Best Practices For Evaluating Automation Tool

Tushar Sharma — Tue, 16 Feb 2016 14:08:20 +0000

Best Practices For Evaluating Automation Tool | As Published On Automation Dojos

With rapidly changing financial conditions, businesses face the tough challenge of optimizing resources to produce maximum results. Choosing the right automation tool for functional testing is one of the important tasks in doing so.

The rising popularity and emerging technologies have brought in several testing tools into the market which makes it difficult for organizations to identify the right one for their testing needs.

You have to compare different testing tools and apply the functionality to your business processes to gauge the performance of the tool. Here are certain best practices that need to be followed while evaluating automated testing tools.

1. Feature set

When looking at the tool, one of the important aspects is the feature set. The first benefit of automation is the ease and efficiency it offers for testing purposes. This is what allows you to run automated scripts on multiple codes while you perform other tasks as well.

Recording & Playback

Among the feature set, the first one to look at is the recording and playback feature. Without this feature, the automation tool is not complete. Again, you should check how well it supports low-level recording. The tool should effectively record keyboard clicks and mouse clicks and identify objects as well. When you playback the script, it should be easy to read and understand.

Object Recognition, Verification and Repository

Another important functionality required by an automated testing tool is the ability to recognize and validate objects while storing them in a repository. As you run multiple scripts, the tool identifies hundreds of objects, standard and custom ones. It should offer an effective mechanism to separately identify each object while associated object attributes as well.

Having a central repository is a desirable option. When you change the name of the object, would you be able to use the object without affecting any part of the application? So, the best thing is to check how the object name mapping system is designed for the tool.

Another desirable feature is image testing. The tool should recognize images and compare one with others. So, check if the tool supports Optical Character Recognition (OCR).

Web Testing

With the internet explosion storming the IT segment, it has become inevitable for every business to perform web testing at some point of time. While choosing the automated testing tool, there are certain areas to look at.

Does the tool support HTML tables, DOM structure, links and site maps? In addition, the tool should know whether a page is completely loaded, links are working and images are loaded correctly. In addition, web page objects needs to be identified. You would need to input and extract data on web pages as well. Moreover, the performance of the tool on different networks, platforms and environments requires a check.

Environment support

While web testing is important, native application support is the basic requirement as well. The automation tool you choose should support your office environment. There are certain tools that work only with windows desktop environment while others support web testing only. For instance, does the tool support the latest Java update or .NET update?

Here are certain supporting features that need your consideration

Mobile Testing support
Windows Support
Supported browsers
Supported frameworks
File uploading options / Dialog-box options
Supported environments

Depending on your testing requirements, you should choose one.

Database Support

With stringent database management policies imposed by governing authorities, storing business data has become a crucial aspect for businesses. While creating applications, you should be able to effectively store and retrieve data. As most database management systems use SQL for storing and retrieving data, the tool should support SQL or likewise data query language. In addition, protocols like ODBC, JDBC or equivalent are used to transfer data to and fro from the databases. This is another important consideration as well. At the same time, the application should be able to interact with spreadsheets and files to store and extract data. So, the support for database functions is important as well.

Failure Recovery

The basic purpose of testing applications is to make them error-free and efficient. On doing so, you would encounter errors and failures. When you encounter one, how well does the automated tool handle the failure? Is it easy to build this into the code? So, check out how the tool identifies errors and handles them.

Integration with other tools

While performing functional testing, you might have to move between different test management tools. So, the question here is how well does the tool integrate with other testing frameworks? When integrating with other tools, how is the performance etc?

2. Minimum functionality

While having multiple features is always a great idea, it is of no use if the functionality of the tool is not up to the mark. There are certain basic functions that are performed on a regular basis and the automated tool should be able to produce high-quality results. Here are some of the minimum functionalities expected from an automated tool.

Are you able to launch the browser and load the requested URL?
Is the tool able to validate images and text?
How is the performance of the tool with respect to data driven testing?
Are users able to login into the application?
How easy is the navigation part?
How effective is the Record & Playback feature?
Are you able to edit and re-run scripts?
How effective is the error recovery option?
What about Parameterization?
Reports and analysis of test results

3. Usability

The third important aspect to look at is the Usability. Right from installing the product to using various functions, the tool should be easy to use. The installation should be simple and self-explanatory. And, check if coding knowledge is required to run scripts and how long does it take to run scripts. In addition, what does the tool offer for debugging tasks? Does the tool provide adequate documentation and support?

4. Performance

The performance of the automated tool while running multiple scripts is important as well. It is to be robust enough to support enterprise applications. Check how long it takes to create a script and what is the script running time. Moreover, does the tool offer test management tools to effectively track and monitor test progress? And another important consideration is the consistency of test results. The system requirements for the tool need to be considered as well.

5. Technical Support

While the tool offers extensive features, there should be adequate help and support to resolve technical issues. Check out the support options offered by the tool. While some products offer dedicated support, open-source testing tools generally do not have one. They have large communities and forums wherein you can find resolutions to several issues. However, if you experience any new issue, you will have to create your own resolution or wait for someone to post one.

6. Price

Finally, the price is an important factor as well. Today, some of the leading automated testing tools available in the market are very expensive. At the same time, there are open-source testing tools that are free to download and use. However, it is not a good idea to directly look at the price.

If the tool is expensive, consider the sophistication offered by the tool.

Does it require knowledge and expertise of coding which in turn results in the recruitment of skilled testers? At the same time, if the testing is quick and effective, it improves the development cycle of the product and thereby increases your revenues

While considering the price, the total ROI needs to be calculated that includes the price, licensing, support and maintenance. There are times when staffing, testing time and complexity of testing impact the revenues of the company. So, consider all these factors.

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