Foundation Level Overview Alexandar Despotovici About ISTQB founded

Foundation Level Overview Alexandar Despotovici

About ISTQB �founded in November 2002 �a not-for-profit association �legally registered in Belgium �in Romania, since 2007 ISTQB trainings and certifications are done by ANIS (Employers’ Association of the Software and Services Industry) �Trainings by ANIS are done in partnership with Quality House Bulgaria �ANIS is handling exams by an agreement with SEETB (South East European Testing Board)

Geographic coverage

ISTQB Levels

Fondation Level

Learning materials �Foundatin Level Syllabus �Standard glossary of terms used in Software Testing �Learning materials from Quality House: � Over 400 slides of training material � Basics of Software-Testing �Books: � Software Testing Foundations: A Study Guide for the Certified Tester Exam; A. Spillner, T. Linz, H. Schaefer � Software Testing - An ISTQB-ISEB Foundation Guide – Second Edition; B. Hambling, P. Morgan, A. Samaroo, G. Thomson, P. Wiliams � Foundations of Software Testing - ISTQB Certification; D. Graham, E. van Veenendaal, I. Evans, R. Black �Exercises and sample exams

Training �Takes 3 days �Mainly is theoretical but there also some exercises �All syllabus is covered with more focus on some important parts �In day three is an mock exam

Exam �The exam is structured on multiple-choice questions �Each question has only one correct answer �Number of questions and length of exams are: � 40 questions �length = 1 h (75 minutes for candidates taking exams not in their native language) �Questions are defined in a very strict way �Exams can be held without attending the course �To pass the exam 26 correct answers are needed �Promovability is 75%

Exam Questions �Questions are selected according to defined set of rules: �Proportional distribution of questions on the basis of Syllabus chapters topics. Section 1– 7 questions � Section 2 – 6 questions � Section 3 – 3 questions � Section 4 – 12 questions � Section 5 – 8 questions � Section 6 – 4 questions � �Distribution of questions on the basis of different types: � K 1 = Remember (mnemonic contents), � K 2 = Understand (conceptual contents), � K 3 = Apply (exercise that requires the use of testing notions or techniques) � K 4 = Analyze (exercise that requires also a contextual analysis)

Fondation Level

SW Testing Fundamentals Error Bug Failure �Error – it’s a mistake made by a person (the cause) �Bug=Defect=Fault=Problem – A flaw in a component or system �Failure – Actual deviation of the component or system from its expected delivery, service or result. � Defect Masking - It is possible that a fault is hidden by one or more other faults in different parts of the application

SW Testing Fundamentals Testing is not debugging! �Testing can show failures that are caused by defects �Debuging is a development activity that identifies the cause of defect, repairs the code and checks that the defect has been fixed correctly �The responsability for each activity is different �Testers test �Developers debug

SW Testing Fundamentals �Principle 1: Testing shows the presence of defects, not their absence �Principle 2: Exhaustive testing is not possible �Principle 3: Testing activities should start as early as possible �Principle 4: Defects tend to cluster together �Principle 5: The pesticide paradox �Principle 6: Testing is context dependent �Principle 7: Absence-of-errors fallacy

SW Testing Fundamentals �what and how is going to be tested �fine detail of what to test (test conditions) �the most visible part of testing �at the end of test execution �making sure that everything is tided away

Fondation Level

Testing Throughout the SW Life Cycle

Testing Throughout the SW Life Cycle �Test types � Functional testing – WHAT the system does � Black-box testing � Includes Security and Interoperability testing � Non-functional testing – HOW the system works � Usability testing � Stress testing � Storage testing � Performance testing � Recovery testing � Volume testing � Installability testing � Documentation testing � Load testing � Structural testing – white-box testing � Testing related to changes � Re-testing � Regression testing

Fondation Level

Static Techniques Review Proces Walktrough Informal Review Technical Reviews Inspections What Req & Design Everything Specs & Code Approach Informal Formal Why/when Before detail Always* Before detail Before sign off Lead by Author(s) Peer Technical Expert Moderator Addressed to IT & Business Author(s)/ Project team *Always: can be done at all points when a document is released

Static Techniques �Static Analisys by tools �Is performed without actually executing the software being examined by tool; dynamic testing does execute the software code �Can locate defects that are hard to find in testing �Finds defects rather than failures �Atatic Analisys tools: � Analyze program code, as well as generated output as HTML and XML � Typically used by: � Developers – before and during component testing � Designers – during software modelling

Fondation Level

Test Design Techniques �The purpose of test design techniques is to identify test conditions and test cases �Some techniques fall clearly into a single category, others have elements of more than one category �The syllabus refers to: �Specification-based approaches as black-box techniques �Structure-based approaches as white-box techniques �Experience-based approaches

Test Design Techniques �Black box testing focuses on functionality �Black box test techniques �Equivalence Partitioning �Boundry Value Analysis �Decision Table (Cause Effect Graphing) �State Transition �Use Case Testing �Syntax Testing �Random Testing

Test Design Techniques �White box testing focuses on code �White box test techniques �Statement Testing �Decision Testing �Branch Condition Combination Testing �Modified Condition Decision Testing �Linear Code Sequence & Jump (LCSAJ) �Data Flow Testing

Test Design Techniques �In the Experience-based testing the tests are derived from the tester’s skills, intuition and experience �Error guessing –a technique where the tester’s experience is used �Exploratory testing – an informal test design technique where the tester actively controls the design of the tests

Fondation Level

Test Management

Test Management �Test planning and estimation �Test planning �Entry criteria �Exit criteria �Test estimation �Test strategy and approach �Test progress monitoring and control �Test progress monitoring �Test reporting �Test control

Test Management � Risk – a factor that could result in future negative consequences, usually expressed as impact and likelihood � Level of risk = probability of the risk occurring × impact if it did happen � Project risks � Supplier issues: � � Failure of a third party to deliver on time or at all Contractual issues, such as meeting acceptance criteria � Organisational factors � Skills, training and staff shortages � Personal issues � Technical issues � Test environment not ready on time � Problems in defining the right requirements � Product risks � Failure-prone software delivered � The potential that a defect in the software/hardware could cause harm to an individual or company � Software that does not perform its intended functions.

Test Management �Incident management �„The process of recognising, investigating, taking actionand disposing of incidents. ” �It involves recording incidents, classifying them and identifying the impact. �The process of incident management ensures that incidents are tracked from recognition to correction, and finally through retest and closure. �Configuration management �For testers, configuration management helps to uniquely identify (and to reproduce) the tested item, test documents, the tests and the test harness(es)

Fondation Level

Tool support of testing �Types of Test Tools: � Tool support for management of testing and tests � Test management tools � Requirements management tools � Incident management tools (Defect Tracking Tools) � Configuration management tools � Tool support for static testing � Review tools � Static analysis tools � Modeling tools � Tool support for test specification � Test design tools � Test data preparation tools � Tool support for test execution and logging � Tool support for performance and monitoring

Tool support of testing �Stages in the process of introducing a tool into an organisation �Objectives of the Pilot Project �Success factors for the tool deployment

http: //www. istqb. org/