How to report an issue using a bug report template? cover

Bug Report Template | A Step-by-Step Guide to Reporting Issues in Software

In the software development lifecycle, reporting a bug issue is essential. If done correctly will improve the productivity of the development team. Otherwise, it can slow down the entire pipeline. Hence, it would be best always to write a good and detailed bug report template that can help the development team find and fix the bug without facing any challenges.

From helping developers with errors swept under the carpet to knowing how the customers use the software, learn it with a detailed bug report template. You will also learn how to make the bug reporting process easier for your team.

What is a Bug Report?

In software testing, a bug report is detailed information that includes all the smaller and required details about the bug issue. A document ranging from 2 to 20 pages has stack traces, device logs, predicted and actual outcomes, and other pertinent information about the particular bug and error.

For example- what exactly the bug is, in which environment you are facing the bug issue, visual proof of the bug, how to regenerate the bug, what is the priority of that issue, what were you expecting and what happened, etc.

Generally, the flow starts with a tester finding and writing a bug report while software testing and sending it to the development team to find and fix it.

What an Ideal Bug Report Template Includes?

Good bug reporting gets the bugs fixed. A clear bug report Detect and explain the bug to the developer. It should also be specific and reproducible. When you send your bug report to the development team, they will be looking for some detailed information, don’t forget to mention the following points in your bug report:

  1. Description: Write a short description that describes the exact problem you faced; it helps the developer to get a quick idea about the bug.
  2. Environment: Let your developer know about the environment where you are facing a problem. It will make it easy for the development team to run the source code in the same environment and fix the bug.
  3. Visual proof: A short video or screenshot is always good to add; sometimes, different types of bugs are alike; in that case, a visual proof helps to identify the difference between bugs.
  4. Steps to reproduce: You must be specific about how you encountered the bug. For example, if you are testing a website, share the exact URL where you faced it; in the case of an app, share the exact steps you have taken.
  5. Expected result: You should not think it’s evident for the developer to know about the expected output; make it clear, and talk about the output you think should be there. Talk about what you were trying to do and what you were expecting.
  6. Actual result: Talk about the output that is not expected, so is a bug, what happened when you didn’t get the exact result, etc.
  7. Severity: Suppose the developer has more than one bug report. If the severity of the bug issue is mentioned, he can decide which one should be fixed first.

Ensure your report has the necessary information to identify and fix the problem quickly.

What is a Bug Report Template?

A bug report template is just a placeholder that reminds you to mention all the critical and required points while writing a bug report. A good bug report template helps you write a detailed bug report and ensures the required information related to the bug issue is mentioned in the report.

For example, a sample bug report template will look like the given picture below-

Bug ID  
Date  
Description  
Environment  
Visual Proof  
Steps to reproduce  
Expected Result  
Actual Result  
Severity  

How to Write a Bug Report?

To write a bug report, you have to select a bug report template first, which can be found by searching on the internet. Copy the chosen bug report template and paste whatever you use as a bug management tool. Now, fill up the required information mentioned as placeholders.

For example, a bug report will look similar to the given picture below-

Bug ID #example_test-01
Date 11/11/2022
Description Login button is not working
Environment windows
Visual Proof Some sample visual proof 1. First image, 2. Second image
Steps to reproduce Step-1, Step-2, Step-3………Step-N
Expected Result Should show a login page
Actual Result Showing a 404 error
Severity High

Advantages Of Using a Bug Report Template

The importance of accuracy and efficiency in achieving optimal performance for a web project or application cannot be overstated. Ensuring that the team runs like a well-oiled machine is essential for success.

  1. Improved communication: A bug report template helps everyone involved with the issue know what’s going on. It ensures that all the important info is included, so there won’t be any mix-ups or confusion.
  2. Efficient bug tracking: A bug report template makes it easier to track any bugs you find. It has a standardized format helps you organize the bugs, decide which ones are more important and keep track of them all. This saves time and helps you get more done!
  3. Consistency in reporting: Bug report templates help make sure that everyone reports bugs in the same way. That makes it easier to compare different reports and spot similarities. It also helps us figure out what’s happening more quickly, so we can fix the problem faster.
  4. Reduced duplication of effort: A bug report template helps ensure all the important stuff is included, so you don’t have to keep going back and forth between the tester and the developer. That way, it can get fixed faster and save time and energy.
  5. Improved bug resolution: Using bug report templates can help developers fix problems faster. Giving them the correct info makes it easier for them to figure out what’s wrong and how to fix it. This means bugs get fixed quicker, and the software is better quality overall.

How to Report an Issue Using a Bug Report Template?

You will need a bug report template to report an issue, which you can get by searching on Google. Copy the template you want to use and paste it into your bug reporting tool. For example, I use JIRA as a bug reporting and managing tool. To report a bug issue, I will find a suitable template by searching on google, then copy and paste it into Jira, and finally write the issue. The template which I copied can be seen in the picture below –

Bug report template pic

But the problem with this approach is that every time I report a bug issue, I have to repeat the same process of copying and pasting the template and adding information to it to make it a detailed bug report. Here, instead of adding information manually and repeating myself, which is even error-prone and time-consuming, I can integrate JIRA with Testsigma to generate an account and report a bug issue in one click. Let’s see how Jira and other bug-reporting tools can be integrated with Testsigma.

How to Integrate the Jira Account with Testsigma?

To brief a little, Testsigma is an open-source and cloud-based test automation tool. Jira is a bug management tool that helps manage bugs by setting a priority tag and assigning the bug issue to a team member. To integrate my Jira account with Testsigma, I’d take the following steps:

1. Create an account: Sign up using email id or google account to create a Testsigma account, then log in to account.

Integrate Jira (bug management tool) with Testsigma

2. Go to setting: Open the ⚙️setting menu by navigating to the left sidebar, a new admin setting page will be open where all available plugins can be seen:

Testsigma -Admins settings -plugins

3. Open the plugin page: If you are not on the plugin page by clicking on the setting, then click on the Plugins which is at the top of the left sidebar. By clicking, a new window will open where you will able to see all the available plugins you can integrate –

Open the plugin page

4. Integration of Jira: In my case, I am integrating Jira, but you can do the same for other tools as well; the integration process will not be much different. Now, I will find the Jira plugin where I will be able to see if it’s already integrated, I will click on it. By clicking, a popup window will open and ask for the following details:

  • Account URL: Your Jira account URL, for example- abc.atlassian.net.
  • User name: Jira user name.
  • API key: API key generated for your Jira account.
  • Confirm API key: Same API key for confirmation.
Integration of Jira(Bug Management Tool)

By providing the required information correctly and clicking on the create a button, my Jira account integration with Testsigma will be done with a success message. Now, to generate a bug report, I have to test any application and see if any there are any bugs in my app.

I will take the travel web app as an example and write test cases for my application in Testsigma platform using NLP’s, i.e., prewritten test cases in plain English.

Now, let’s talk about adding a project to Testsigma and writing test cases in detail.

How to write test cases using NLP’s in Testsigma?

Testsigma makes it easy to write test cases by implementing the NLPs, which are in plain English. You can write complex test cases and automate testing without coding knowledge using these NLPs. You can start writing the test cases by going through the following steps:

1. Add your project: Open your Testsigma account, hover over the create new button in the top right corner, and click on the Project in the popup menu.

Add your project in Testsigma

2. Your project name: A new window will open, give your project name and then click on the create button to create a new project. You can also enable a toggle button to add multiple applications to a project.

3. Test cases name: Start creating test cases by clicking on the Create Test Case button in the top right corner. Then, a new window will open and ask for the name of your test case and URL if you are testing a web application like me, then click on the record steps.

In case you are writing the test case for other applications, you can refer to this documentation for testing Android, and iOS application.

Test Case Creation

4. Write test steps: On the test step creation page, you have two options to create test steps- creating the test manually or recording test steps using the Testsigma test step recorder, generate your test steps by manually writing or using the recorder which is recommended.

Write test steps

5. Run test steps: Once you will create your test steps, you can perform ad hoc run, but to report a bug issue for any failed test cases, you have to run your test plans.

6. Run test plans: To run your test plans, click on the test plans in the left sidebar and select your test suites, select one or more test machine in which you wants to run your test suites, and run the test plan by clicking on the Run button on the top right corner.

Run test plans

Now, to see the final result of the test suites, open the run result page by clicking on the Run Result menu from the left sidebar. Here you will be able to see the execution of your test suites and whether they passed or not. By clicking on any individual test suite you will be able to see the detailed report of passed, failed, or partially passed test cases.

final result of the test suites

Select any test suites, and all the test cases will be visible in the middle of the screen. Click on any test case which you think is a bug issue and want to report, a new window will open like the given picture below where you will be able to see all the test steps and which one is passed or failed-

test steps - passed or failed

Click on the 🐞bug icon in the top right corner to report a bug issue. A new window will allow you to write a brief about the bug issue and report it. Doing so will generate a detailed bug report and share it over the integrated Jira account.

Furthermore, you can manage the bug in your Jira account by assigning the bus issue to a team member, adding a label, etc.

Conclusion

Bug reporting in software testing is a crucial part of the software development life cycle. A bug report template can help to ensure that you are writing a detailed bug report without missing any critical points, which will help the development team to find and fix bugs without facing any challenges.

As we have seen manually writing all the smaller details for each bug issue is not a good idea. Instead, automate the repetitive task of testing and reporting using automation tools that are accurate and efficient.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I Report a Bug in Excel?

To report a bug in Excel, you can follow these steps:

  • Open Excel and go to the “File” menu.
  • Click on “Help” and then “Send a Frown.
  • “Explain what’s wrong in detail and add pictures if you can.
  • Hit “Send” to submit the bug report to Microsoft.

What is a Bug Summary Report?

A bug summary report is like a record of all the problems found when testing something. It has information like the number assigned to each problem, what it’s about, how serious it is, how important it is to fix, if it’s been taken care of yet, and when it was first noticed. The report helps track which issues have been fixed and which ones must be taken care of first.

How do I Write a Bug Report Template?

To write a bug report template, here’s what to do: Figure out the info you need to include, like the bug’s title, what it does, how to make it happen, how serious it is, and how quickly it needs to be fixed. Make a format with sections for each of those pieces of info. Give examples or instructions on how to fill out each section, so everyone knows what they’re doing. Try using your template yourself and tweak anything that doesn’t work. Finally, share the template with your team so everyone can use it.

Suggested Reading

Defect Tracking Tool

Techniques to prevent software Bugs

QA Automation Tool

Defect leakage in Software Testing

Entry and Exit Criteria

Software Testing Strategy

Top Software Testing Trends

KPIs of Software Testing

How write Bug Report?

Testers Guide to deal with Missed Bugs


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