What is software testing ?

What is Software Testing? | Complete Guide for Beginners

Software Testing is an essential phase of the SDLC (Software Development Life Cycle) that ensures quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) of software applications. It verifies that the application meets client requirements and works as expected.

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Difference Between Quality Assurance and Quality Control

✔ Quality Assurance (QA)

QA ensures that proper processes are followed to deliver a high-quality software product. It focuses on process improvement and prevention of defects.

Example: If users perform online payments and a payment failure occurs frequently, then QA has failed because the system did not ensure reliability.

• Product-driven approach
• Ensures confidence for clients and customers
• Applied on stable software

✔ Quality Control (QC)

QC focuses on detecting defects in the actual software application.

• Process-based approach
• Identifies bugs through testing cycles
• Implemented in different software versions

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How Software Testing Works?

Software testing checks whether the Actual Result (AR) of the application matches the Expected Result (ER) defined in:

• SRS – Software Requirement Specification
• FRS – Functional Requirement Specification

AR == ER → Test Passed
If not → Test Failed

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Types of Software Testing

Testing is broadly classified into three categories:

• 1) Functional Testing
• 2) Non-Functional Testing
• 3) Maintenance Testing

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1) Functional Testing

Functional testing verifies the functionality of an application with reference to SRS and FRS.

Example: Testing a login form with valid and invalid credentials.

There are more than 100 functional testing types in the QA industry. Some important ones include:

• Blackbox Testing
• White-box Testing
• Gray-box Testing
• Alpha Testing
• Beta Testing
• Smoke Testing
• Sanity Testing
• Unit Testing
• Integration Testing
• System Testing

UI Testing (Sub-type of Functional Testing)

It checks:

• Layout
• Color combinations
• Images
• Spacing & margins
• Fonts
• Navigation

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2) Non-Functional Testing

This testing checks the performance, speed, usability, reliability, and security of an application.

Important Types of Non-Functional Testing:

• Performance Testing
• Load Testing
• Stress Testing
• Volume Testing
• Endurance Testing
• Scalability Testing

Example: Measuring page load time or checking performance under high traffic.

Standard Load Time Scores:

• 0.5 – 3 seconds → Excellent
• 3 – 5 seconds → Good
• 5 – 7 seconds → Average
• > 7 seconds → Poor

Popular Tool: GTMetrix

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3) Maintenance Testing

Maintenance testing is performed once the application is live in production.

It is used when:

• New features are added
• Bugs arise during real user interactions
• Software updates are released

Handled by: Support Team / Maintenance Team

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Examples of Testing

Functional Testing Example

Test the Login, Registration, Search, Booking, and Transaction modules of an application like:

Sample App: EROOMRENT

Test Data: Valid email + Valid Password

Non-Functional Testing Example

Check performance, load time, UI responsiveness, and color consistency.

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Software Testing Process

1) Manual Testing

Testing without automation tools is called manual testing.

It is suitable for the Waterfall Model but slow for the Agile Model.

Documents in Manual Testing:

• Test Case Report
• Bug Report
• Test Tracking Report

Created using Excel or tools like JIRA.

Note: 100% automation is not possible because test planning and test data creation are always manual.

Examples of Manual Testing Types:

• Device Compatibility Testing
• Operating System Testing
• Cross Browser Testing
• Hardware & Software Testing
• GUI Testing
• Captcha Verification Testing

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2) Automation Testing

Automation testing uses scripts or tools to perform testing quickly and repeatedly.

Best for Regression Testing and large applications.

Popular Automation Tools:

• Selenium – Web Functional Testing
• QTP/UFT – Functional Testing
• Appium – Mobile App Automation
• LoadRunner – Performance Testing
• JUnit / TestNG – Unit Testing
• Postman, Cucumber – API Testing

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Conclusion

Software testing is a crucial process that ensures the application performs correctly, securely, and efficiently before reaching end users. A strong understanding of Functional, Non-Functional, and Maintenance Testing helps QA testers deliver high-quality software products.

Whether manual or automated, every testing phase contributes to the stability and success of the software.