Types of Testing every Software or IT person should know

Kartik
9 min readFeb 26, 2023

--

Testing is the process to verify and validate the application does what it is supposed to do and find error if there is any, so, that the application cannot fail at the time of using.

  1. Manual Testing: Testing any application without use of any tools, tester test by himself manually.

2. Automation Testing: Automation testing is the process of using software tools to execute test cases automatically, without human intervention.

3. White box Testing/Clear Box Testing: performed by developers who tests the “inner workings” of the software or the code they have written to ensure that it meets the expected requirements and standards.

4. Black box Testing: Black box testing is a software testing technique performed by testers which involves testing a software application’s external behaviour without knowledge of its internal code or structure.

5. Grey box Testing: Grey box testing is a software testing technique that combines elements of both white box testing and black box testing. It involves testing a software application with some knowledge of its internal structure and implementation, but without having full access to its code and design. Grey box testing is typically performed by testers who have some understanding of the software application's internal workings, such as its database schema, APIs, or data flows. They use this knowledge to design test cases and scenarios that verify the software's behaviour and performance against its functional and non-functional requirements.

6. Functional Testing: Functional testing is a type of software testing that evaluates the functionality of an application or system by verifying that it meets its specified requirements and performs its intended functions correctly. Functional testing is an essential part of the software development life cycle, and it helps to ensure the quality and reliability of the software being developed.

7. Non Functional Testing: Non-functional testing is a type of software testing that evaluates the performance, usability, security, scalability, and other non-functional aspects of an application or system. The objective of non-functional testing is to verify that the software meets the specified non-functional requirements and performs efficiently under various conditions. Non-functional testing is essential in ensuring that the software is not only functional but also efficient and reliable, meeting the non-functional requirements specified by the users.

8. Unit Testing: Unit testing is a way of testing small, isolated parts of a software application to ensure that they work correctly. It’s like testing individual building blocks of a construction before putting them all together to build a house. By testing these individual parts or “units” of code, developers can catch any issues early on in the development process, before they become bigger problems. This helps to improve the quality and reliability of the software and makes it easier to maintain and update over time.

9. Integration Testing: Integration testing is a type of software testing that verifies the interactions between different components or modules of an application to ensure that they work correctly when combined. It’s like testing how different parts of a machine work together to make sure the machine functions properly.

10. System Testing: System testing is a type of software testing that evaluates the entire system or application as a whole to ensure that it meets the specified requirements and functions correctly. It’s like testing the finished product to make sure it works properly before it’s released to the market.

11. Performance Testing: Performance testing is a type of software testing that evaluates how well an application or system performs under specific conditions and workloads. It’s like testing how fast and how much an athlete can run before a competition to make sure they are in top shape. Performance testing is typically done to determine the speed, responsiveness, stability, and scalability of the software under various load conditions, such as high traffic or heavy usage. The objective of performance testing is to identify any bottlenecks, errors, or limitations that may affect the performance of the software and to optimise it for better performance.

12. Load Testing: Load testing is a type of performance testing that evaluates how well an application or system performs under different loads and user traffic. It’s like testing how many people can use an elevator at the same time before it becomes slow or stops working.

13. Stress Testing: Stress testing is a type of software testing that evaluates how well an application or system performs under extreme or unfavourable conditions. It’s like testing how a car performs under extreme weather conditions or how a building withstands an earthquake.

Stress testing is typically done to determine the breaking point or the maximum capacity of an application or system under stressful or unfavourable conditions, such as high traffic, heavy loads, or limited resources. The objective of stress testing is to identify any vulnerabilities, weaknesses, or failures that may occur under stress and to ensure that the software can handle unexpected or unusual conditions.

14. Scalability Testing: Scalability testing is a type of software testing that evaluates how well an application or system can handle an increasing amount of workload or user traffic. It’s like testing how a business can handle more customers and transactions as it grows.

Scalability testing is typically done to determine the ability of an application or system to scale up or down as the workload or user traffic changes. The objective of scalability testing is to identify any performance bottlenecks or limitations that may occur as the workload or user traffic increases and to ensure that the software can handle a growing number of users or transactions without affecting its performance.

15. Stability Testing: Stability testing is a type of software testing that evaluates the reliability and stability of an application or system over a prolonged period of time. It’s like testing how well a car runs without breaking down over a long distance.

Stability testing is typically done to determine whether an application or system can maintain its performance, functionality, and reliability over an extended period of time. The objective of stability testing is to identify any issues, such as memory leaks, crashes, or performance degradation, that may occur over time and to ensure that the software can provide stable and reliable performance over a prolonged period.

16. Usability Testing: Usability testing is a type of software testing that evaluates the ease of use and user-friendliness of an application or system. It’s like testing how easy it is to use a new gadget or appliance for the first time.

Usability testing is typically done to determine how well users can interact with the software, whether it’s easy to use, and whether it meets their needs and expectations. The objective of usability testing is to identify any usability issues, such as confusing navigation, unclear instructions, or difficult-to-use features, and to optimise the software for better user-friendliness and user experience.

17. Compatibility Testing: Compatibility testing is a type of software testing that evaluates how well an application or system performs on different hardware, software, and network configurations. It’s like testing whether a new video game can run on different types of gaming consoles.

Compatibility testing is typically done to ensure that the software can work seamlessly with different operating systems, web browsers, devices, and other software applications. The objective of compatibility testing is to identify any compatibility issues, such as software conflicts, installation errors, or performance issues, and to optimize the software for better compatibility and interoperability.

18. Smoke Testing: Smoke testing is a type of software testing that checks whether the critical functionalities of an application or system are working properly. It’s like checking whether a car’s engine starts and runs smoothly before taking it for a long drive.

Smoke testing is typically done to ensure that the software is stable and ready for further testing. The objective of smoke testing is to quickly identify any critical issues or show-stoppers that may affect the basic functionality of the software.

19. Sanity Testing: Sanity testing is a type of software testing that checks whether the recent changes made to an application or system are working properly without affecting the existing functionalities. It’s like quickly checking whether a newly installed app works fine and doesn’t cause any problems with the other apps on a smartphone.

Sanity testing is typically done to ensure that the recent changes made to the software are functioning as intended and haven’t introduced any issues or bugs that affect the existing functionalities.

20. Regression Testing: Regression testing is a type of software testing that checks whether the recent changes made to an application or system have introduced any new defects or issues that may have affected the existing functionalities. It’s like checking whether a newly repaired car still runs smoothly and doesn’t cause any problems that weren’t there before.

Regression testing is typically done to ensure that the recent changes made to the software have not impacted the existing functionalities and have not introduced any new defects or issues that may affect the user experience or the stability of the software.

21. User Acceptance Testing: User Acceptance Testing (UAT) is done by end-users, customers, or other stakeholders to checks whether the application or system meets the user’s requirements and expectations. It’s like checking whether a new car meets the driver’s needs and preferences before purchasing it.

22. Exploratory Testing: Exploratory testing is typically done to uncover defects or issues that may have been missed during the scripted testing or formal test planning process. It’s useful for identifying new or unexpected issues that may not have been considered in the test plan. It involves exploring the application or system with a “learn as you go” approach. It’s like exploring a new city without a map, discovering new places and taking different routes as you go along.

23. Ad hoc Testing: Ad hoc testing is typically done to quickly identify defects or issues in the software, and to explore its behaviour in an unstructured way. It’s useful for identifying issues that may not have been considered in the test plan or for quickly verifying a fix, that involves testing the application or system without any formal test planning or documentation. It’s like testing a new recipe by adding ingredients as you go along, without following a specific recipe.

24. Security Testing: Security testing is typically done to ensure that the application or system is secure and protected from unauthorised access, data breaches, or other malicious activities. It’s essential for protecting the sensitive information of users and maintaining the trust of customers, that aims to identify vulnerabilities or weaknesses in the application or system that could be exploited by attackers. It’s like testing the locks and alarms of a house to ensure that it’s secure from burglars.

25. Globalisation Testing: Globalisation testing is typically done to ensure that the software is compatible with different languages and cultures, and to prevent any errors or issues that may arise from regional differences in date and time formats, currency, and other cultural aspects, hat involves verifying whether the application or system can function properly in different languages, cultures, and locations around the world. It’s like testing a new product to make sure it can be used by people from different regions of the world, with different languages and cultural norms.

26. Package Testing: Package testing is typically done to ensure that the software can be installed and used by end-users without any technical difficulties, and to prevent any errors or issues that may arise during the installation, upgrade, or uninstallation process, that involves testing software packages or applications to ensure that they can be installed, upgraded, and uninstalled without any issues. It’s like testing a new furniture set to ensure that all the pieces fit together properly and can be assembled without any problems.

27. API Testing: API testing is typically done to ensure that the APIs of the software application are working as expected and are providing the intended functionality. It involves testing the input and output parameters, error codes, and response times of the APIs, that involves testing the application programming interfaces (APIs) of a software application. An API is like a set of rules that allow different software components to communicate with each other.

28. Mobility Testing: Mobility testing is typically done to ensure that mobile applications and devices are functioning properly and providing a good user experience. It involves testing the application on different devices, platforms, and network conditions to identify any issues or errors that may affect the usability and performance of the application, that involves testing mobile applications and devices. It’s like testing a car to make sure it runs smoothly on different types of roads and conditions.

29. Cloud Testing: Cloud testing is typically done to ensure that cloud-based applications and services are functioning properly and providing a good user experience. It involves testing the application on different cloud-based platforms, network conditions, and geographic locations to identify any issues or errors that may affect the functionality and performance of the application, that involves testing cloud-based applications and services. It’s like testing a car that is being driven remotely, through a network of servers and computers.

30. Big Data Testing: Big data testing is typically done to ensure that big data applications are functioning properly and providing accurate and reliable results. It involves testing various aspects of the big data application, such as data ingestion, data processing, data storage, and data retrieval, that involves testing large data sets to ensure that the data is accurate, consistent, and reliable. It’s like testing a library of books to ensure that each book is correctly labelled, has the correct content, and is in the right place on the shelf.

--

--