6 Phases of Software Testing Lifecycle

Last updated on October 2nd, 2023 at 07:37 am

The software testing life cycle provides confidence in a software release. The STLC delivers that confidence through a series of tasks that take confirmation through creativity to design and prosecution. Each STLC phase is useful in its way to achieve high-quality software releases. Likewise, each part of the STLC process comes with its pretensions and deliverables, all intended to catch blights and optimize test content.

1. Requirement analysis

Utmost development enterprise begins with software conditions that specify what the business expects from the design. Software conditions frequently include high-position business requirements, architectural conditions that detail how the point will be designed and supported, and detailed system conditions from which inventors make the product. System conditions include functional and non-functional specifications, both of which present openings to test and validate.

In this STLC phase, software testing companies and teams work both within their brigades and cross-functionally to contextualize how they will test the software. demand analysis frequently includes brainstorming sessions, relating eyeless spots or unclear areas in the conditions, and prioritizing certain assessments.

When in mistrustfulness or lacking conditions attestation, the QA team will question the engineering or business side to clarify and calcify a testing strategy.

2. Test planning

The alternate STLC phase is important, as it guides much of the work to follow. Test planning takes the perceptivity set up during conditions or product analysis and turns them into a proved QA strategy.

The test team leadership determines what coffers and sweats will estimate the release. The performing test plan attestation informs testers and other departments how the testing work will commence, keeping everyone on the same runner. This plan is especially helpful if other members of the association will take part in testing and bug remediation, similar to inventors executing unit tests and writing hotfixes.

The test plan spells out several details of the QA work to be done, including the compass, objects, types of functional and non-functional tests( both automated and homemade), and details of the test surroundings. Once these details are determined, test operation sets places and timelines for the work. Eventually, the testing team can determine what deliverables it’ll give upon completion of the STLC phases.

3. Test case design and development

With the test plan in place, testers can begin to write and produce detailed test cases. In this STLC phase, the QA team fleshes out the details of the structured tests they will run, including any test data they will need to grease those tests. While tests must eventually validate the areas defined by conditions, testers can ply their chops and creativity in how they achieve this task.

When conceptualizing test cases, the best software testing companies should validate functionality within the distributed time and compass, especially core functionality. Test cases should be simple and well understood for any member of the team, but also unique from other test cases. Test cases should aim to achieve full content of the conditions in the specifications document — a traceability matrix can help track content. Test cases must be identifiable and unremarkable, as inventors will add new functionality to the product over time, taking tests to run again. They must also not alter the test terrain for future tests, especially when validating configurations.

Test cases might also bear conservation or updates over time to validate both new and functionality. This work also occurs at this STLC stage.

Once test cases are ready, a test team lead or peer can review them. They might also review and modernize automated test scripts at this STLC stage. Eventually, the team prioritizes and organizes these test cases into test suites that run latterly.

Also read:  Reduce Software Testing Redundancy

4. Test environment setup

The test environment provides the setting where factual testing occurs. This is a pivotal software testing life cycle phase in software testing companies. It requires help from other members of the company. Testers must have access to bug reporting capabilities, as well as the operation armature to support the product. Without these rudiments, testers might not be suitable to do their jobs.

Once ready, testers establish the parameters for the test terrain, which include the tackle, software, test data, fabrics, configurations, and network. In this STLC phase, testers acclimate these terrain parameters depending on what the test case requires. For illustration, the maturity of a product’s druggies might be on an Android device, use a certain interpretation of a Chrome cybersurfer, and have a certain quantum of processing power on those biases — these are parameters the test terrain would include.

Bank tests within these test surroundings give a veritably early and rudimentary check that the software is ready for further comprehensive testing. These bank tests against the shapes are part of the deliverable in this STLC phase.

5. Test execution

Coming into the software testing life cycle, it’s time to completely test the product. At this STLC stage, testers execute all of the test cases or as numerous as possible within the distributed time. QA professionals and automated scripts execute several functional and non-functional tests.

Then in the STLC, testers will identify and report detailed bugs that arise from test case prosecution and log the system’s performance compared to its conditions. As inventors make fixes, testers frequently check the product to make sure new blights don’t materialize. With all of these tests piling up in the test prosecution STLC phase, it’s important to make use of test automation where possible to achieve the test content and haste you need.

6. Test cycle closure

The final STLC phase is the test cycle check. In this stage, the testing team provides a test check report, which summarizes and communicates its findings with the rest of the team. This report generally includes summaries of the testing work and results, an assessment of the testing, and the director’s blessing.

During the test cycle check, the testing team checks its deliverables, which include details applicable to the testing work, similar to the test strategy, test case documents, automated test scripts, and test results. The team will also complete and close incident reports, which detail unusual or unanticipated the test team observes during testing. The team must also library the coffers it used during testing, similar to scripts, tools, and surroundings, for after-use.

From there, the association plans the product for support and release, which frequently includes acceptance and feedback from client representatives.

Communication is crucial in this STLC phase, as fresh perspectives might uncover a quality, cost, or content issue that the rest of the group missed. These conversations can yield fresh analysis or inform how to ameliorate QA work in the future.