CSTE -- 2. The Tester’s Role In Software Development And Acquisition

2. The Tester’s Role In Software Development And Acquisition

1. The Development and Acquisition Process
1. Process Knowledge
1. Software Development, Operation, and Maintenance Process(es) - Understanding the processes used in the tester’s organization to develop, operate, and maintain software systems.
2. Tools - Application of tools and methods that aid in planning, analysis, development operation, and maintenance for increasing productivity. For example, configuration management, estimating, and Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE) tools.
3. Project Management - Performing tasks to manage and steer a project toward a successful conclusion.
4. Documentation - Understanding the documents developed in the tester’s organization to design, document, implement, test, support, and maintain software systems.
2. Roles/Responsibilities
1. Requirements - Tasks performed, techniques used, and documentation prepared in identifying, prioritizing, and recording the business needs and problems to be resolved by the new or enhanced system. Also, to assess the testability of requirements.
2. Design - Tasks performed, techniques used, and documentation prepared in defining the automated solution to satisfy the business requirements.
3. Interfaces
1. Person/Machine - Interfaces that include the operating system and the development languages that are available, as well as the input/output facilities.
2. Communications Interfaces - Interfaces that include transmission of information between computers and remote equipment (e.g., transmission of computer data over networks.)
3. Program Interfaces - Interfaces for the exchange of information, whether on the same computer, or distributed across multiple tiers of the application architecture.
4. Build and Install - Tasks performed, techniques used, and documentation prepared in building the automated solution to satisfy the business requirements; including installation of software.
5. Maintenance - Software modification activities performed on an operational system to resolve problems (correction), increase functionality (enhancement), meet changing operating environment conditions (adaptation), or improve operational efficiency or speed.
2. "V" Testing Concept - The "V" concept relates the build components of development to the test components that occur during that build phase.
3. Test Approaches
1. Structural Test Approaches
1. Load/Stress - Performs with expected volumes.
2. Execution - Achieves desired level of proficiency.
3. Recovery - Returns to an operational status after a failure.
4. Operations - Executes in a normal operational status.
5. Compliance (to process) - Developed in accordance with standards and procedures.
6. Security - Protects in accordance with importance to organization.
2. Functional Test Approaches
1. Requirements - Performs as specified (system testing).
2. Regression - Unchanged functionality still performs as it did prior to implementing the change.
3. Error Handling - Edits data/outputs and reports problems for corrective action.
4. Manual Support - Processes needed by people to effectively use the software, such as documentation for users.
5. Interfaces/Intersystems - Data is correctly passed from machine to machine, or system to system.
6. Control - Reduce system risk to an acceptable level.
7. Parallel - Old system and new system are run in production, and the results compared to detect unplanned differences and validate that each system produces the same results.
8. Acceptance Testing - Meets user operational needs.
4. Quality Attributes - Understanding the characteristics of software that needs definition and testing, such as correctness, reliability, efficiency, integrity, usability, maintainability, testability, flexibility, portability, reusability, and interoperability.