Smoke testing. Volume testing.
Regression testing. Usability testing.
