#continuous testing in devops

We all understand the importance of software testing and how it transforms the goodwill of the business by enabling delivery of quality product to its clients in shorter delivery cycles. It becomes challenging to run the test cases manually by evaluating the quality of each line of code at every step of the continuous Delivery process. This is where Continuous testing in DevOps comes into picture.

Continuous testing in DevOps Pipeline

In traditional ways of testing the software used to pass through different development and QA phases which took more time until the final delivery of the product. According to a research by Gartner, Continuous testing in DevOps is aimed at providing early and quick detection of signs of risks related to the product release. DevOps Continuous Testing is an inevitable activity of the delivery process rather than just a mere stage in the delivery process. The main purpose is to inculcate quality into the CI/CD pipeline by utilizing the key benefits of continuous testing in DevOps. DevOps Continuous testing is a critical aspect responsible for seamless Continuous Delivery. It involves the usage of agile development methods and processes into the QA process further providing a productive testing process. Here are a few points to understand the benefits of Continuous testing in DevOps at the deeper levels: a. Provides Sustained Risk Analysis: There has never been any code build that is error free and in a ready-to-release form. Even if the final release candidate has come without any glitches, passes all the tests, it has to be ‘prepared well’ for the final release and approved by the business leaders. Continuous Testing evaluates the code at a deeper level to estimate all the possible risks connected to it so that a corrective action could be taken at the right time without breaking the ‘continuous delivery’ chain. b. Cuts down the feedback cycle: The key benefit of continuous testing is that it evaluates the code layer by layer at each stage of delivery pipeline, allowing testers to understand the source of the problem. The actionable insights helps the QA team to act on time and avoid longer queues c. Broader Test Coverage: A broad range of tests can be applied throughout the testing process with the help of continuous testing tools for DevOps such as Selenium, etc. It covers both functional and non-functional testing types to increase test coverage by emulating testing like cross-browser testing, API testing, regression testing, integrated testing, unit testing and non-functional testing like security, reliability, scalability, usability and many more. d. Delivering High Quality Product: ‘Test-early-test-often’ is the key mantra of continuous testing which is self explicable. In order to ensure delivery of high-quality product to the end user, there needs to be a process to continuously monitor the progress along the entire delivery pipeline. Achieving high product quality is the result of continuous testing that strives to finding and addressing risks effectively and by gaining feedback at the early phases of software development lifecycle. e. Faster Software Delivery: The whole point of introducing Continuous Testing in DevOps is to speed up the product delivery cycle. Following a multi-point testing at different stages allows the QA team to detect the glitches early and take quick corrective actions so that the final delivery is not impacted. f. Easy Integration with the DevOps Process: Continuous testing seamlessly integrated with the DevOps process right from the early stages of the development process rather than functioning just before the release. Continuous integration into the software pipeline enables quick fixes so that the development process can be aligned with the business requirements on time.

Tools for continuous testing in DevOps

For a seamless experience in the entire CI CD process, Continuous testing has to be supported by the best tools for continuous testing in DevOps. For performing smooth Continuous Testing, the Automation Framework has to be integrated with the CI tool, version control and various automated continuous testing DevOps tools to execute different types of testing at various stages of the process. For example, :

Using Selenium for performing functional testing

Load runner for performing load testing at its best,

Secure code analysis using Fortify and static code analysis using Sonar, etc.

Apart from these there are many other trusted DevOps Continuous testing tools available in the market for an efficient continuous testing, like JIRA, Jenkins, Bamboo, Docker, Appium, SoapUI, PagerDuty, CodeCluster etc. The concern is that not all the tools support comprehensive automation solution. Some organizations prefer to create self-made automation frameworks depending upon the version control used to enable complete automation of the CD pipeline. Since Continuous testing is the most critical aspect to be covered by the business in order to achieve quality product release, it has to be backed by the choice of right, suitable tools and frameworks to achieve speedy and quality delivery.

Challenges in DevOps Continuous Testing and how to overcome them

Even after understanding the advantages of adopting continuous testing in the DevOps process, many organizations face the challenges of successful implementation of it. Establishment of an efficient automation framework is a daunting deal as it involves a huge investment, expertise and effort. Moreover, the organizations are not equipped with the scalable infrastructure to run tests continuously. Also, without a strong coordination among the product, development and testing team, this seems even tougher. Although there are challenges in successful adoption of Continuous testing, with a little sensibility one can overcome it. Here are a few of the key points to comply in order to overcome the challenges :

By proper team engagement, the cultural and communication barriers can be dealt with enabling the SDLC team to have better coordination, collaboration and understanding of the scenarios.

Reducing unnecessary and extensive testing plans, the focus should be on keeping it simple and logical. Instead, the energy could be diverted to more important test objects in order to create much better measurable results.

Automation would ease the successful implementation of continuous testing in DevOps. Well, complete automation isn’t achievable but more the process automation, easier it becomes to carry on the continuous testing.

Carry out testing at all stages of production and QA environment would continuously providing feedback to developers to improvise on the product quality.

Last but not the least, implementing artificial intelligence and other intelligence programs for problem solving and to think beyond automation at every stage of delivery would boost up the SDLC.

The rapid technological developments in this digital era have led to a situation where a product’s capability is not the sole factor to win in the competitive market. In addition to meeting the pressing need or to outstrip competitive offerings, a product also must consider the pace of marketing and user’s experience. In these circumstances, the only choice left with software developers is to bring out apps that meet every requirement of customers, are updated regularly, and delivered on time, all the while making sure to provide a seamless user experience. There is just no room for error, leading to more and more developers opting for continuous testing.

There is a sea change occurring in the manner of software testing. Traditionally, it was performed after completion of the development cycle, causing production delays if any issues came up or bugs found. Now continuous testing is the norm right from the beginning of the software development life-cycle, and all through the development process. Today, testing quality is everyone’s responsibility. Developers keep identifying and resolving issues as and when they arise and deliver regular updated and error-free applications to the end users.

A Culture of Collaboration and Quality

As this is a technical change, it is imperative that the people involved in providing continuous testing services have the right mindset and develop the right tactics, considering testing to be everyone’s responsibility. As testing spreads out across the SDLC, developers and test engineers must find ways to build a mutual understanding of the standard level of quality and efficiency needed to be maintained right from the start of the development process.

Importance of Tests Automation

Testing must not be taken to mean an event that needs to be done at a certain point. Instead, it involves the application of a wide array of tests all through the testing process. This requires integration testing, unit testing, production testing, and automated end-to-end and regression testing. With continuous tests performed at different points all through the development process, it is possible to identify and fix issues with the functionality as well as performance and security. This helps in preventing any kind of obstacles to delay the release and cost the business a fortune.

Although tests performed should focus on variety, it is important to be consistent with automation. In automated testing, a test script is written that interacts with the functional elements of their code in an automated fashion. This helps the developers get immediate feedback on the quality of their code, as soon as they check in their code into the source control. No doubt, automated testing gives better scalability and reliability compared to manual testing.

Leverage Cloud Platform for Scalability and Speed

The whole process of establishing and maintaining the physical or virtual infrastructure and administering test across the various browsers, operating systems and mobile platforms can be both a costly and complex procedure. To get over the situation, cloud technology is providing enormous success. Now developers are making use of the cloud platform for cross-browser testing, helping in offloading all issues related to infrastructure on a daily basis, perform test across almost every type of browser/OS combination, and making sure to keep the test times to a minimum.

Developing a Well-Planned Approach to Analytics

In an optimal state, continuous testing solutions require a well-planned approach to analytics. It is necessary to incorporate a certain degree of analytics in the testing process to help in applying insights into the product team. With smart analytics, it is possible to detect the various functional issues like which mobile platforms and browsers are showing signs of failure and the level of consistency in the test results of an application.

In addition to functional testing, analytics could also be used to assess user experience and performance like how heavier traffic loads are impacting the user experience, and how new updates to the code are impacting the application performance. The availability of analytic insight helps developers to ensure that the software is developed and deployed with the quality built in.

Conclusion

The Digital Era Demands Continuous Testing

The executive leadership needs to recognize the fast change seen in the world around them. Mobile technologies and cloud-based applications are widely used for performing work at lightning speed. The focus now is more on seamless end-to-end customer experience.

In this digital era, the ability to bring out the best products and give the best digital experience remains the key to attract and retain customers ahead of your competitors. This is made less daunting by the successful application of continuous testing.

The implementation of digital initiatives has brought about positive changes for businesses. The changes range from simplifying procedures, quicker storage and retrieval of data, and a faster time to market for creating new revenue streams, better customer feedback mechanism, meeting compliance and addressing risks. The rapidly changing digital landscape means businesses have to quickly adapt to the latest technological developments. These developments relate to the areas of cloud, augmented reality, predictive analysis, artificial intelligence, robotics, big data, and IoT.

As digital initiatives bring a better value proposition for businesses and help in fine tuning the customer services, they have fuelled the customer appetite for better products/services as well. In order to reach faster to market and to ensure quality, development cum testing models have undergone changes. The changes have discarded the traditional waterfall model and have given way to Agile and DevOps.

In the DevOps model, continuous testing and delivery go hand in hand. The reasons pertain to their ability to quickly meet the rising consumer demand and address the quality issues. With continuous testing and integration being integral to DevOps, businesses can effectively deploy glitch free products and services. Moreover, they can carry out timely upgrade in line with customer feedback, changing technologies, or business objectives.

How can continuous testing services positively impact digital transformation?

The integration of QA services in the overall SDLC helps to quickly identify and eliminate glitches. It enables seamless integration of end to end product segments, thereby enhancing the user experience.

Check quality in real time: The widening scope of developing and deploying a software in real time implies that the code has to be tested on a continuous basis. The underlying objective is not to disrupt the customer experience. Any update to the software should, therefore, be done while it is in use. This makes the process complex and risk prone. To address such issues, continuous testing services should be made integral to the entire SDLC and beyond. It must be understood that along with developing new software products to edge out competition, ensuring the right customer experience is important as well.

Quick removal of glitches: The changing dynamics of customer behaviour imply that the software should be fine-tuned to suit the user requirements. This entails frequent changes in the codes across the SDLC. While this approach makes the software to incorporate the necessary changes, there is an increased risk of glitches too. A continuous testing framework validates the codes at every level, thereby ensuring their quality.

Constant monitoring of quality during test automation: The benefits of test automation in ensuring quality across the SDLC are well documented. However, the performance of the automated test scripts should be checked against a slew of test variables (real and virtualized) as well. As test scripts run across platforms, devices and networks, their quality needs to be top notch. And only continuous testing in a DevOps environment can ensure the quality and effectiveness of test scripts.

Increase the test coverage area: A continuous testing framework covers the entire SDLC and beyond through test automation. This leads to an increase in the test coverage area vis-a-vis a manual testing process. An enhanced testing area leads to the better identification of glitches.

Bring in more transparency: Continuous integration testing across the SDLC generates a slew of reports on the dashboard. The reports give a detailed result of the test right from the development to the deployment stage. These reports help the entire team of developers and testers to analyse the impact of test automation across platforms, devices and networks. The transparency of continuous testing in DevOps can enable teams to observe quality issues at first hand. Also, the reports showing the success or failure of tests can ensure better coordination between teams, functions and processes. The transparency can result in enhanced quality compliance across processes and sub processes.

Quicker testing process: As more test automation is implemented as a part of DevOps, it leads to a faster execution of test scripts. Thus, a quicker execution of test scripts leads to a better end to end integration and faster time to market.

Conclusion