Automation TestingIn the earlier article on software testing, we learned that software testing is classified into two types of testing, which are Manual testing and Automation testing. Both manual and automation testing have their characteristics and approaches that make both the testing technique different from each other. Here, we are going to learn about the following related topics of automation testing:
Introduction to Automation TestingAnother software testing method is automation testing, which is used some specific tools to execute the test scripts without any human interference. It is the most acceptable way to enhance the efficiency, productivity, and test coverage of Software testing. With the help of an automation testing tool, we can easily approach the test data, handle the test implementation, and compares the actual output against the expected outcome. ![]() In automation testing, the test automation engineer will write the test script or use the automation testing tools to execute the application. On the other hand, in manual testing, the test engineer will write the test cases and implement the software on the basis of written test cases. In test automation, the test engineer can execute repetitive tasks and other related tasks. In manual testing, it is a tedious process to implement the repetitive take again and again. In other words, we can say that the main concentration of test Automation is to change the manual human activity with systems or devices. The automation testing process is a time-saving process as it spends less time in exploratory testing and more time in keeping the test scripts whereas enhancing the complete test coverage. Note: We perform exploratory testing whenever the requirement does not exist.Why do we need to perform automation testing?
The execution of automation testing provides us various advantages, which are as discussed below:
![]() 1. ReusabilityWe can re-use the test scripts in automation testing, and we don't need to write the new test scripts again and again. And, we can also re-create the steps which are detailed as the earlier ones. 2. ConsistencyAs compared to manual testing, automation testing is more consistent and way faster than executing the regular monotonous tests that cannot be missed but may cause faults when tested manually. 3. Running Tests 24/7In automation testing, we can start the testing process from anywhere in the world and anytime we want to. And even we can do that remotely if we don't have many approaches or the option to purchase them. 4. Early Bug DetectionWe can easily detect the critical bugs in the software development process's initial phases by executing automation testing. It also helps us spend fewer working hours to fix these problems and reduce costs 5. Less Human ResourcesTo implement the automation test script, we need a test automation engineer who can write the test scripts to automate our tests, rather than having several people who are repeatedly performing the tedious manual tests. Automation Testing MethodologiesAutomation testing contains the following three different methodologies and approaches, which will help the test engineer to enhance the software product's quality.
![]() Now, let's understand the different approaches of automation testing one by one: 1. GUI (Graphical user interface) TestingIn this approach, we can implement that software or an application, which contains GUIs. So, that the automation test engineers can record user actions and evaluate them many times. We know that the Test cases can be written in several programming languages like JAVA, C#, Python, Perl, etc. 2. Code-DrivenThe code-driven technique is the subsequent methodology used in automation testing. In this method, the test engineer will mainly concentrate on test case execution in order to identify whether the several parts of code are performing according to the given requirement or not. Hence, it is very a commonly used method in agile software development. 3. Test Automation FrameworkAnother approach in automation testing is test automation framework. The test automation framework is a set of rules used to generate valuable results of the automated testing activity. Similarly, it brings together test data sources, function libraries, object details, and other reusable modules. Automation Testing ProcessThe automation testing process is a systematic approach to organize and execute testing activities in a manner that provides maximum test coverage with limited resources. The structure of the test involves a multi-step process that supports the required, detailed and inter-related activities to perform the task. ![]() The automation testing process completed in the following steps: Step1: Decision to Automation TestingIt is the first phase of Automation Test Life-cycle Methodology (ATLM). At this phase, the main focus of the testing team is to manage expectations from the test and find out the potential benefits if applying the automated testing correctly. On adopting an automated testing suit, organizations have to face many issues, some are listed below:
Step2: Test Tool SelectionTest Tool Selection represents the second phase of the Automation Test Life-cycle Methodology (ATLM). This phase guides the tester in the evaluation and selection of the testing tool. Since the testing tool supports almost all testing requirements, the tester still needs to review the system engineering environment and other organizational needs and then make a list of evaluation parameters of the tools. Test engineers evaluate the equipment based on the provided sample criteria. Step3: Scope IntroductionThis phase represents the third phase of Automation Test Life-cycle Methodology (ATLM). The scope of automation includes the testing area of the application. The determination of scope is based on the following points:
This phase ensures the overall testing strategy that should be well managed and modified if required. In order to ensure the availability of skills, testing skills of a particular member and whole team are analyzed against the required specific skills for a particular software application. Step4: Test Planning and DevelopmentTest planning and development is the fourth and most important phase of Automation Test Life -cycle Methodology (ATLM) because all the testing strategies are defined here. Planning of long -lead test activities, the creation of standards and guidelines, an arrangement of the required combination of hardware, software and network to create a test environment, defect tracking procedure, guidelines to control test configuration and environment all are identified in this phase. Tester determines estimated effort and cost for the entire project. Test strategy and effort estimation documents are the deliverables provided by this phase. Test case execution can be started after the successful completion of test planning. Step5: Test Case ExecutionTest case Execution is the sixth phase of Automation Test Life -cycle Methodology (ATLM). It takes place after the successful completion of test planning. At this stage, the testing team defines test design and development. Now, test cases can be executed under product testing. In this phase, the testing team starts case development and execution activity by using automated tools. The prepared test cases are reviewed by peer members of the testing team or quality assurance leaders. During the execution of test procedures, the testing team directed to comply with the execution schedule. Execution phase implements the strategies such as integration, acceptance and unit testing that have defined in the test plan previously. Step6: Review and AssessmentReview and assessment is the sixth and final stage of the automated testing life cycle but the activities of this phase are conducted throughout the whole life cycle to maintain continuous quality improvement. The improvement process is done via the evaluation of matrices, review and assessment of the activities. During the review, the examiner concentrates whether the particular metric satisfies the acceptance criteria or not, if yes, then it is ready to use in software production. It is comprehensive as test cases cover each feature of the application. The test team performs its own survey to inquire about the potential value of the process; if the potential benefit is less than sufficient, the testing team can change the testing tool. The team also provides a sample survey form to ask for feedback from the end user about the attributes and management of the software product. What are different challenges faced during the Automation testing process, and how to overcome them?The automation testing process carries about large numbers of advantages for an organization. Usually, with automated testing, the testing team of the specified method of software validation can accomplish the amplified test coverage. Though we may face various challenges during the automation testing process; therefore, we need a thorough follow-up process to reach successful test automation execution. Some of the common challenges are as discuss below, which we might encounter throughout the test automation process of an application: ![]() 1. Lack of Highly Skilled Test Automation Experts
2. Appropriate Selection of Right Test Automation Tool
3. Challenges with Scaling Test environments
4. Including High Initial Investment Costs
5. Miscommunication and lack of collaboration between Development and testing teams
Automation Testing ToolsAutomation testing tools can describe in two categories, which are as follows:
![]() Let's understand them one by one in-details: Functional Automation Testing ToolsThe automation test engineer uses the functional automation testing tool to implement the functional test cases. For example, the Repetitive Regression tests are automated under the function automation testing tools. This type of tools can be further divided into two different parts, which are as below:
![]() Commercial Functional Testing ToolsCommercial functional testing tools are those testing tools, which are not available freely in the market. These tools are also known as licensed tools. The licensed tools include various features and approaches as compared to the open-source tools. Some of the most important commercial tools are as follows:
![]() Let's take a look on the above listed commercial tools: QTP
![]() Characteristics of QTP Some of the most standard attributes of QTP are as follows:
RFT
![]() Features of RFT The RFT tool contains the following characteristics:
TestComplete
![]() Characteristics of TestComplete Tool Below is the essential characteristic of the TestComplete Tool:
SoapUI
![]() Features of SoapUI Some of the most common characteristics of the SoapUI tool are as follows:
To get more information about the SoapUI tool, refers to the following link: https://www.javatpoint.com/soapui. Open-source Functional Testing ToolsOpen-source functional testing tools are those tools, which are available freely in the market. These tools have less functionality and features than the commercial/licensed tools, but sometimes working on the commercial tool became an expensive process. That's why some well-known organizations preferred to use open-source tools. Following are the most commonly used open-source functional automation testing tools:
Let's understand the open-source functional automation testing tools one by one: ![]() SeleniumWhenever we are talking about the open-source tools of automation testing, one name came into every automation test engineer's mind: Selenium.
![]() Characteristics of SeleniumFollowing are the basic features of selenium:
To get the complete information about Selenium, refers to the following link: https://www.javatpoint.com/selenium-tutorial. Sikuli
![]() Features of Sikuli The most standard features of the Sikuli tool are as discussed below:
Note: As we know that Selenium WebDriver can only test the web application, but on the other hand, the Sikuli tool can test the web-based as well as window-based applications.AutoIt
![]() Features of AutoIT AutoIT tools include the following features:
Non-functional Automation Testing ToolsThe automation test engineer uses the non-functional automation testing tool to execute the non-functional performance test cases. For example, testing the application's response time under significant load, let say, 100 users. Just like functional automation testing tools, the non-functional automation testing tools divided into two different categories, which are as below:
![]() Commercial Non-Functional Automation Testing ToolsThese are those tools, which cannot be used freely, as they required a proper license. The commercial tools have additional features and functionality as compared to the other open-source testing tools. The usage of these types of tools helps us to enhance the efficiency of the software product. Let's see some of the most commonly used commercial non-functional automation testing tools.
LoadRunner [HP Performance Tester] LoadRunner is one of the most popular non-functional tools. It is mainly used to support performance testing for a wide range of protocols, several technologies, and application environments. LoadRunner is the licensed tool. It rapidly classifies the maximum number of performance issues. And precisely predict the application scalability and size. ![]() Feature of LoadRunner Some of the most significant features of the LoadRunner tool are as follows:
Silk Performer Another non-functional automation testing tool is Silk Performer. It can test the various application environments with thousands of simultaneous users. It makes sure that applications and server up times are sustained when faced with the highest customer usage. It is one of the most commonly used enterprise-class load and stress testing tools, supporting an extensive range of protocols. ![]() Characteristic of Silk Performer Following are the standard features of the Silk performer tool:
Open-Source Non-functional Automation Testing ToolsThe open-source non-functional automation testing tools can be used easily as they are freely available in the market. These tools have less functionality as compared to the commercial testing tools. But because they are open-source and used quickly, some organizations prefer to use these tools as they do not require any cost. Some of the most commonly used open-source non-functional automation testing tools are as follows:
![]() JMeter JMeter is one of the most significantly used open-source non-functional automation testing tools. JMeter is entirely designed on the JAVA application to load the efficient test performance and measure an application's productivity. It is mainly simplifying users or developers to use the source code for the enhancement of other applications. It is used to test the implementation of both static and dynamic resources and dynamic web applications. It is used to reproduce the massive load on a server, object, or network, group of servers to test its power or explore the complete performance in multiple load types. It is highly extensible to load the performance test in several types of servers like:
![]() Characteristics of JMeter Some of the significant attributes of the JMeter tool are as follows:
For more information about JMeter, refers to the below link: https://www.javatpoint.com/jmeter-tutorial. NeoLoad Another most commonly used open-source tool in automation testing is NeoLoad and Neotys develop it. It is used to test the performance test scenarios and also helps us to identify the bottleneck areas in the web and the mobile application development process. It is faster as compared to other traditional tools. NeoLoad will support a wide range of web, mobile, and packaged applications, such as SAP, Oracle, Salesforce, etc., that cover all our testing needs. ![]() Features of NeoLoad Below are some of the vital features of NeoLoad:
Advantages of Automation Testing
Disadvantages of Automation Testing
OverviewIn this tutorial, we have understood the automation testing, automation testing approaches, automation testing process, automation testing tools, different challenges during the automation testing process, advantages and drawbacks of automation testing. Finally, we can conclude that the Automation testing is a software testing technique, which implemented with the help of special automated testing software tools. It is the best approach to execute a test case suite, which helps us enhance test coverage, efficiency, and performance speed in software testing. The selection of automation testing tool, testing process, and team, are essential aspects in order to successful automation. Automation testing is highly dependent on the technology the Application Under Test is built on. Test Automation Maintenance Approach is an automation testing phase execute to test whether the new functionalities added to the software are working fine or not. For the successful testing process of the software, the manual and automation techniques go hand-in-hand. We should clear about the automation process that it is used to decrease the testing time for certain types of tests.
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