Extensive Testing in Software Testing: What It Is & How to Perform It

As technology and industry become more complex, so does software. Any app or site being developed must now cater to the preferences and needs of people from different regions, demographic segments and life experiences. To make sure that people with such differing requirements get what they want out of an app or website, Quality Assurance engineers need to perform something called Extensive Testing.

What is Extensive Testing?

Extensive testing, also known as exhaustive testing, involves verifying a software program’s response to all input combinations. Like the name suggests, it requires QAs to run all input combinations into the system and monitor results. 

You test the software exhaustively – every function, every UI element, every UX metric. This technique provides a 360-degree analysis of the app’s functionality and user experience. It is directly responsible for improving software efficiency and usability for end-users. 

It’s important to understand that you can never test every possible scenario, simply because that is impossible to predict. There will always be a minor user scenario left untested, but comprehensive testing will ensure that the flaws left behind are not big enough to affect UX.

However, modern extensive testing comes very close to eliminating all bugs but attacking the system with every possible input variable. Needless to say, it’s a time-consuming technique, but it produces bug-free software.

How to perform Extensive testing

The following strategies are commonly deployed as part of an extensive testing approach:

• Monitor the application’s recovery rate through self-analysis by the dev team. Functions with high recovery require less testing than the ones with low recovery.
  
• Run regression tests after every bug fix to validate that all functions are working as expected after any system changes.
  
• Run risk assessments on the application to estimate how certain low-recovery functions can impact other software components. These are the functions that require a closer look via extensive testing.
  
• Look at all previous tests and narrow in on the features that are most likely to fail. The failing modules are the ones that require extensive testing.
  
• Use ad-hoc testing and break down testing for individual modules to detect minor defects.
  
• Reach out to stakeholders (analysts, product managers, customer support personnel) – and get reviews on the app’s workings. This will add more perspective to your quality control operations.
  
• Use focus testing to craft relevant user scenarios for more precise, targeted testing.
  
• Revise and refresh test cases for every test that requires different variables. Since extensive testing requires pushing all input variables, this is an essential step. 

When should you make test automation a part of extensive testing?

You should incorporate test automation into your extensive testing plans when you come across the following scenarios in your SDLC:

• When the project requires QAs to run a large number of repetitive tests, such as regression testing. Some tests require the same user actions, but with different input values each time. These tests can also, for the most part, be automated.
  
• When it’s most cost effective to automate the extensive tests. Manually testing every or most features of an application would require hiring a large number of testers. It would also take these testers more time to finish their tasks, because humans move slower than machines. Without automation, releasing software would take many more weeks or months – leading to a longer time to market and killing the app’s competitive value.
  
• When you need to scale up your testing capacity by running tests simultaneously or in parallel. Most modern QA teams, even large ones, can only do so much in a few weeks with running parallel tests. Automation engines like TestSigma are required to empower QAs and get more done in a short measure of time.
  
• When you cannot afford to be undone by human error from tired and overworked testing. Extensive testing requires extensive work. Manually testers cannot be expected to stay up for days on end, scan through software functions and provide 100% accurate results. However, this is a common expectation from a test automation tool. It does not get tired and it does not make mistakes. 

How to perform automated extensive testing with Testsigma

Testsigma is a cloud-based test automation platform that lets you automate your end-to-end UI tests for web, mobile, desktop applications and APIs from the same place. 

Testsigma also lets you automate your tests in simple English, thus you don’t need to worry about coding. 

Testsigma is a complete platform where you can easily author, execute and get reports for test execution in very short time.

With all above features and more, Testsigma is a perfect tool to augment your extensive testing.

Summary

Extensive testing is the last line of defense against major bugs in any software system. It casts a wide net for bugs, anomalies and errors that may tarnish user experience for end-users. It is the final filter in Quality Assurance processes – a time-consuming filter with multiple techniques and strategies to eliminate as many software issues as humanly possible. 

Frequently Asked Questions

When should you perform extensive testing?

Extensive testing should be the final step in the testing cycle. After all other tests have been executed, extensive testing comes in to validate the entire software system. Of course, it is possible to insert elements or techniques of extensive testing at different intervals within the testing pipeline. For example, insert regression tests after every major bug fix, perform risk assessments before testing commences, use focused testing to zero in on sensitive software areas, etc.