Dynamic Testing

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Dynamic Software Testing

In this article, I am going to discuss Dynamic Software Testing. Please read our previous article where we discussed Static Software Testing. At the end of this article, you will understand the following important pointers which are related to Dynamic Software Testing.

1. What is Dynamic Testing?
2. Why is it Necessary to Conduct Dynamic Testing?
3. What Accomplishes Dynamic Testing?
4. What are the Characteristics of Dynamic Testing?
5. What are the Types of Dynamic Testing?
6. What are the Advantages of Dynamic Testing?
7. What are the Disadvantages of Dynamic Testing?

What is Dynamic Testing?

One of the most crucial aspects of software testing, used to examine the dynamic behavior of the code, is dynamic testing. Dynamic testing involves interacting with the software by providing input values and executing a specific test case, which can be carried out manually or automatically, to see if the outcome is what is expected. Software testing that involves running the program and assessing its performance is known as dynamic testing.

As it focuses on examining the functioning of the software and how it responds to various inputs and circumstances, it is also known as functional testing. The software testing method known as dynamic testing is used to test the dynamic behavior of software code. Finding weak points in the software runtime environment and testing software behavior using dynamic variables or variables that are not constant are the major goals of dynamic testing.

Running the code must be done to test the dynamic behavior. We are all aware that testing requires two Vs—verification and validation—to be completed. The first “V”—Verification—is referred to as Static testing, while the second “V”—Validation—is referred to as Dynamic testing.

Why is it Necessary to Conduct Dynamic Testing?

If we think about the qualities that dynamic testing is capable of, we can quickly comprehend how to incorporate it during the STLC [Software Testing Life Cycle]. The team can use dynamic testing to validate the software’s essential functions, but some of them can be left untested. Additionally, they may have an impact on the software product’s functionality, dependability, and performance. Therefore, we can carry out dynamic testing to satisfy the numerous aspects listed below:

• Dynamic testing will be used to determine whether the program or application is operating correctly both during and after installation and is error-free.
• To confirm the effective operation of the software, we can do dynamic testing.
• If we wish to undertake dynamic testing, the software must be compiled and run.
• Dynamic testing is typically used to specify how code behaves dynamically.
• During the dynamic testing procedure, the team puts the code into action to evaluate the functionality of the software application in a run-time setting.
• It ensures that the software program is compatible with the potential, needs, and end-users of the customer.
• It is a practical method to assess how various environmental pressures, such as network and hardware stresses, affect the software program.

What Accomplishes Dynamic Testing?

The primary goal of dynamic testing is to guarantee that software functions correctly before, during, and after installation while also guaranteeing a stable application free of significant flaws (this claim is made because testing can only reveal the presence of problems and not their absence because no software is error-free). Let’s use an example to illustrate how the main goal of the dynamic test is to check that the software is consistent.

Various screens, such as the My Accounts Section, Funds Transfer, Bill Pay, etc., can be found in a banking application. There is an amount of area on each of these screens, and it accepts some characters. Even though the amount is the same (25000), as in the example above, the way it is displayed differs in the My Accounts field, Funds Transfer, and Bill Pay page, making the software inconsistent. Dynamic Testing is crucial since consistency relates to more than just functionality; it also refers to criteria like performance, usability, compatibility, etc.

What are the Characteristics of Dynamic Testing?

We need to understand their attributes as well as a number of other components in order to comprehend the fundamentals of software testing methodologies. Therefore, the following are some crucial attributes of dynamic testing:

• It is used all through the software testing validation phase.
• By running the program, dynamic testing is carried out.
• Functional and non-functional testing are both a part of dynamic testing.
• We can quickly find the faults in a certain piece of software while doing dynamic testing.
• It assists the team in confirming the dependability of the software program.
• In contrast to static testing, the team implements the software’s code to obtain desired results.
• Unlike other testing methods, dynamic testing is carried out directly on the software application.
• For various testing tasks like test execution, coverage analysis, reporting, and test case elaboration, dynamic testing is a more formal testing methodology.

What are the Types of Dynamic Testing?

The two different testing approaches for dynamic testing are as follows:

1. White-box evaluation
2. Black-box analysis

Both testing methods will assist us in rapidly carrying out the dynamic testing procedure because they are crucial in confirming the functionality and caliber of the software. Let’s examine each one in more detail one at a time and also look at the diagram of it below:

White-box Testing:

The fundamental viewpoint of the system is referred to as the “white box.” The program’s code will be tested line by line by the developers as part of the white box testing process. The testing team will execute the black box testing, confirm the application and the requirements once the developers complete the white box testing and give the software program to them. Data flow/control testing is another division of white-box testing.

Data flow analysis: The program’s test paths are identified using data flow testing in accordance with the descriptions and uses of variables that have been defined in the program. Moreover, it has nothing to do with data flow diagrams.

Black-box Testing:

The test engineer chooses a module and provides an input value to watch its performance and analyze if the function is producing the desired output or not. This testing technique is known as “black-box testing.” The particular function will be marked as pass if it produced the expected results. Instead of having programming expertise in the software, the test engineer should have a particular understanding of the software’s requirements in order to perform black-box testing. They can then create test cases to determine whether the functioning of the software is correct. Two other categories of black-box testing are as follows:

1. Functional Testing
2. Non-Functional Testing

Functional Testing:

One of the most crucial aspects of black-box testing is functional testing. The test engineer will test the program rather than the system, and the main emphasis is on application design rather than the actual code. Functional testing is used to verify that a software application’s functionality operates in accordance with the requirements. Each module has been put through functional testing by being given a value, being given an output, and having the output’s actual value compared to the expected value. The four types of testing into which functional testing is divided are as follows:

Unit Testing:

1. The first stage of functional testing that involves testing a software program is unit testing.
2. When the application is prepared and sent to the test engineer, we will conduct the unit testing. He or she will begin separately or piecemeal checking each component of the module or application. Also known as components testing, this method.
3. Testing the correctness of remote code and validating the unit components’ functionality are the main goals of unit testing.

Integration Testing:

1. We will go on to the integration testing once we have completed the unit testing on the particular piece of software. We will be able to mix different units and test them together with the aid of integration testing. It is also the second stage of the functional testing process.
2. Integration testing is the process of examining the data flow between dependent modules after each component or module is functioning independently.
3. Integration testing is carried out by the test engineer and the developers. The primary goal of integration is to find problems with how the integrated elements interact with one another.

System Testing:

1. System testing is used to examine an application’s or software’s end-to-end user flow.
2. Due to the testing environment’s resemblance to the production environment, system testing is also referred to as end-to-end testing.
3. The third level of functional testing, known as system testing, involves going through all the required modules of an application to see if the final features or the final business function properly. This level also involves testing the product as a full system.

User Acceptance Testing:

1. To confirm that the system complies with the criteria, user acceptability testing is carried out. The client or consumer performs it prior to accepting the finished product.
2. In other terms, we may say that the client (domain expert) does the UAT to ensure their happiness and determine whether the application complies with the provided business scenarios and real-world scenarios.
3. It is the final stage of functional testing that is carried out before the program is released to the public or into a setting where it will be used by two or more end users.

Non- Functional Testing:

Non-functional testing is another facet of black-box testing. It is used to test non-functional constraints such as load testing, software accountability, and reliability and performance. Since these parameters are never checked before functional testing, the major goal of non-functional testing is to evaluate how quickly the software system can read in accordance with non-functional parameters. When testing software or applications, non-functional testing is crucial for ensuring user satisfaction. It offers a deep understanding of product behavior and employed technology, and it lowers the risk of software production and associated costs. Additionally, non-functional testing is divided into a number of components that can be carried out at the test level. Let’s examine each of them in more detail one by one:

Performance Testing:

1. The most prevalent kind of non-functional testing is performance testing.
2. Performance testing will be carried out once the program has been made stable and deployed into production and is able to handle several concurrent users.
3. Performance testing involves delivering a load to an application and observing how it responds.
4. Since performance testing is non-functional testing, we don’t usually employ it while the program is functionally stable; we save performance testing for that situation.

Usability Testing:

1. We will assess the software’s usability to see if it is user-friendly, effective, and accurate.
2. Usability testing assures that the created software is simple to test while utilizing the system without encountering any issues and makes life easier for end users.

Compatibility Testing:

1. Compatibility testing is the next category of non-functional testing, and it is used to examine how well an application works on various hardware, software, network, and browser combinations.
2. Not all programs are tested for compatibility; we only use compatibility testing for those applications where we have no control over the platform that customers use.

Recovery Testing:

1. We can check a system’s ability to recover from crashes and hardware problems through recovery testing.
2. In a controlled setting, it replicated the failure modes or crucial producing failures.
3. Recovery testing is done to make sure a system can recover well from failures and is fault-tolerant.

Security Testing:

1. In order to stop nasty attacks from outsiders and ensure the security of our software applications, security testing is used to identify the flaws, hazards, or threats in the software application.
2. The basic goal of security testing is to find any potential flaws and vulnerabilities in the application so that it continues to function.

What are the Advantages of Dynamic Testing?

Dynamic testing has many advantages for users and the testing team, from identifying and assessing various defects and errors in the software to confirming the software’s performance. They are:

• It reveals extremely challenging and intricate flaws.
• It finds flaws that static testing is unable to find.
• It raises the standard of the program or piece of software under test.
• Dynamic testing identifies potential security risks and guarantees a more secure application.
• In the early stages of development, it can be used to evaluate the software’s functionality.
• It is simple to apply and does not call for any specialized equipment or knowledge.

What are the Disadvantages of Dynamic Testing?

These are the negative aspects of dynamic testing:

• Because the entire code is run during dynamic testing, it is a time-consuming operation.
• Due to the high cost of dynamic testing, the software budget is increased.
• More resources could be needed for dynamic testing compared to static testing.
• In some circumstances, dynamic testing may be less efficient than static testing.
• It is challenging to cover every test scenario.
• It is challenging to identify the primary cause of the flaws.

In the next article, I am going to discuss Load Testing. Here, in this article, I try to explain Dynamic Software Testing. I hope you enjoy this Dynamic Software Testing article.