Difference Between Stubs and DriversIn this section, we are going to discuss the difference between Stubs and Drivers; and see a brief introduction of them. Stubs and drivers are two types of test harness that are a collection of software and test, which means they are designed together to test a unit of a program by accelerating the change of situations at the same time as regularly checking its performances and results. In the Software Testing process, the Stubs and Drivers are those components that are used as a short-term alternative for a module. There are several elements in the Software Testing Life Cycle, which play an essential role in the testing process to be more precise and trouble-free. All the components connected to testing and try to enhance their quality, helps us to deliver an exact and predictable outcome, and facilities the fulfilment of the specified specifications. Describe Stubs and Drivers in the Software Testing?In Software Testing, the words stub and drivers described as a replica of the modules that operate as an alternative to the new or missing modules. Stubs are mainly used in top-down integration testing; on the other hand, drivers are mainly used in bottom-up integration testing individually and designed the enhance the testing process. To sustain the essential requirements of the inaccessible modules or components, we are precisely established the stubs and drives. And extremely beneficial in getting the anticipated outcomes. Both Stubs and drivers are the essential part of the basic software development and software testing process. Thus, to help us understand the substance of stubs and drivers in software testing, we will see an exhaustive discussion. What are Stubs?
Types of StubsIn the top-down approach of incremental integration testing, the stubs are divided into four essential parts, which are as follows:
What are Drivers?
Examples of Stubs and DriversLet us see an example of stubs and drivers, which help us to enhance our knowledge of stubs and drivers. Suppose we have one web application that contains four different modules, such as:
And all the modules, as mentioned earlier, are responsible for some individual activities or functionality, as we can observe in the following table:
Note: Modules P, Q, R, and S encompasses the dependencies of each module over the other.It is always a better approach to implement the testing or development of all the modules equivalently. The minute each gets developed, they can be combined and tested according to their similar dependencies with a module. Once Module-P is developed, it will go through the testing process. But, to perform and validate the testing methods regarding Module-P, they need Module-Q, which is not yet developed entirely and still in the developing process. And it is not possible to test Module-P on the lack of Module-Q. Thus, in such scenarios, we will take the help of Stubs and Drivers in the software testing process. The Stubs and drivers will replicate all the basic functionality and features displayed by the real Module-Q. And subsequently, it is being combined with Module-P in order to execute the testing process effectively. Now, we can validate the estimated functionality of the Login page, which was in Module-P, only if it is going to the Home Page, which is the activity of Module-Q as per the correct and valid inputs. In the same way, stubs and drivers are used to accomplish the requirements of other modules, such as the Sign-out page, which comes under the Module-S and needs to be aimed to the Login page (Module-P) after effectively logging out from the particular application. Likewise, we may also use Stubs or Drivers instead of Module-R and Module-S if they are not available. As the result of the inaccessibility of Module-P, stubs and drivers will work as an alternate for it to perform the testing of Module-S. But here, the question arises that both drivers and Stubs serve the same functionality? Let's find the answer to the above question: Yes, we can say that both stubs and drivers carry out similar features and objectives. Both of them act as an alternative for the missing or absent module. But, the change between them can be pictured throughout the integration testing process. The key difference between Stubs and DriversThe below facts explain the critical differences between stubs and drivers during the integration testing process.
Stubs VS DriversHere, we are discussing some significant comparisons between Stubs and Drivers in the below table:
ConclusionIn this section, we have seen the significant difference between Stubs and Drivers. And we conclude that the software testing process cannot be implemented with the unfinished and partial modules and components. Hence, to ensure the correctness and efficiency of testing, it is necessary to develop the stubs and drivers that satisfy the requirements of unfinished modules. And perform as simulated modules which are requested for testing the features of main modules or components. Lastly, we can say that the stubs and drivers are a vital part of the software testing process. They are computer programs that work as an alternative and replicate the functionalities of the other modules, which help us simplify the software testing activities. |