Software Testing Life Cycle Istqb

[Marine Farinha]

Understandthe nuances of the Software Testing Life Cycle (STLC) in this blog. Grasp the concepts of STLC, its roles in Software Development, and its distinct stages, from the analysis of requirements to the finalisation of the test process. Also, examine the fundamental differences between STLC and the Software Development Life Cycle.

Software Testing Life Cycle is just one part of a much wider process known as SDLC, which is all about the development of software from beginning to end. While SDLC includes everything from planning to building the software, STLC focuses only on testing it.

There's more to learn about this cycle, if you are new to the Software development industry. So, wait no more and read this blog. This blog discusses Software Testing Life Cycle, how it is integrated into the software-building process, and the testing phases. Let's delve in!

However, in the Software Testing Life Cycle, each phase has its unique set of deliverables and is essential for the success of the software process. STLC aims to reveal and detect bugs or problems in a software program as early as possible. This means the issues can be resolved in the alpha or pre-launch phase, and a smooth rollout can be ensured for the intended market.

STLC generally has six phases, with each activity being performed in a planned and systematic manner. Each phase's entry and exit criteria define the actions to perform and the expected results. They also define the prerequisite conditions and results of each testing phase. While different testing teams follow different phases in STLC, they are all based on the six phases mentioned below:

During the requirement analysis phase, all the feature requirements collected during the SDLC process are evaluated for their test suitability, and the testable aspects are identified. The testing teams may consult with relevant stakeholders to clarify the requirements.

Test planning during STLC is the phase where the test strategy is outlined in a test plan document. This plan is usually determined and approved by a Senior Quality Assurance Manager. It includes details like the needed tools, test environment, testing schedule, testing steps, and roles and responsibilities. The plan is determined based on a Risk and Cost Analysis (RCA) and a roughly calculated timeline for testing.

During the test case development phase, test cases and test scripts are created, with each case defining all the test inputs, procedures, execution conditions, and anticipated results. Test cases involved must be transparent, efficient, and adaptable, with 100 per cent coverage of all expected outcomes. The test cases are developed based on the identified test data, which has been identified and worked on based on the preconditions. Based on the automation feasibility report, the automation scripts must also be created during this phase.

In the Test environment setup phase, the testing environments, i.e., the software and hardware conditions to test the product, are configured and deployed. This phase usually includes many testing tools like TestComplete, Selenium, Appium, or Katalon Studio. Test environment setup may be done concurrently with the test case development phase, and sometimes, all of this includes setting up air-gapped test servers. Once the environment has been set up, smoke tests or readiness checks are performed to ensure the environments work with all intended functionalities.

During the test execution phase, the software features are tested in the deployed test environment using the test cases established based on the test data. Test script execution, maintenance, and bug reporting are done during this phase, and the expected test results are compared to the actual results. The results of the test execution phase are gathered and reported back to development teams.

The final phase of STLC is Test cycle closure STLC, during which a test result report summarises the entire testing process with comparisons between expected and actual results prepared. All the defects found are logged as failed cases and mapped to their respective test cases in the RTM. Every big fix made is also retested for closure.

In the Software Testing Life Cycle (STLC), you have entry and exit criteria established for each stage. Ideally, you would not proceed to the next stage until the exit criteria of the previous stage have been met. However, in practice, this is not always feasible. Here are the definitions for entry and exit criteria:

STLC can be implemented as a series of steps within the SDLC cycle or alongside the SDLC phases. The primary difference is that SDLC collects requirements and creates features accordingly. STLC, on the other hand, performs tests adapted to the collected requirements and verifies that the features meet those requirements.

If the SDLC creates features that do more than necessary, it's often deemed acceptable. However, if STLC tests do more than required, an unneeded burden is set on the team. Both life cycles need the cooperation of stakeholders, DevOps, and testing teams. With this cooperation, verifying that requirements are properly defined, tests are relevant, or results are applied properly is possible.

The Software Testing Life Cycle is not just about conducting and documenting the entire testing process. It also ensures that all the relevant information gathered during testing is captured and converted into lessons for future reference. The STLC ensures that the Software Development Life Cycle is successful, and that the product is ready to be launched in the market for the intended users.

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Just like developers follow the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) likewise testers also follow the Software Testing Life Cycle which is called as STLC. It is the sequence of activities carried out by the testing team from the beginning of the project till the end of the project. A good software tester is expected to have good knowledge of the STLC lifecycle and its activities.

There are different phases in STLC which are given below. The testing activities start from the Requirements analysis phase and goes through all the phases one by one before completing with the Test cycle closure phase.

Each of the step mentioned above has some Entry Criteria (it is a minimum set of conditions that should be met before starting the software testing) as well as Exit Criteria (it is a minimum set of conditions that should be completed in order to stop the software testing) on the basis of which it can be decided whether we can move to the next phase of Testing Life cycle or not.

This is the very first phase of Software testing Life cycle (STLC). In this phase testing team goes through the Requirement document with both Functional and non-functional details in order to identify the testable requirements.

Test Planning phase starts soon after the completion of the Requirement Analysis phase. In this phase the QA manager or QA Lead will prepare the Test Plan and Test strategy documents. As per these documents they will also come up with the testing effort estimations.

In this phase the QA team write test cases. They also write scripts for automation if required. Verification of both the test cases and test scripts are done by peers. Creation of Test Data is done in this phase.

This phase includes the setup or installation process of software and hardware which is required for testing the application. In this phase the integration of the third party application is also carried out if required in the project.

After the creation of Test data the Smoke testing is executed on the build in order to check whether the basic functionalities are working fine or not. This phase can be done in parallel with the Test Case Development phase.

The document discusses various software development lifecycle models and when each is best used. It describes the waterfall, V-shaped, incremental, RAD, agile, iterative, spiral and prototype models. For each model, it provides advantages, disadvantages and considerations for when the model should be used. Testing is recommended throughout the development lifecycle, with test activities corresponding to each development phase.Read less

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