COURSE OBJECTIVE:
• Produce better software products by truly understanding the entire test planning process and its critical effect on product success or failure
• Different types of tests required to produce a market-worthy «Goldrelease
• Test cases and planning for their timely development and execution
• Quickly obtain organizational commitment to your test plan
• Use a thorough and powerful traceability matrix to guarantee the comprehensiveness of your testing
• Accomplish risk planning and management for fail-safe testing activities
• Track and manage the testing effort and take corrective action to avoid costly human or technical errors
• Capture relevant stakeholder buy-in for your testing effort to eliminate delays, surprises, and unintended consequences
• Integrate your test plans with other project plans to guarantee their relevance and effectiveness
TARGET AUDIENCE:
Quality analysts, engineers, and managers, Testers and testing leads, Project managers and Software engineers.
COURSE PREREQUISITES:
• There are no prerequisites for this course.
COURSE CONTENT:
1. The Test Planning Process
• How testing fits within the software development lifecycle
• Role and use of a test plan
• How the test plan relates to other plans (e.g. Project plan & Quality plan)
• Inputs to test planning
• Outputs from test planning
• Perform peer reviews of the test plan
• Obtain organizational commitment to the test plan
• Track progress against the test plan, report status, and re-plan
2. Test Plan: Scope and Lifecycle
• Requirements against which the testing will be done
• Define the goals and objectives for testing
• Boundaries : What will and will not be tested
• Phases and steps in the testing lifecycle
• How the testing lifecycle integrates with the project lifecycle
• Specific entry criteria: How you know when testing can begin
• Specific exit criteria: How you know when testing is complete
• Testing services that will be purchased rather than done in-house
3. Test Plan: Traceability Matrix
• List every requirement and goal or objectives in one place
• List every test and test case in one place
• Map requirements to test cases
• Assure that every requirement has at least one test case
• Assure that every test case corresponds to at least one requirement
• Avoid overkill (or under emphasis) in testing
• Determine the impact of skipping test cases
4. Test Plan: Required Tests
• Tests for functional requirements
• Tests for performance requirements
• Tests for security and safety requirements
• Tests for usability, maintainability, and other requirements
• Define objectives and success criteria for each test
• Document each test in the traceability matrix
• Use the traceability matrix to assure complete coverage
5. Test Plan: Test Cases
• Test cases required to satisfy the objectives for each test
• Identify positive, negative, boundary and special test cases
• Define objectives and success criteria for each test case
• Document each test case in the traceability matrix
• Use the traceability matrix to assure complete coverage
6. Test Plan: Test Case Size Estimates
• Test case description and instructions
• Input data and/or database records required by the test case
• Output data and/or database records the test case will produce
• Special resources required by the test case
• Execution time for the test case
7. Test Plan: Resources
• Testing and test case development environment (e.g. hardware, operating systems, networks, software, databases)
• Specify any special systems (e.g. test automation, defect tracking)
• Enumerate knowledge and skills needed
• Plan for hiring, contracting, and training
8. Test Plan: Effort, Cost, Budget, and Schedule
• Activities required to produce and execute all of the test cases, track defects, and retest and all of the other tasks
• associated with the testing lifecycle
• Estimate the effort required based on the size estimates and identified activities
• Identify all costs (e.g. labor, equipment, software contracted work)
• Establish a schedule for all testing-related activities
• Spread the costs across the schedule to produce a budget
• Validate budget and schedule against project constraints
• Resolve budget or schedule issues
9. Test Plan: Risks
• Brainstorm a testing-related risk list
• Group and consolidate risks
• Quantify risk probability and impact
• Make risk tracking plans
• Make risk mitigation plans
• Make risk contingency plans
10. Test Plan: Management, Tracking, and Reporting
• Measurements that will be used in tracking and managing the testing activities
• How the data and reports that are generated by the testing process will be stored, managed, and made available
• How often testing status will be checked and who will participate in status checking activities
• Triggers for corrective actions when the testing activities deviate from the plan
• What must happen when the test plan must be updated
• Identify all individuals and groups that have a stake in the testing activities
• How the stakeholders will be involved and kept informed about testing-related activities
FOLLOW ON COURSES:
Web Testing Core Fundamentals
The Test Automation Workshop
Agile & High Speed Testing Techniques