Test and Operations (TestOps) is the emerging trend in testing. It introduced a newer technique of testing. This advanced testing assures speed and quality combination.
Since this technique is emerging, the skill required to work on, TestOps differ to other traditional testing practices. It will change the way QA worked earlier. Complexity in testing increased with advanced technologies like Big Data and AI requires new ways of dealing.
The large amount of tests used for checking different domains helps to monitor the methods used in testing. The reusability of datasets and tests saves time. Visual representation of automation testing is a result of transparency in automation. It satisfies the requirement of developers, testers, and management. Quality Assurance team can test the results of the automated process with help of tools. This enables identification of loopholes in the defined process.
Why is TestOps?
TestOps is conducted and the operations team deploys it to the production. The collaborative efforts increase the team spirit; boosts productivity, enhances creativity, and improves problem-solving abilities. Combine various forms of testing required for the product. It can include performance testing, visual testing, functional testing, and API testing all or selectively applied at different levels.
Variety of tools used in a test automation framework enables continuous testing and product validating. It ensures that stakeholders get a complete and clear view of the testing having an effective presentation of results.
Benefits of TestOps:
- Better Approach
- Process Ownership
- Increases awareness and team involvement
- Reduced Execution Time
- Improves time to market
- Cuts down the waste
- Transforms Data Sharing
- Integrate with framework tools like Docker, Jenkins and few others
- Stronger Feedback Mechanism
- Faster detection of test statuses
- Balances speed and quality
- Improves quality and usability of the development cycle
- Complete visibility to the tests
- Transparency of automation results
- Full utilization of testing the team’s capacity
- Get quality insights
- Integration into continuous integration and continuous delivery
- Coverage of multiple platforms such as Web, Mobile, API
- Immediate feedback eliminates the risk of new products
- Identify errors in the process
- Flexible configuration for execution in an environment
- Re-run only failed tests
- Real-time reports on testing
What do you need to get the best out of TestOPs?
Contributors: TestOps is united efforts of testers and developers this saves overlapping of efforts and improves the rate of delivery. Developers are encouraged to write bug-free codes and testers are focus on production by accumulating the correct data. The testing conducted in production with the tools enable us to examine the data and analyze it.
Production Data: The reliance on testing, and its comparability of satisfaction over the testing processes comes from the production data. Right testing trends include the behavior of software and its performance over the production of an application. The production data transforms the industry with TestOps; it covers measuring the data, its storage, analysis, and connect that increases efficiency. Interpretation of voluminous data becomes simpler, it allows testers and developers to work and monitor efficiently. Superior data exchange tools can improve communication between programs and people.
Clarity: Team should have skills and clarity of testing and why test the code. Automate the testing to the extent that the least manpower is required. The TestOps confirms the process completion by the QA team. The continuous feedback loop of developers and testers brings in a lot more clarity in testing. Investing in efforts that have clear definitions is crucial.
Cross-Platform Solution: Different clients and solutions are available with coverage of multiple platforms Web, Mobile, API, and console. Save time with open source for all in one solution like PyTest, carina, bugzilla, Selenium, Cucumber, WebDriver, Appium, JUnit, Capybara, Jira, and Gatling etc.
Continuous Integrated Framework: TestOps operates in a particular pattern that focuses on a continuous build, continuous validation, and continuous delivery. System development lifecycle is possible as a continuous focus on higher productivity and faster release of products. The tools, and processes implemented as continuous validation, while continuous delivery has its focal point on codes to work efficiently and are deployable.
The framework manages testing, environment, and software configuration. Integrate it with DevOps to increase the transparency of workflow, and final check by TestOps gives clean chit for release of the product.
Reliability: The performance and reliability improves due to early monitoring of defects in the production cycle, which also controls the rejections via chaos engineering. Include A/B testing, to compare two or more versions those measure the variation in performance. Using canary releases uses techniques that lessen the risks of introducing new software. It allows verifying the response that you can get to the feature and this lets the gradual change that accepted by the users.
Automation: For an automated build to work as designed the testing data in the environment, its access, control, schedule for the data update, usage, or validation are important. Removal of bugs at the primitive stage makes rectification possible along with consistent progress of product development. It introduces an easy connection between testing, its schedule, whether and when actually testing is necessary. You can group the tests for the scope or features. Developers can also run a few tests while bug fixing, or writing new codes. Thus, there is no need to wait for acceptance or regression testing.
Better Collaboration: Teams can deal with internal and external customers as per the requirement of the feature testing. Along with automated testing wherever required position manual intervention for better control. The changes required in the process or in the stage of testing can be intervened for improvement. Early testing reduces efforts and frustration of rework and creates a peaceful work atmosphere. Data science and ML are comparatively new and to create tests the testes will have to work with field experts. Results can be measurable only if the algorithms are correct and if tests are designed accordingly.
Pipeline Configuration: Automate the software pipeline at the speed of DevOps with innovative testing methods. Remove the barriers and accelerate the test development. Plan for testing ideally should cover what to test, how long, motive of the test, tools you will use, selection criteria of these testing tools, and does it include the pain points. E.g. Test devices, which functions are to be tested, how they should behave, what results are you expecting, what the comparison parameter is, and which tool and why do you rely on for this testing purpose. Mark success when you achieve what you want to achieve so it’s free for release to internal or external customer.
Analyze: For accurate analysis better documentation, data, and test processes are the base. Quantity and quality of data influence the test process. How this data can give confidence to the business and help us deliver better? How testers can get the maximum benefit from data? Which tools and how their implementation will improve the data-based results. Designing solutions becomes easier and has a positive impact on the budget. Appropriate understanding of user aspects, creating requirement documents, defining teams, and processes is the outcome of proper analysis.
Customer Experience: The world agrees to the fact that the CX quotient is ruling and that we should keep our scores high. Customer satisfaction scores are difficult to achieve but possible with TestOps. Everything that you thought of, assumed, or receives as feedback; just convert it to a testing scenario to make a drastic improvement in the testing approach. Crowd testing lets you judge the real experience of users. Validations that are tough to run in test environments. Choose for testing in production; even reuse the performance test scenarios created by testers. The testing data helps to understand the customer and this same data analyzed is the base for creating new and better applications and smoother functioning.
Security: With the role of testers not restricted to testing products and features, the fair interpretation of requirements as well as the approach changes. The applications are even more secured throughout the development and testing. Automation reduces the risk of manhandling data and eliminates human errs while testing processes. It will maintain quality throughout the development cycle. From initial stages, the testers will have better controls for tighter security over applications. Introducing continuous security practices will let you modify the steps in automating testing. Applying security simultaneously at all levels i.e. application, infrastructure, and the pipeline is a type of Test Driven Security.
Wrap-Up:
Upgrading for the faster and qualitative results TestOps receives recommendation of most of the testers as an alternative to prevailing testing practices. The line between development and testing is thinner. Expecting better role and sharper skills of a tester is shift right testing practices. Big Data and IoT testing are more challenging than ever thanks to emerging technologies.
Now we have more synchronized methods of operations, which uses the joint capabilities of developers and testers that add to the business growth. The emergence of TestOps lets us deal with the change and challenges of meeting customer expectations and launching better products.
