
16 July 2024 Leave a comment QA
When writing automated UI tests, it’s common to encounter scenarios where one test depends on the success of another. This situation can lead to concerns about execution duplication and increased test run times. In this guide, we will explore strategies to manage test dependencies effectively while maintaining efficiency.
Types of Automated Tests
To address test dependencies, it is helpful to categorize your tests into two main types:
- Requirement Tests: These tests are independent and focus on verifying individual requirements. They are structured to provide evidence for industry compliance standards such as SOX or PCI.
- Regression Tests: These tests ensure that new code changes do not break existing functionality. While they are primarily independent, some tests may share common setup steps to reach a specific state within the application.
Managing Test Dependencies
Independent tests offer several advantages, such as isolating failures and ensuring comprehensive coverage. Here are some strategies to manage dependencies and minimize execution overhead:
Prioritization and Parallelization
To optimize execution time, consider the following approaches:
- Prioritization: Run tests that are most likely to find critical bugs and those impacted by recent code changes more frequently. Less critical tests can be executed less often.
- Parallelization: Leverage multiple machines or virtual environments to run tests simultaneously. Cloud services like Amazon Web Services can facilitate this, reducing overall execution time.
Minimizing Duplication
While some duplication is inevitable, you can minimize it through careful design:
- Common Setup Methods: Create shared methods for common setup steps. This ensures consistency and reduces redundancy.
- Efficient Navigation: In web applications, navigate directly to the required state (e.g., using URL manipulation) rather than through the UI.
Independent Tests in Practice
Consider a scenario where you need to test a login functionality followed by an action that requires a logged-in state:
- Test 1: Verify the login functionality.
- Test 2: Perform an action that requires a logged-in state.
By designing Test 2 to include the necessary login steps, you ensure it can run independently. This approach avoids hiding potential failures in Test 2 due to issues in Test 1.
Conclusion
Balancing test independence with execution efficiency is crucial for effective automated UI testing. By categorizing tests, prioritizing and parallelizing execution, and minimizing duplication, you can achieve reliable and efficient test runs.
For those seeking a streamlined approach to test automation, Repeato offers a no-code solution for iOS and Android applications. Repeato leverages computer vision and AI to create, run, and maintain automated tests quickly and efficiently. Its user-friendly interface and robust features make it an excellent choice for quality assurance professionals.